True Christianity

10. Such judgments of God are executed daily, but are rightly understood only by believing and holy souls, according to the words of the Psalm: “With thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.” Ps. 91:8. This saying is not to be understood according to carnal passions and affections, but it is to be considered spiritually; for it imports that we are to give unto the Lord our God, the praise of his righteousness; and to say, “Righteous art thou, O Lord, and upright are thy judgments” (Ps. 119:137); and “The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works.” Ps. 145:17. Thus holy and believing souls delight to see the wonderful judgments of God; yet not according to the flesh, so as to rejoice over the destruction and perdition of the wicked (which would proceed from self-revenge); but, according to the spirit, they take delight, that is, they acknowledge and praise the righteousness of God, who fulfilleth his word, and is a righteous God. And at the same time, they lament and weep over the perdition of the wicked, even as our Saviour wept over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41); and as David wept over Absalom. 2 Sam. 18:33.

11. So, then, we are here to have a twofold respect, namely, to God and to men. If we look upon the destruction of men, we are justly to be sorrowful; but if we look upon God, we are to praise his justice, for he doeth wrong unto none. Ps. 92:15.

Chapter XXXIII.

Showing How The Loving Soul Considers God As The Eternal Wisdom

Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world.– Acts 15:18.

God ordains, governs, moves, and regulates all things according to his unsearchable wisdom, as it is written (Isa. 45:4-12): “I have even called thee by thy name; I have surnamed thee, though thou hast not known me. I am the Lord, and there is none else, there is no God besides me. – I form the light, and create darkness; I make peace, and create evil; I the Lord do all these things. – Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! Let the potsherd strive with the potsherds of the earth. Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou? or thy work, He hath no hands? Woe unto him that saith unto his father, What begettest thou? or to the woman, What hast thou brought forth? Thus saith the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker, Ask me of things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands command ye me. I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded.”

2. This is a powerful testimony concerning the eternal wisdom, and the wondrous, incomprehensible government of Almighty God, which may be first observed in this, that he has called every one of us by his name, and has surnamed us, though we did not know him, and were not yet in being. This our name by which God calleth us, is our faith, our outward calling, and our whole course of life. There we are inclosed in, or surrounded with, God's eternal wisdom and providence, as it respects our whole life, its beginning, middle, and end (Ps. 139:16), or as to our going out and coming in. Ps. 121:8. “He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names” (Ps. 147:4); that is, he gives them their courses, powers, and operations. How much more doth he so in reference to men! God forms the light and creates darkness. He makes peace, and creates evil; that is, as to the evil of punishment, the just reward of sin; this he creates and permits; nay, he calls the sword, and causes an alarm of war to be heard. Jer. 49:2.

3. In a word, he ordains all things wisely. He sees and hears all things before, according to the words of the Psalmist: “Understand, ye brutish among the people: and ye fools, when will ye be wise? He that planted the ear, shall he not hear? He that formed the eye, shall he not see? He that chastiseth the heathen, shall not he correct? He that teacheth man knowledge, shall not he know?” Ps. 94:8-10.

4. Here king David teaches us that God has laid a mirror of his omniscience and eternal wisdom into man, into the hearing ear, and seeing eye, those two wonderful powers of the human body.

5. It is extremely offensive to a man, to hear and see anything unjust or unreasonable; how much more to God, who has an all-seeing eye and an all-hearing ear, must men's ingratitude be offensive; he having ordained all things by his wisdom, in order to be serviceable unto men. He has made the sun by his wisdom to give light, not unto itself, but to us; the water affords drink, not to itself, but unto us; the earth brings forth fruits, not for itself but for us; the fire warms, not for itself, but for us; the air gives breath, not to itself, but to us; the bread feeds, not itself, but us; the herbs do not heal themselves, but us.

6. The eternal wisdom of God has planted so many powers in the creatures, and has so wisely distributed them, that they are, as it were, so many hands through which the wisdom and goodness of God divide these treasures among us, according to the words of Job: “Who knoweth not in all these, that the hand of the Lord hath wrought this? In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.” Job 12:9, 10. And “Ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee” (Ver. 7); that “with God is wisdom and strength, he hath counsel and understanding. Behold, he breaketh down, and it cannot be built again: he shutteth up a man, and there can be no opening.” Ver. 13, 14. “He stretcheth out the north over the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon nothing. He bindeth up the waters in his thick clouds, and the cloud is not rent under them.” Job 26:7, 8.

7. Since then the Lord our God ordaineth all things by his wisdom, he ordaineth all our crosses; and therefore we are not to murmur, but to praise his wisdom, and to learn patience; for things cannot proceed otherwise than as they are ordained by God. But not only the things that befall us in particular, are the most wise order of God; but also all great national plagues, famine, pestilence, wars, and revolutions of states. And although we may think that these are nothing but confusion, perdition, and destruction, yet there reigns the wisest order of God. This we may gather from the histories of Holy Writ, where famine, wars, pestilence, desolations of the kingdoms of the world, the destruction of the Jewish kingdom, and of empires, the Babylonian Captivity, and many similar events, are described. “I know,” saith Solomon (Eccles. 3:14), “that whatsoever God doeth, it shall be forever: nothing can be put to it, nor anything taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him.”

8. And again, “Consider the work of God; for who can make that straight, which he hath made crooked?” Eccles. 7:13.

9. If we consider it aright, we must own that God could not have ordered things more wisely. So we may say also, with reference to the persecutions of the saints, both in the Old and New Testament; to our Lord Jesus Christ; the holy Gospel; the holy martyrs; and all other things. In our sight, these all seem to be absurd, and foolish, and yet they are the highest wisdom of God.

10. As then we are to give unto God the praise of righteousness, in all his wonderful judgments; so we are also to give unto him the praise of wisdom, in all the wonderful changes of the world, and in all our crosses and sufferings; knowing that he can direct all evils to a good end, and out of evil derive good: so that in all things, how confused soever they may appear unto us, there shineth forth his wisdom, even as his righteousness doth in all his judgments.

11. But the loving soul sees the wisdom of God especially in the restoration and redemption of the human race, and in the renovation of the soul and the faculties thereof. For so it pleased the wisdom of God, that the corrupt image of God in man, should be renewed by the divine substantial image of God, that is, by Christ. After man had lost by sin that blessed wisdom, that glorious light of his intellect, by which he knew God aright, and so had fallen into the utmost blindness, nay, into eternal darkness, wherein he must have dwelt forever; the Son of God, who is the eternal wisdom of the Father, became man, and a light of life unto men (John 1:4), that he might bring back those that had gone astray; that he might teach the ignorant; call to himself the sinners; and rekindle in them the light of the knowledge of God by faith and the Holy Ghost; nay, that he might unite himself to the soul of man, and might shine forth therein.

12. Secondly: after the will of man was entirely turned away from God, perverted, and wholly changed into disobedience, striving against God in all things; the Son of God was made man, that he might be unto us a pattern of perfect obedience; that he might heal our evil will; implant his good will in our hearts; renew our will through the Holy Ghost; and make us partakers of his holy obedience by faith; according to those words of Scripture (Gal. 3:14), “That we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith;” nay, that he might unite himself to us, and live in us, that so our will also might be made conformable unto God.

13. Thirdly: because the affections of our hearts, and all our faculties, were in contrariety to God, and “every imagination of the thoughts of our hearts, was only evil continually” (Gen. 6:5); the Son of God, who is love itself, became man, that he might give us a heart wholly new; that he might plant therein the love of God, and sincere humility and meekness; that he might take from us the old carnal heart, and unite himself with us, that so we might be made of one heart, mind, and spirit with him; all which are the fruits of his most holy incarnation wrought in us.

14. And this is the highest wisdom of God, that by his dear Son, He thus reneweth man. For as God has created man by his wisdom, after his perfect image; so He hath also, by his dear Son, who is eternal wisdom, and who was made man, created man anew, and regenerated him to a new image of God, wherein his wisdom, glory, and righteousness should shine forth forever. It is in this chiefly that the image of God consists.

15. Thus the corrupt image of God in man, is renewed by the substantial image of God, which is Christ.

Chapter XXXIV.

Showing How A Man Should Seek The Wisdom Of God By Prayer; Containing Also A Useful Treatise On Prayer, Wherein The Reader Is Taught How The Heart Is To Be Moved Unto Prayer, And Brought Into A Quiet Sabbath, So That Prayer May Be Wrought In Us By The Lord; The Whole Being Set Forth In Twelve Sections

Section I.

All That We Have Lost In Adam We Recover Fully And Completely In Christ

In Christ are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.– Col. 2:3.

In the beginning God formed man out of the dust of the earth, and breathed into him the breath of life, and man became a living and immortal soul, adorned with perfect wisdom, righteousness, holiness, and blessedness, after the image of his Creator. For where there is divine wisdom, there is blessedness; and where there is blessedness there is divine wisdom. Man, therefore, wanted nothing in Paradise to make him completely happy. But when, being seduced by the temptation of the serpent, he turned away from God, and fell into sin, then was this divine image in man effaced, and he became subject to the devil, to death, and to misery. For as soon as this divine image was defaced in him by sin, he could discover nothing in himself but misery, blindness, and the curse.

2. But in order that Adam, that is, all men in Adam, might not utterly perish, God himself was made man; that is, he was pleased to send his Son to take our nature upon him, and to be born of a virgin. The Son of God has, by his holy life and doctrine, as by a pattern, shown us again the way of wisdom and salvation in which we are to walk. For he has not only delivered us from our sins by his most bitter death, but has moreover given us a commandment, that “we should walk, even as he also walked.” 1 John 2:6.

3. We are, therefore, begotten again by him, through faith, to be the sons of God; nay, we are made sons of God in and with his own Son. For “as he is, so are we also in this world.” 1 John 4:17.

4. In this Son “all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden.” For whatsoever was lost in Adam, is perfectly to be found in Christ. Rom. 5:18, 19.

5. If we would, in this life, have a foretaste of these great and glorious treasures, it must be obtained by prayer, diligent searching, and continual knocking. For no man can have admission into the kingdom of God, unless he walk in the new birth, and seek it earnestly of God. No man can be delivered from the power of sin and the devil, unless he repent, and offer up his prayers in the name of Christ. For though Christ has purchased for us all good things, yet without faith no man can be partaker of them; in and by faith he must also pray, seek, and knock. In a word, it is by prayer only that we can obtain those “good and perfect gifts which come down from above, from the Father of lights.” James 1:17.

A PRAYER.

O Eternal God and Father, teach me, I beseech thee, by thy Holy Spirit, that even as I have lost all by dying in Adam, so I may recover all by being made alive again in Christ. Grant that I may daily die to myself, by continual mortification and repentance, and devote and give myself up entirely to thee; that so all the good things which I have lost may be restored to me, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Section II.

The Evils That Follow The Neglect Of Prayer

Ye have not, because ye ask not.– James 4:2.

1. The neglect of prayer is a violation of the commandments of Christ, who commands us to “pray without ceasing” (Matt. 7:7; Luke 18:1), not for His sake, for he well knows what we stand in need of (Matt. 6:32); but for our own, that we may have a portion of the treasures and inheritance of God. He that lives in the neglect of prayer is a breaker of the first and second commandments, even as to blaspheme God is to bring voluntary destruction upon himself.

2. He that neglects the duty of prayer is a despiser of the promises annexed to the performance of that duty. “Call upon me, and I will deliver thee” (Ps. 50:15); “Ask, and ye shall receive” (John 16:24); for he thereby represents God as unmindful of his promises, or as not able to fulfil them.

3. By the neglect of prayer, our faith, which is the great treasure and foundation of the inward man, by degrees decays and perishes. For not by the arm or power of flesh, but by faith in Christ, can we conquer sin, death, and the devil. 1 John 5:4. Prayer is the nourishment of faith; and this is that wisdom and eternal life which we must seek for by diligent prayer.

4. The Lord Jesus departs from them that despise prayer; so that they are blinded and walk in darkness, knowing neither themselves nor God, but are strangers to his will. They shut the kingdom of heaven against themselves; and, being destitute of light to know the will of God, they fall into many dangers and temptations, and sometimes into despair: whereas, on the contrary, where there are the Holy Spirit and faith, there the world is overcome.

5. He that neglects prayer enters into a state of carnal security, and every kind of iniquity. Such a man is not sensible how deeply he is engaged in sin; but rushes into all the avenues of destruction which lie open to receive him. The good things of this world which God has given him, such as health and riches, he regards as things that come by chance, or are secured by his own labor; and upon that account he has no gratitude to his Creator and Benefactor.

6. As man, since his fall, is exposed to continual dangers, both of body and soul, so is he particularly in danger from the devil, evil spirits, and wicked men, who, like the devil, are continually plotting the destruction of the righteous. Whosoever, therefore, neglects prayer, will be, in the midst of these temptations, like a ship tost in a storm, without help or hopes of escape.

7. Such a one also leads a most unhappy life; he is in continual difficulties and fears, being perplexed, doubtful, and uneasy about the success of his affairs. His head and hands are full of business; yet he sees but little fruit of his labors, and even that little is in the end unblessed. Therefore, though the Scripture says that “the wicked may be seen in great power,” yet it adds, “they pass away, and are not.” Ps. 37:35, 36. They are “like the chaff which the wind driveth away.” Ps. 1:4. On the other hand, they that seek unto God by prayer “shall flourish like a palm tree, and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.” Ps. 92:12. And “though many are the afflictions of the righteous” (Ps. 34:19), yet the wicked undergo more pain and trouble to go to hell than the righteous do to obtain heaven.

A PRAYER.

Most merciful and compassionate Father, thou knowest that man renders himself miserable by his own negligence and sloth, whilst he transgresses thy commands, and neglects the duty of prayer, contemning and slighting thy most certain and faithful promises. But because thou lovest thy creatures, and art not willing that any should perish, therefore it is that thou dost so earnestly invite us to the exercise of prayer. Give me grace to lay this continually to heart, that I may be able to offer up my prayers aright, through thy Son Jesus Christ, and be delivered from the punishments and miseries due to the despisers of that holy duty. Amen.

Section III.

The Benefits Of Continual Prayer

Ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.– John 16:24.

1. Man, since his fall, is become slothful and inactive in everything that is good. He, therefore, that would escape this unhappy state, and the destruction that will certainly attend it, must stir himself up by prayer; and by holy meditation conquer his aversion to divine things, and devoutly consider with himself the advantages of prayer. Let him reflect, that he thereby praises, honors, and adores the eternal, living, and true God; that he does not worship any strange God; but offers up his most earnest supplications to the only one and true God, whose commands, like an obedient child, he ought to obey, and show forth the praises of his Creator, Father, and Saviour.

2. He that prays does not despise the promises of God, but testifies by his prayers that he sets a just value upon them, acknowledging that God is true, and that he neither can nor will lie.

3. Prayer is the life of faith, causing it to flourish and prosper like a tree by the river side, and faith is the root of all that is good in us. Faith is our power, our spiritual consolation, our strength against all our enemies and temptations, yea, faith is our “victory that overcometh the world” (1 John 5:4); and consequently everything else that opposes and hinders us in our spiritual warfare.

4. By prayer, we receive the Holy Spirit. Luke 11:13; Zech. 12:10. By prayer, we make room for the Holy Spirit to work and exert his power in us, and by this means to come and make his abode with us. John 14:23. By prayer, we obtain the true light and knowledge of God, so as perfectly to understand his will; and, by prayer, we abide in his kingdom, and are partakers of the blessings of heaven.

5. By prayer, we shake off carnal security, resist sin, and, by vanquishing flesh and blood, “fight the good fight, and hold faith and a good conscience.” 1 Tim. 1:19; 6:12.

6. By prayer, we oppose temptations, dangers, afflictions, the devil, and wicked men. For prayer is a strong tower of defence against our enemies, and the holy fortress to which we must have recourse (Eph. 6:18; Prov. 18:10; Ps. 31:3); and though the devil and wicked men raise the greatest opposition, yet “all things work together for good to them that love God.” Rom. 8:28.

7. Lastly, he that continually watches unto prayer may always thankfully rejoice in the Holy Ghost; according to the doctrine of St. Paul, “Rejoice evermore; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks.” 1 Thess. 5:16-18. For the comfortable addresses made to God, the eternal King, by prayer, are an effectual remedy against sorrow, trouble, misery, and affliction; and produce joy, peace, and tranquillity in the hearts of the faithful; and when our prayers are right, we are assured that all our righteous designs shall prosper in our hands “whilst we cast our care upon God.” 1 Pet. 5:7. “The Lord is at hand. Be careful for nothing.” Phil. 4:5, 6. “Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him, and he shall bring it to pass.” Ps. 37:5. For all solicitude arises from a distrust of God, which naturally proceeds from the neglect of prayer. On the contrary, faith and prayer give us confidence towards God, and are the proper antidote against all anxiety and trouble of mind.

A PRAYER.

Help me, O Lord my God, that I may continually call to mind, that it is for my own sake that thou invitest and urgest me to the exercise of prayer. Do thou rouse me, and I shall arise; awaken thou me, and I shall awake, and follow Christ alone. Amen.

Section IV.

The True Christian Chooses The Narrow Way In Christ, Rather Than The Broad Way In Adam

We glory in tribulations.– Rom. 5:3.

1. The Scripture teaches us that when Adam was placed in Paradise, God showed him the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and forbade him to eat of it (Gen. 2:9, 17); so that Adam was thus placed between time and eternity. Life and death, light and darkness (Deut. 30:15), were set before him, that he might qualify himself for eternal glory in the narrow way. Our case is just the same. For since the fall of Adam, Christ comes to us, and endeavors to draw us from the broad way in Adam, to the narrow way, which is himself; and this he does gently and without violence, resolving to force no man either to his salvation or his condemnation. He shows us the way by his prevenient grace, which is bestowed on all men without exception. Christ now says, “Enter ye in at the strait gate; for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction; and many there be that go in thereat. Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” Matt. 7:13, 14.

2. Here we plainly see two paths set before us: the one is the way of the world, in which many walk, because they continue in Adam, and refuse Christ; the other is the way of God, in which few walk, because they prefer the broad way in Adam. Many are the difficulties which attend both these paths. If you conform yourself to the world, you will meet with many troubles and vexations; and, not being established in the truth of God, your lot finally is eternal damnation. But if you enter into the way of God through Christ, and persevere in prayer, you must expect to suffer with Christ, from the opposition of this evil world: but, at the same time, your heart shall be constantly filled with the refreshing consolations of the Spirit of truth, and in the end, you shall obtain everlasting life. 2 Tim. 2:11, 12; 3:12.

3. He that prays, fights against the devil and his own corrupt nature; overcomes himself, the devil, and all the enemies of his salvation; and shall at last with Christ, the Captain of his salvation (Heb. 2:10), enter into everlasting rest.

4. But he that lives in the neglect of prayer, makes no progress in the conquest of his spiritual enemies; but is a miserable slave of the world, and shall at last, with the prince of darkness, be condemned to everlasting misery.

5. It is better to fight now, and to enter triumphantly into everlasting glory, than not to fight, and yet endure many afflictions, and at last be doomed to everlasting destruction.

A PRAYER.

Oh that men would but consider these things! They would then loathe and despise this present world; would hate and deny themselves, and would follow Christ alone, in the narrow way of the cross. That we may, therefore, seriously lay these things to heart; that we may renounce the old Adam within us, and put on the new man, Christ Jesus: and at last, through the narrow way, enter into everlasting life, may God of his infinite mercy grant, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Section V.