and difficulties. As long as a man is hesitating and unresolved what to do, whether to go forward, or return back again to the prosperous^ world, when a man is at such a pause^ and stand in his way, he is very unfit for sufferings. All such divisions do both zi^eal-en the soul, and strengthen the temptation : The devil's work is more than half done to his hand in such a soul, and he is now as unfit to endure hardship for Christ, as a ship is to ride out a storm that hath neither cable, anchor, nor ballast, to hold and settle it, but lies at the mercy of every wave, Jam. i. 8. " The double minded man is unstable in all " his ways." But it is grace, and nothing besides, that brings the heart to a fixed resolution and settlement to follow the Lord, it is grace that establishes the heart, Heb. xiii. 9. and unites it to fear the name of God, Psal. Ixxxvi. 11. This gathers all the streams into one channel, and then it runs with much strength, and sweeps away all obstacles before it. So that look as it is with a wicked man that hath sold himself to do wickedly, if he be set upon an^^ one design of sin, he pours out his whole heart and strength into the prosecution of that design, which is the ground of that saying, Liberet vie Deus ab homine unius tantum iiegotii, let God deliver me from a man of one only design. He will do it to purpose : So is it also in grace; if the heart be composed, fixed, and fully resolved for God, nothing shall then stand before him. And herein lies much of a Christian's habitual fitness and ability to suffer.
5. The necessity of saving grace in all sufferers for Christ, will farther appear from this consideration, that he who will run all ha- zards for Christ, had need of a continual supply of strength and re- freshment from time to time. He must not depend on any thing that is failable ; for what shall he do then when that stock is spent, and he hath no provision left to live upon ? Now all natural qualifications, yea, all the common gifts of the Spirit, are failable and short-lived things ; they are like a sweet flower in the bosom, that is an ornament for a little while, but withers presently : Or like a pond or brook occasioned by a great fall of rain, which quickly sinks and dries up, because it is not fed by springs in the bottom, as other fountain- waters are ; and hence it is they cannot continue and hold out when sufferings come. Mat. xiii. 21. Because there is no root to nourish and support. The hypocrite will not always call upon God, Job xxvii. lO. Though they may keep company with Christ a few miles in this dirty way, yet they must turn back at last, and shake hands eternally with him, John vi. QQ, These comets may seem to shine for a time among the stars, but when that earthly matter is spent, they must fall and lose their glory.
But now grace is an everlasting principle, it hath springs in the bot- tom that never fail. " I shall be in him (saith Christ) a well of " w^ater springing up into eternal life," John iv. 14. The Spirit of God supplies it from time to time, as need requires. It hath daily incomes from heaven, 2 Cor. i. 5. Phil. iv. 13. Col. i. 11. So that
30 rREPAllATIOXS FOR SUFFERINGS ; OR,
jt is our union with Christ the Fountain of grace, that is the true ground of our constancy and long suffering *.
6. And then lastly, it will appear by this also, that there is an absolute necessity of a real change by grace on all that will suffer for Christ; because although we may engage ourselves in suffeiings with- out it, yet we can never manage our sufferings like Christians with- out it. They will neither be honourable nor acceptable to God, nor yet beneficial and comfortable to ourselves or others, except they be performed from this principle of grace : For upon what principle soever beside this any man is acted in religion, it will either cause him to decline sufferings for Christ ; or, if he be engaged in them, yet he will little credit religion by his sufferings. They will either be spoil- ed bv an ill management, or his own pride will devour the praise and glory of them. I do not deny but a man that is graceless may suffer many hard things upon the account of his profession, and suffer them all in vain as these scriptures manifest. See 1 Cor. xiii. 3. Gal. iii. 4. And although you may find many sweet promises made to those that suffer for Christ, yet must consider that those pure and spiritual ends and motives by which men ought to be acted in their sufferings, are always supposed and implied in all these promises that are made to the external action. And sometimes it is expressed, 1 Pet. iv. 16. To suffer [as a Christian] is to suffer from pure Christian principles, and in a Christian manner, with meek?iess, patience^ self-denial^ &c. and this grace only can enable you to do : So that by all this, I hope what I have undertaken in this character, viz. To evince the necessity of a work of grace to pass u}X)n you, before sufferings for religion come, is performed to satisfaction.
Wherein the nature of this xcork of grace ^ in which our habitual fitness for suffering lies, is hriefly opened, and an account given of the great advantage the gracious person hath for any, even the hardest work therehy.
Having in the former chapter plainly evinced the necessity of saving grace to fit a man for sufferings ; it will be expected now that some account be given you of the nature of the work, and how it advantages a man for the discharge of the hardest services in reli- gion : Both which I shall open in this chapter by a distinct explica- tion of the parts of this description of it.
This work of grace, of which I am here to speak, consists in the real
. changeofthe whole man by the Spirit of God, whereby
y\ hat saving ^^ ^.^ prepared for every good work : In which brief
grace is. description I shall open these four things to you,
1. That it is a change ; that is palpably evident, both from scrip-
* We are only so far safe as we are united to Christ.
Till: BEST "VVOlli: IN THE WORST TIMES.