6. Rain is necessary at seed-time, to make ready the earth to receive the seed, Psal. Ixv. 9, 10. " Thou visitest the earth, and waterest it ; " thou greatly enrichest it with the river of God, which is full of wa- '* ter ; thou preparest them corn, when thou hast so provided for it ; " thou waterest the ridges thereof abundantly, thou settlestthe fur- ^' rows thereof, thou makest it soft with showers, thou blessest the " spiinging thereof." And this the scripture calls the former rain. And as this is necessary about seed-time, so the latter rain is as needful about earing-time, to disclose the ear and to bring it to perfection ; both these are great blessings to the earth, and conduce to a plenti- ful harvest, Joel ii. S3, 24. " Be glad then ye children of Sion, and *' rejoice in the Lord your God, for he hath given vou the former " rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rair, " the former and the latter rain in the first month, and the floors " shall be full of wheat, and the fats shall overflow with wine and " oil." Thus the gospel hath a double use and benefit also. It is necessary as the former rain at seed-time, it causes the first spring of grace in the heart, Psal. xix. 7. And there could be (in an ordinary way) no spring of grace without it, Prov. xxix. 18. And as this for- mer rain is necessary to cause the first spring of grace, so also it hath the use of ^he latter rain to ripen those precious fruits of the Spirit in the souls of believers, Eph. iv. 11, 12, 13. " He gave some apostles, " and some prophets, and some evangehsts, and some pastors and " teachers, for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the mi- " nistry^for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come in the
78 KUSBANBRY SPIltlTUALIZED ; OB,
" unity of the faith, and the knowledge of the Son of God, to a per- " feet man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.'"* Were all the elect converted unto God, yet still there would be a necessity of a gospel-ministry.
7. After a great glut of rain, usually there comes a drought ; it is a common country proverb, Wet and dry pay one another. And truly when a people are glutted with a fulness of gospel-mercies it is usual with God to shut up and restrain the gospel-clouds, that, for a time at least, there be no dews upon them, and thereby teach them to prize their despised (because common) mercies at an higher rate. For as a good man once said, mercies are best known by the back, and most prized when most wanted. " In those days the word of " the Lord was precious, there was no open vision," 1 Sam. iii. 1 . It is with spiritual as with temporal food, slighted when plenteous, but if a famine once come, then every bit of bread is precious. Je- rusalem remembered in the days of her affliction, and of her misery, all her pleasant things, that she had ip the days of old, Lam. i. 7. It is both a sinful and dangerous thing to wantonize with gospel-mer- cies, and despise the plainest (if faithful) ministers of the gospel. The time may come when you may be glad of the plainest sermon from the mouth of the meanest ambassador of Christ.
8. To conclude. The prayers of saints are the keys that open and shut the natural clouds, and cause them either to give out or with- hold their influences. Jam. v. 17, 18. " Elias was a man subject to '' like passions, as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not *' rain, and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and *' six months ; and he prayed again, and the heavens gave rain, and *' the earth brought forth her fruit.'' God hath subjected the works of his hands to the prayers of his saints, Isa. xlv. 11.
Prayer is also the golden key which opens these mystical gospel- clouds, and dissolves them into sweet, gracious showers. God will have the whole work of the ministry carried on by the prayers of his people; they first obtain their ministers by prayer, Luke x.2. " Pray " ye the Lord of the harvest to send forth labourers into the vine- " yard." It is by the help of prayer that they are carried on, and enabled to exercise their ministry : They may tell their people as a great general once told his soldiers, ' That he flew upon their wings.** *' Pray for me, (saith the great apostle) that utterance may be given '' me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mys- " teries of the gospel," Eph. vi. 19. Yea, by the saints prayers it is, that ministers obtain the success and fruits of their labours, 2 Thess. iii. 1. " Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord *' may have free course, and be glorified even as it is with you." And thus you have the metaphor opened. Now, O ! that these truths might come down in sweet showers upon the hearts both oi ministers and people in the following reflections.
THE HEaVEXLY use OF EARTHLY THINGS. 79
1. Am I then a cloud ? And is my doctrine as rain to water the Lord's inheritance ? And yet do I think it much to
be tossed up artd down by the furious winds and Three rejlec- storms of persecution ? Do not I see the clouds tionsjur gos- above me in continual motions and agitations? pel-ministers. And shall I dream of a fixed, settled state ? No ; false teachers, who are clouds without rain, are more likely to enjoy that than I. Which of all the prophets have not been tossed and hurried worse than I ? Acts vii. 52. He that will not let men alone to be quiet in their lusts, must expect but little quiet from men in this life. But it is enough, Lord, that a rest remaineth for thy servant ; let me be so wise to secure a rest to come, and not so vain to expect it on earth.
2. And, O that I might study those instruction clouds, from which as from the bottles of heaven, God pours down refreshing showers to quench and satisfy the thirsty earth ! In this may I resemble them, and come amongst the people of the Lord, " in the fulness of the " blessing of the gospel of Christ,'' Rom. xv. 29. O let not those thirsty souls that wait for me as for the rain, Job xxix. 23. " return *' like the troops of Tema, ashamed, with their heads covered," Job vi. 19. O that my lips might refresh many ! Let me never be like those empty clouds, which deceive the hopes of thirsty souls ; but let my doctrine descend as the rain, and distil as the dew, and let that plot of thine inheritance which thou hast assigned to me, be as a field which the Lord hath blessed.