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may look cheerfully and comfortably on the loss of name, reputation, goods, liberty, life itself; "as knowing in ourselves that we have better and more abiding comforts" to betake ourselves to. And we can no other way glorify God by our alacrity in the entrance of sufferings, than when it arises from a prospect unto, and valuation of those invisible things which he hath promised, as an abundant recompense for all we can lose in this world.

2. The great aggravation of sufferings is their long continuance, without any rational appearance or hopes of relief. Many who have entered into sufferings with much courage and resolution, have been wearied and worn out with their continuance. Elijah himself was hereby reduced to pray that God would take away his life, to put an end to his ministry and calamities. And not a few, in all ages, have been hereby so broken in their natural spirits, and so shaken in the exercise of faith, as that they have lost the glory of their confession, in seeking deliverance by sinful compliances in the denial of the truth. And, although this may be done out of mere weariness, (as it is the design of Satan to "wear out the saints of the Most High,") with reluctance of mind, and a love yet remaining to the truth in their hearts, yet hath it constantly one of these two effects. Some, by the overwhelming sorrow that befals them on the account of their failure in profession, and out of a deep sense of their unkindness to the Lord Jesus, are stirred up immediately to higher acts of confession than ever they were before engaged in, and to a higher provocation of their adversaries, until their former troubles are doubled upon them, which they frequently undergo with great satisfaction. Instances of this nature occur in all stories of great persecutions. Others being terrified and discouraged in their profession, and perhaps neglected by those whose duty it was rather to restore them, have by the craft of Satan given place to their declensions, and become vile apostates. To prevent these evils arising from the duration of sufferings, without a prospect of deliverance, nothing is more prevalent than a constant

contemplation on the future reward and glory. So the Apostle declares it: "Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection." When the mind is filled with the thoughts of the unseen glories of eternity, it hath in readiness what to lay in the balance against the longest continuance and duration of sufferings, which in comparison thereunto, at their utmost extent, are but for a moment.

I have insisted the longer on these things, because they are the peculiar object of the thoughts of those that are indeed spiritually minded.

CHAPTER VIII.

Spiritual thoughts of God himself. The opposition to them, and neglect of them, with their causes, and the way of their prevalency. Predominant corruptions expelling due thoughts of God, how to be discovered, &c. Thoughts of God, of what nature, and what they are to be accompanied with, &c.

I HAVE spoken very briefly to the first particular instance of the heavenly things upon which we are to fix our thoughts, namely, The person of Christ. And I have done it for the reason before mentioned, namely, That I intend a peculiar treatise on that subject, or an inquiry how we may behold the glory of Christ in this life, and how we shall do so to eternity. That which I have reserved to the last place, as to the exercise of their thoughts about who are spiritually minded, is that which is the absolute foundation and spring of all spiritual things, namely, God himself. He is the fountain whence all these things proceed, and the ocean from which they issue; he is their centre and circumference, wherein they all begin, meet, and end. So the Apostle issues his profound discourse of the councils of the divine will, and mysteries of the gospel: "Of him, and through him, and to

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him are all things, to whom be glory for ever. All things arise from his power, are all disposed by his wisdom into a tendency to his glory: "Of him, and through him, and to him are all things." Under that consideration alone are they to be the objects of our spiritual meditations, namely, as they come from him, and tend to him. All other things are finite and limited: but they begin and end in that which is immense and infinite. So "GOD is All in All." He therefore is, or ought to be, the only supreme, absolute object of our thoughts and desires; other things are from and for him only. Where our thoughts do not either immediately and directly, or mediately and by just consequence tend to and end in him, they are not spiritual.

To make way for directions how to exercise our thoughts on God himself, some things must be premised concerning a sinful defect herein, with the causes of it.

First, It is the great character of a man, presumptuously and flagitiously wicked, that "God is not in ail his thoughts." That is, he is in none of them. And of this want of thoughts of God there are many degrees; for all wicked men are not equally forgetful of him.

1st, Soine are under the power of atheistical thoughts: they deny, or question, or do not avowedly acknowledge the very being of God. This is the height of what the enmity of the carnal mind can rise to. To acknowledge God, and yet to refuse to be subject to his law or will, a man would think were as bad, if not worse, than to deny the being of God. But it is not so that is a rebellion against his authority, a hatred to the only fountain of all goodness, truth, and being; and that because they cannot own it, but withal they must acknowledge it to be infinitely righteous, holy, and powerful, which would destroy all their desires and security. Such may be the person in the psalm; for the words may be read, "All his thoughts are, that there is no God." Howbeit the context describes him as one who rather despiseth his providence, than

denieth his being. But such there are whom the same Psalmist elsewhere brands for fools, though themselves seem to suppose that wisdom was born and will die with them.

Perhaps never any age since the flood did more abound with open atheism, among such as pretended to the use and improvement of reason, than that wherein we live. Among the ancient civilized heathen, we hear ever and anon of a person branded for an atheist; yet are not certain whether it was done justly or not. But in all nations of Europe at this day, cities, courts, towns, fields, armies, abound with persons, who, if any credit might be given to what they say or do, believe not that there is a God. the reason hereof may be a little inquired into.

And

Now this is no other in general, but that men have diluted and wasted the light and power of Christian religion. It is the fullest revelation of God that ever he made; it is the last that ever he will make in this world. If this be despised, if men rebel against the light of it, if they break the cords of it, and are senseless of its power, nothing can preserve them from the highest atheism that the nature of man is capable of. It is in vain to expect relief or preservation from inferior means, where the highest and most noble is rejected. Reason, or the light of nature, gives evidences to the being of God; and arguments are still well pleaded from them to the confusion of atheists. they were sufficient to retain men in an acknowledgment of the divine power and Godhead, who had no other, no higher evidences of them. But where men have had the benefit of Divine Revelation, where they have been educated in the principles of the Christian religion, have had some knowledge, and made some profession of them; and have, through the love of sin, and hatred of every thing that is truly good, rejected all convictions from them concerning the being, power, and rule of God, they will not be kept to a confession of them, by any considerations that the light of nature can suggest.

And

There are therefore, among others, three reasons why there are more atheists among those who live

where the Christian religion is professed, and the power of it rejected, than among any other sort of men, even than there were among the heathens themselves.

1. God hath designed "to magnify his word above all his name," or all other ways of the revelation of himself unto the children of men. Where therefore this is rejected and despised, he will not give the honour to reason or the light of nature, that they shall preserve the minds of men from any evil whatever. Reason shall not have the same power and efficacy on the minds of men, who reject the light and power of divine revelation by the word, as it hath, or may have, on those whose best guide it is, who never enjoyed the light of the gospel. And therefore there is ofttimes more common honesty among civilized Heathens and Mahometans than among degenerate Christians. And, from the same reason, the children of professors are sometimes irrecoverably profligate. It will be said, many are recovered to God by afflictions, who have despised the word. But it is otherwise, never any were converted to God by afflictions, who had rejected the word. Men may by afflictions be recalled to the light of the word, but none are immediately turned to God by them. As a good shepherd, when a sheep wanders from the flock, and will not hear his call, sends out his dog, which stops him and bites him hereon he looks about him, and hearing the call of the shepherd, returns again to the flock, Job xxxiii. 19-25. But with this sort of persons, it is the way of God, that where the principal means of the revelation of himself, and wherein he doth most glorify his wisdom and his goodness, is despised, he will not only take off the efficacy of inferior means, but judicially harden the hearts and blind the eyes of men, that such means shall be of no use to them; see Isa. vi. 8-12. Acts xiii. 40, 41. Rom. i. 21-28. 2 Thess. ii. 11, 12.

2. The contempt of gospel light and Christian religion, as it is supernatural (which is the beginning of transgression to all atheists amongst us), begets in,

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