Quest. But what are they? And how must they he prepared'^ Sol. Though every grace is necessary in its place, and in the Course of a Christian's conversation, comes to take his turn ; as every spoke in a Avheel bears a stress, and is of use in the whole turn and round thereof; yet as those spokes which are under- iTiost at present, do present service, so those graces which are now exercised, and are to bear the present burden of this day, are such as these ;
1. Faith. This hath a precedency given it to all other graces; «s in point of justirication, so of sustentation in a suffering hour; Eph. vi. 16. " Above all, taking the shield of faith :" This is like the liver-vein, this goes to Christ, and conveys blood and life to the soul from him ; now " tlie just shall live by faith,'' Heb. x, 38. It was by faith those renowned worthies, Heb. xi. performed such glorious actions. By faith it is that a poor Christian gets a glimpse of the invisible God and glory, which marvellously sup- ports him under distresses, Heb. xi. 27. 2 Cor; iv. 18. By this the soul is filled with peace, and inward tranquillity, Rom. v. 1^ % And that is a singular preparation for suffering, Eph. vi. 15. *' Smite, Lord, smite, (said Luther-)-) for my sins are forgiven " me." By faith a poor soul rolls itself and its burden upon God, S Tim. i. 12. and so quits and discharges itself of all that anxiety and perplexity of spirit, which puts the sinking weight into afflic- tion. Oh then look to thy faith, see it be not only alive, but lively ; keep that grace in thy heart, and thou shalt do well.
2. Patience : A grace fitted for the purpose : it is not only a grace itself, but the conservatory of other graces. As God hath placed temperance on the right hand of godliness, to defend it from injury by the flatteries and allurements of the world, so hath he placed patience on the left, to defend it from the wrong it might receive by adversity, 2 Pet. i. 5, 6. a grace so necessary in an evil day, that the Spirit hath set it in equipage with faith itself, Heb. vi. 12. and the crown promised to it, Rom. ii. 7. It is an hardy grace, bred by tribulation, Rom. v. 3. will make a Christian long- winded in his race to glory. Oh then beg that you may be strengthened with all might in the inner-man, unto all patience;
• To go freely and without fear upon the liigh places.
f Feri, Domiuejjeri, nam a peccatis rrnis aOsoiutus sum. Ljith,
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if not, though you may be set put with much seeming gallantry of resolution, yet you must needs faint in the way, and fall short at last.
3. Holy courage and magnanimity. This grace must now say in thy heart, as Elijah once did, " As the Lord lives, I will sliew my- " self How conspicuous hath this grace been in those worthy heroes that are past on before us ! See Dan. iii. 16, 17. Heb. xi. pc?' tot. Acts XX. 24. and xxi. 13. When Valens the emperor en- deavoured to draw Basil from the faith, he first offers him great preferments, but his spirit was raised above that ; ' Offer these ' things (said he) to children :' then he tries him by threatenings of grievous torments, but his spirit was above that also ; ' threaten ' these things (said he) to your purple gallants, that give themselves ' to pleasure.' The same Basil relates the answer of the forty martyrs, (whose story he writes ;) when the pesecutors, saith he, offered them great preferments to draw them from Christ, this was their answer; ' Why offer you to us these small things of the ' world, when you know the whole world is contemned by us ?"* One of the nobles of Julian present at the tormenting of Mar- cus, bishop of Arethusa, was forced to say, ' We are ashamed, O ' Emperor, the Christians laugh at your cruelty, and grow the * more resolute.' Our very women and children, not to speak of ' men, (saith Lactantius) do overcome their tormentors, and the ' fire cannot fetch so much as a sigh from them.' The same glo- rious spirit of courage for the Lord Jesus rested also upon Luther, ■* Zuinglius, and those blessed souls that freely offered themselves to the Lord in queen Mary's time. And truly, Christian, not only necessity which lies upon thee, should provoke courage, for there is no retreating, unless thou resolve to perish, Heb. x. 38. but methinks the infinite excellency of Christ, in whose cause and quarrel thou art engaged, exacts it of thee, and should make thee lay down all at his feet, not by constraint, but willingly, looking upon it as thy privilege, Phil. i. 29.
4. Lastly, To name no more, self-denial must now be promoted. *' If any man will come after me, he must deny himself," Mark viii. 34. Both sinful self, which must absolutely and universally be denied ; and natural, yea, religious self, which must repectively, and in some cases, be denied also. The want of this, hath been the downfal and ruin of many an eminent professor. The most dangerous nick and opportunity of temptation, is, when a man is
* What death would I not chuse ! What punishment would I not undergo ! yea, into what vault of hell would I not rather chuse to be thrown, than to witness against my conscience ? Zuiug. 3 epist.
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tried in his darling lust ; now he falls by the root, if that be not mortified. This was the ruin of Judas ; covetousness was his pre- dominant lust ; and when he was tried there, he falls immediately, jVIat. xxvi. 16. " What will you give me, and I will betray him ?" This overturned Demas also. O consider these things. COUNSEL VII.
Get your hearts deeply affected with Zions misery^ and strive earnestly with the Lord on its behalf.