Afflictions alone are not enough to evidence a man to be bleffed and in a happy condition,except hey prove teaching, fanctifyed afflictions. Evidences of Grace and the favour of God confift in inward impreffions, not outward difpenfations. Tis not faid, Bleed is the man whom thon chateneft and delivereft out of trouble, but whoms how corecteft and teacheft. When God takes way the difeafe, and does not take away the uilt and dominion of fin, does not pardon and anctifie the fick perfon, 'tis not a compleat deliverance, but only a reprieval from prefent exeution. Bare deliverance is not the blessing thou houldft defire: The bleffing of affliction is Diine Inftruction. Therefore thofe who are put y God into the School of affliction should feriufly apply themselves to learn thofe leffons hich in that School they ought to learn. And hey are fuch as thefe. 1. Obediential fubmiffion to the will of God. Ve must not dispute our Croffe, but take it up. Aaron held his peace, Lev.10.3. We may ins eed and ought to feek unto the Lord, and to Le lawful means (as I faid before) for deliverace from a fickness, or other affliction; but yec ich refignation of our felves to his holy will. atience is not a stupidity, or infenfiblenesse of Gods hand, but a calmneffe of mind upon wife nd holy grounds: And therefore, if the sicknesse e fends upon us, prove either very long, or te Pp diens dious and painful, yet we must take hee foul. 2. To pray more earnestly and fervently. that were wont before to content themselv cold, fhort, flight, sleepy, formal devotions, (by fanctified afflictions) learn to pray more heartily and fervently, and to cry unto God for pardon and Grace, for help lief. 3. To be better acquainted with our ow Afflictions fanctified discover the unkner fecret corruptions of the heart, Dent. 8,3, Lord thy God led thee these fourty years derneß, to humble thee and to prove thee, what was in thine heart. in th 4. To understand these three things and experimentally. 1. the evil and danger!) 2. The emptineffe of the Creature, 3 oufneffe of Christ, and what a high van! ought to fet upon his fufferings. The 5. To mind and esteem the promises of God more. Through diftractions without (in time of health) and corruptions within, people (many times) neglect to study the promises of God. But in time of ficknesse, or other diftref, there are no cordials like unto them, 6. To enquire into, and examine our evidences for Heaven, not to venture our foules on general ungrounded hopes and finking foundations. 7. To live by Faith. Faith takes the foul off from creature-confidences, and teaches it to stay it felf on God alone. The right courfe to obtain mercies from God, is in the way of an humble trust. When we fee and apprehend our own inJufficiency, and Gods All fufficiency, and caft our felves on his wisdom, power, and goodness, then he usually affords help and fuccour to us. 8. To prize communion with God more,and to be more Heavenly minded. In the glaring of profpevity we are too apt to forget God, and to content our felves with Creature-enjoyments: But in the night of adverfity, and in fad difpenfations; Oh how delightful is a beam of his love and fa vour! 9. To be more humble.By afflictions God takes down the pride of the heart, and makes it humle, and foft and pliable to his will. 10. To be more thankful for the mercies we enoy. We seldom are fufficiently fenfiole of the Pp z worth worth of our mercies till God begin to depriveas of them. 11. To fet a high value and price upon time. Sickneffe cries aloud in our eares, redeem time, O redeem time, for praying, for meditating, for clearing our evidences for Heaven, &c. How many are there, who when their time is almost done, have their great work then to begin. Oin what a fad condition are they? These, and fuch like leffens fhould be learned in the School of affliction. But now they whom God fhall please to bring forth out of their trou bles, to deliver from their fickneffe, and renew the leafe of their lives, should be exhorted to theft five things. 1. Let them confider what they have learned in the School of affliction: What the Spirit of G hath taught them? If they find they have lear ed (in fome measure) thofe leffons before-menioned, then let them ftudy to be thankful. Le them confider, God hath done more for them. than if he had never brought them into afflictio He hath given them deliverance and inftructi both. He hath turned their water into wine. 2. Let them take heed of forgetting the lef they have learned. Let them labour to keep al the teachings of Gods Spirit upon their hearts Let them ftudy to maintain that fweet, gracies humble frame of fpirit into which God brough them by their afflictions. If they be not e ceeding ceeding watchful, they will quickly find a great deal of difference between their hearts under afAlictions, and when the affliction is taken off. There is much of a Pharaoh-like difpofition in every man: We are very prone to harden when the storm is over. 3. Let them renew often upon their fouls the remembrance of the fharpness and bitternes of their afflictions. Let them call to mind their fad difcourfes and reafenings, their fears and tremblings, the mif-givings of heart and fad apprehenfions they had in time of their diftreffe. Let them remember their aptneffe to impatience and to hard thoughts of God. Let them recall how happy they thought thofe that were free from their troubles and paines: These remembrances kept alive will make them humble and thankful. 4. Let them remember their vowes and promiles made to God in time of their fickneffe and diftreffe. Let them labour to be fuch out of fickneffe, as they promised God, themselves, and (poffibly) others, they would be, when they were in it. The Emperor Sigifmond demanded of King Alphonfus, what was the directeft courfe to be happy; Perform (faies he) when thou art well, what thou promisedft when thou wert fick. 'Tis very remarkable what is recorded of the mariners Fonab 1.15,16. And the Sea ceafed from her raging, then the men feared the Lord exceedingly, and offered a facrifice unto the Lord, and made PP 3 vowes. |