Sometimes he tries the strength and ability of his servants graces; and thus he tried Abraham, Heb. xi. 17. And sometimes he tries the soundness and sincerity of our graces ; so the Ephesian angel was tried, and found dross, Rev. ii. 2. And so Job was tried, and found true gold, Job xxiii. 10. These trials are not made by God for his own information ; for he knows what is in man ; his eyes pierce the heart and reins ; but for our information ; which is the true sense of Deut. viii. 2. " Thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord ' thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness to humble " thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thy heart;'' i. e. to make thee know it, by giving thee such experiments and trials of it in those wilderness straits and difficulties.
And these are the trials of grace I am here to speak of, not ex- cluding the active trials made by ourselves ; no, no, all these trials
* Upon a thorough trial they vanish into smoke.
f From which judgment he shall escape just as one does naked, or only with hii lift. Out oi the midst of flames. Ckrtfsostouu
PROSPEEITY A FURKACE TO TKY OUR GRACES. SSI
made by God upon us, are designed to put us upon the trial of our- selves : When God tries, we should try too.
Now the method into which I shall cast this discourse, shall be to shew you,
1. First, What those things are which try the sincerity of our graces, as fire tries gold.
2. Secondlij, For what ends doth God put the graces of his peo- ple upon such trials in this world.
3. Thirdly, That such grace only is sincere as can endure these trials.
4. Fourthly i and lastly. To apply the whole in the main uses of it.
1 . First, rr HA T those things are which try the sincerity of grace ^ asjire tries gold.
Before I enter into particulars, it will be needful to acquaint you, that the subject before me is full of difficulties. There is need, as one speaks, of much cautious respect to the various sizes and de- greesof growth among Christians, and the vicissitudes of their inward cases; else we may darken and perplex the way, instead of clearing it.
The portraiture of a Christian is such as none can draw to one model, but with respect to the infancy of some, as well as the age and strength of others.
Great heed ought also to be had in the application of marks and signs ; we should first try them ; before we try ourselves or others by them. Marks and signs are by some distinguished into exclusive, in- clusive, and positive: Exclusive marks serve to shut out bold pre» tenders, by shewing them how far they come short of a saving work of grace ; and they are commonly taken from some necessary common duty, as hearing, praying, &c. He that hath not these things, can- not have any work of grace in him ; and yet if he do them, he can- not from thence conclude his estate to be gracious : He that so con- cludes, he deceives himself.
Inclusive marks rather discover the degrees than the truth of grace, and are rather intended for comfort than for conviction : If we find them in ourselves, we do not only find sincerity, but eminency of grace ; They being taken from some raised degree and eminent acts of grace in confirmed and grown Christians.
Betwixt the two former there is a middle sort of marks, which are called positive marks, and they are such as are always, and only found, in regenerate souls: The hypocrite hath them not; the grown Christian hath them, and that in an eminent degree : The poorest Christian hath them in a lower, but saving degree : Great care must be taken in the application of them. And it is past doubt that many weak and injudicious Christians have been greatly prejudiced by find- ing the experiences of eminent Christians proposed as rules to mea-.
5S§ PROSPERITY A FURNACE TO TRY OtTR 6 RACES-
sure their sincerity by. Alas ! these no more fit their souls, than SauPs armour did David's body.
These things being premised, and a due care carried along with us through this discourse, I shall next come to the particulars, and shew you what those things are which discover the state and tempers of cur souls. And though it be true, that there is no condition we are in, no providence that befals us, but it takes some proof, and makes some discovery of our hearts ; yet, to limit this discourse, and fall into particulars as soon as we can, I shall shew what trials are made of our graces in this world, by our prosperity, and our adver- sity ; by our corruptions, and our duties, and, lastly, by our suffer- ings upon the score and account of religion.
JC IRST, prosperity, success, and the increase of outward enjoy- ments, are to grace what fire is to gold. Riches and honours make trial what we are ; and by these things many a false heart hath been detected, as well as the sincerity and eminency of others graces dis- covered. We may fancy the fire of prosperity to be rather for com- fort than trial ? to refresh us rather than to prove us ; but you will find prosperity to be a great discovery, and that scarce any thing proves the truth and strength of men's graces and corruptions more than that doth: Rara lirtus est humiUtas honor ata,sa.ith Bernard; to find humility with honour, is to find a Phoenix. Let an obscure per- son be lifted up to honour, and how steady and well composed soever he was before, it is a thousand to one but his eyes will dazzle, and his head run round when he is upon the lofty pinnacle of praise and honour*; Prov. xxvii. 21. " As the fining-pot for silver, and the furnace for gold, so is a man to his praise :'' Put the best gold into the fining- pot of praise, and it is a great wonder if a great deal of dross do not appear, Isa. xxxix. 2. the vain-glory of good Hezekiah rose like froth or scum upon the pot, when heated by prosperity. It was such a fining-pot to Herod, as discovered him to be dross itself, Acts xii. 23. How did that poor woman swell under that trial into the conceit of his beinga god, and was justly destroyed by worms, because he for- gat himself to be one ? We think Httle what a strange alteration an exalted state will make upon our spirits. When the prophet would abate the vain confidence of Hazael, who would not believe that ever he would be turned into such a savage beast as the prophet had fore- told ; he only tells him, " The Lord hath shewed me, that thou *' shalt be king over Syria," 2 Kin. viii. 13. The meaning is, Do not be too confident Hazael, that thy temper and disposition can never alter to that degree ; thou never yet sattest on a throne : When men see the crown upon thy head, then they will better see the true temper of thy heart.
* Magistratus indicat virum : i. e. Preferment proves a man.
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