II. VOL. calls for at our hands therein. We may know when it is a time to mourn, and when to rejoice; when to weep, and when to be merry and pleasant. He points out to us our more extraordinary praying seasons, if we would but obferve the finger of providence, and take notice of his indications. It is a lamentable cafe, when we cannot underftand the time of fuch a thing; when we cannot know this is a time for fuch work, and this for fuch work. The prefent time points out fuch and fuch work that we fhould be intent upon. We cannot indeed know these referved times and feafons; let us then know the times, that are left open to our view. As now this prefent time is come, but do we know what ought to be the work of this time? GOD hath ordered for us this time, this feafon to be waiting for him, humbling ourselves before him. The feafon tells us what the working of our fouls fhould be now at this time; what there fhould be of humiliation; what of ftriving and wrestling with GOD; what endeavours to take hold of him, that we may yet keep him with us, while we have him. It is an happy thing to be able to know a praying day, when it comes; to know it so as to anfwer it by a fuitable frame and temper of spirit. So alfo you are expecting fhortly another good time, a season of drawing nigh unto God, and to converse with him and with your great Redeemer, even at his own table. If GOD do order for you that season, that will tell you what difpofition difpofition of spirit there must be ; and you ought SER M. to be forecasting, that you may have a temper IX, and difpofition of fpirit, fuitable to fuch a season, and the work of it. If you have the feason, it will then prove a bleffed feason; and if you should be deprived of it, yet all these sweet gracious workings of fpirit will not be loft, they will be a rich advantage to you even in reference to a future holy course. Oh then if you cannot know God's time, labour to know your own! the present time for prefent work, that he seems to call you to. And then I add in the 4. AND laft place, fince you cannot look far into future time, look more into eternity, over and beyond all time. For it is only future time that GOD hath fhut up from while from you, he leaves eternity open to you. He would have you look over time into a vaft and boundless eternity. Look then not to the things that are feen and temporal, (things meafured by time) but to the things unfeen and eternal! And doing fo, this will be your great advantage and gain; you will find that though the outward man should perish (as there will come a crash upon all our earthly tabernacles, and down they muft) the inward man will be renewed day by day. If then, the outward man will perish, let it perish; if it will go down, let it go; there is somewhat we fhall gain by that lofs. In the mean while we fhall in our fouls be renewing strength day by day, if we keep our eye open to eternity; to that unfeen ftate of things within the vail, whither he hath VOL. hath led the way, who is our great forerunner to II. the glory that is to be revealed; with which glory the fufferings of the prefent time, this Now, are not to be compared; not to be named in the fame day, with that felicity which accrues to us hereafter. In a word, what we now suffer, within the compass of time, cannot bear any parallel with that glory and bleffedness, which is to come after time is done. Let us therefore in the mean while seriously mind these things. SERM. SERMON X. Preached at Haberdafher's Hall, February 27, 1675. 2 COR. Iv. 8. beginning of the verse. We are troubled on every fide, yet not diftreffed. I SHALL detain you very little about the context. In the foregoing verfe the Apoftle fpeaks of a certain treasure which was committed to earthen veffels, with this defign, that the excellency of the power might be of God; that is, might appear to be of GOD, and not of men. What this treafure was you may collect from the 6th verfe. GOD who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of GOD, in the face of Jefus Chrift. Now this treafure, faith he, we have in earthen vessels; that is, the light of the knowledge of the glory of GOD, fhining in the face of Jefus Chrift; conveyed in and through a Mediator, and difcovered in the Gofpel. It is a treasure of light whereof he speaks, a treasure of glorious light. And this is that, which he faid was put into earthen veffels; intrufted to the minifterial difpo fition of very mean, and very weak and fragile inftru VOL. inftruments. And that upon this account, that II. all might fee that the excellency of the power was of GOD, and not of them; that there was fomewhat more than human in the matter, that fuch effects, as he had fpoken of in the clofe of the foregoing chapter, fhould follow that dif pensation they were intrusted with. Where alfo it is by the way intimated, that this fame treafure is not a treasure of mere light; feeble, ineffectual notions, that were apt only to reach the mind of a man, and stay there as the matter of contemplation only: but it is a certain vital, vigorous light whereof he speaks, a light that carries power, efficacy, and a transforming influence along with it. The light of that glory which being beheld changeth fouls into the same likeness, from glory to glory. This light we have, this treasure of glorious light, in earthen veffels; that fo the excellency of that power, which accompanieth this light, may appear to be of God and not of men: that all who obferve it may be convinced, and constrained to confefs fomething divine in it, when fuch things are difcovered and held forth to men, as work at the rate, which the Gospel dispensation was designed to do, and did actually do. AND then in the words that we are to speak unto, and those that follow, he giveth a proof and demonstration of the excellency of the power, that did accompany and go with the Gospel light wherever it reached its end, and did the work to which it was defigned; and to which it was alfo |