6. Keep catalogues of all your remarkable experiences ; treasure them up as food to your faith in time to come : Oh ! it is a singular encouragement and heartening to faith, when it can turn over the records of God's dealing with you in years past, and say as Joshua, Not one thing hath failed^ Joshua xxiii. 14. When it can say so of promises that have already had their accomplishments, then they will be apt to say concerning those yet to be accomplished, as Elizabeth said to Mary, Luke i. 45. " Blessed is the soul that be- " lieveth, for there shall be a performance of those things which are " told it by the Lord.''
These experiments are the food of faith, Psal. Ixxiv. 14. " Thou *' breakest the heads of Leviathan in pieces, and gavest him to be *' meat to thy people inhabiting the wilderness," i. e. That famous experience of the pov\er and love of God in their Iled-sea deliver- ance, where he destroyed that sea-monster Pharaoh, and his host, "was meat to the faith of God's Israel in the wilderness afterwards. We often find Christ charging the people's unbelief on a bad memory, Mat. xvi. 8, 9. And hence it was that the Lord commanded the Israelites to \iQ&^jo"urrials of every day's occu7'rences. Num. xiii. 1, 2. It is a thousand pities such choice helps should be lost. Oh ! if you could but remember, how the Lord hath appeared for you in former exigencies, and how often he hath shamed you for your un- belief, it would exceedingly animate your faith, both in present and future distreses, Micah vi. 5.
7. Lastly, Beware of sense, which is the supplanter of faith. O if you live upon things earthly, you put your faith out of its oflrice : Things earthly have an enmity to faith. " This is the victory by *' which we overcome the world, even our faith," 1 John v. 4. Overcoming denotes a conflict, and conflicts infer oppositions. Oh you that live so much by sight and sense on things visible, what will you do when in David's, or Paul's case, Psal. cxlli. 4. 2 Tim. iv. 16. when all outward encouragements and stays shall utterly fail ? What had Abraham done if he had not been able to believe against hope, i. e. such an hope as is founded on sense and reason.
Reader, I advise and charge thee in the name of the LQrd, and
THE BEST WOUK IN THE WORST TIMES. 47
as thou hopest to live when visible comforts die, that thou be diligent in the improvement and preparation of this excellent grace of faith : if it fail, thou failest with it ; and as thy faith is, so art thou. Con- sult also the cloud of witnesses, and see if thou canst find a man amongst them that did not atchieve the victory by his faith. Had they not all been run down by the furious assaults of temptation, and instead of a cloud of witnesses^ been so mQX\y pillars of salt ^ and monuments of reproach and shame to rehgion, if their faith had failed in its trial.
Wherein the necessity and usefulness of Christian fortitude in order to sufferings is evinced, with a brief account of its nature and the means of attaining it.
X HE next grace which occurs to the completing of our actual readiness for sufferings, is Christian fortitude, or holy courage ; which must say in thy heart in a time of danger, as Elijah once did, " As the Lord lives I will shew myself" This also is a choice part of your preparation-work. In this grace our apostle was eminent: when he was told, " Bonds and afflictions waited for him ;" he could say, That " none of these things moved him," Acts xx. 24. Yea, when he was to appear before the lion Nero, and not a man would own or stand by him, yet he stands his ground, resolving rather to die on the place, than dishonourably to recede from his principles and profession, 2 Tim. iv. 16, 17. He set the world, v/ith all its threats and terrors lower than it set him. O how conspicuous was this grace in ail those heroes that have past on before us : And if ever you hope to stand in the evil day, and be fetched off the field with ho- nour, you must rouse up and avv^aken your courage for God : And the necessity thereof will appear upon these four considerations.
1. Because the success and prevalence of Satan's temptations in the hour of persecution depends upon the fainting and overthrow of this grace. Wherefore doth he raise persecutions in the world, but because such terrible things are fitted to work upon the passion of carnal fear, which rises witli those dangers, and makes the soul as a tumultuous sea. This is it he aims at. Neb. vi. 13. This is a multi- plying passion that represents dangers more and greater than they are, and so drives the soul into the very net and snare laid by the devil to take it. Prov. xxix. 25. " The fear of man brings a snare;" which was sadly exemplified in Abraham, Gen. xii. 12. and divers others of the saints. If he can but subdue this grace, he will quickly bring you to capitulate for life and liberty, upon the basest and most dishonourable terms ; therefore the preparation of this grace is so exceedingly necessary.
4,3 fuepahations i-or suFFEr.iNGs ; or^
2. Because this is the grace that honours Jesus Christ abundantly^ >vhen you are brought upon the stage for him.
There is a great solemnity at the suffering and trial of a saint: hea- ven, earth, and hell, are spectators, observing the issue, and ho\v the saints will acquit themselves in that hour. We are made a spectacle^ saith the apostle. The word is Qiarpov iyzvrl^r,!Miv, we are as set upon a theatre in public view, 1 Cor. iv. 9. God, angels, and saints wait to see the glorious triumphs of their faith and courage, reflecting ho- nour upon the name and cause of Christ. Devils and wicked men gape for an advantage by their cowardice. Certainly very much lies now upon the Christian's hands. Should he faint and give ground, how will it furnish the triumphs of hell, and make Christ's enemies vaunt over him, as if his love ran so low in the hearts of his people, that they durst not adventure any thing for him ? Or, as if, notwith- standing their brave words and glorious profession, they durst not trust tlieir own principles when it comes to the trial : But if now they play the men, and discover an holy gallantry of spirit and reso- lution for Christ, how will it daunt the enemies, and make them say as Marcus, bishop of Aretheusa made one of Julian's nobles, present at his torments, to say concerning him, We are ashamed, O emperor, the Christians laugh at thy cruelty ! And how will God himself re- joice and glory over them, as he once did over Job when he fetched him with honour off that first field ! Job ii. 3. " Still he holdeth " fast his integrity."