' The child is restless till it be in the mother'ti nrnis. * Tola Vila boni ChrUliani sanctum dcsidirium est.
EpH. III. 8.J RICHES OF CHRIST. 79
[3.] Though I dare not say that Christ is mine, yet I can truly say, that Christ, his love, his tvorks, his gra.ce, his word, are the main objects of nny contem2^lation and meditation. Oh I am always best, when I am most a-meditating and contemplating Christ, his love, his gi'ace, &c. Ps. cxxxix. 17, ' How precious are thy thoughts unto me, O God ; how great is the sum of them 1'^
Well, is this all, 0 weak saint ?
No, sir, I have one thing more to say.
[4.] I can truly say, Thcd the want of Christ's love is a greater grief and burden to my soid, than the ivant of any outward thing in this world. I am in a wanting condition, as to temporals; I want health, and strength, and trading, friends, and money, ' that answereth all things,' as Solomon speaks, Eccles. x. 19. And yet all these wants do not so grieve me, and so aiSict and trouble me, as the want of Christ, as the want of grace, as the want of the discoveries of that favour that is better than life, Ps. Ixiii. 3. 4.
Well, is this all, O weak saint ?
No, sir, there is one thing more.
[5.] That I u'ould not vjillingly nor resolvedly sin against Christ, for a vjorld. It is true, I dare not say I have an interest in Christ, yet I dare say that I would not willingly and resolvedly sin against Christ for a world.^ I can say, through grace, were I this moment to die, that my greatest fear is of sinning against Christ, and my greatest care is of pleasing Christ. I know there was a time, when my greatest care was to please myself and the creature, and my greatest fear was to please^ myself and the creature. I can remember with sorrow and sadness of heart, how often I have displeased Christ to please myself, and displeased Christ to please the creature ; but now it is quite other- wise with me, my greatest care is to please Christ, and my greatest fear is of offending Christ.*
Well, is this all, 0 weak saint ?
No, sir, I have one thing more.
[C] Though I dare not say that Christ is mine, and that I have an interest in him, yet / can truly say, I dearly love the people of Christ, for the image of Christ that I see stamped upjon them. It is true, I dare not say Christ is mine, and heaven is mine ; I cannot say with such and such, ' The Lord is my portion ;' yet I can say that I dearly love those that have the Lord for their portion. I can truly say, that
* Some contemplations have generationem lon^am, fruitionem brevem ; but these are not the contemplations of the saints.
* I will rather leap into a bonfire than ■wilfully to commit wickedness, wilfully to sin against God. ^ Qu. 'displease'? — Ed.
* And I, said Anselm, had rather go to hell pure from sin than to heaven polluted with that filth. The primitive Christians chose rather to be thrown to lions without, than left to lusts within. Ad leonem magis quam leones^ saith Tertullian.
80 THE UNSEARCHABLE [EPH. III. 8.
the poorest and the most neglected, and the most despised samt in the world, is more precious in my eye, and more dear to my soul, than the greatest and the richest sinner in the world, Ps. xvi. 3.^
Well, is this all, 0 weak saint, that thou hast to say ?
No, sir, I have one thing more.
[7.] Though I dare not say that I have any interest in Christ, or that I love Christ, yet I dare say, that my soul iveeps and mourns in secret for the dishonour that is done to Christ, both by myself and by others also. I can look the Lord in the face, were I now to die, and say, Lord ! thou that knowest all thoughts and hearts, thou dost know, that ' mine eyes run down with rivers of tears, because men keep not thy law,' Jer. ix. 1-3 ; Ps. cxix. 136.
No, sir, I crave your patience to hear me in one thing more.
What is that, 0 weak Christian ?
[8.] That I prize 'persons and things according to the spintualness and holiness that is in them ; and the more spiritual and holy any man or thing is, the more is that man and thing prized by my soul. I have often thought of that sweet word, Ps. cxix. lO-t, 'Thy word is verv pure, therefore doth thy servant love it.'^ Other men love it because of the profit they get by it, or because of a name, or this, or that ; but I love it for the purity, for the holiness, and the cleanness of it. No preaching, saith the weak saint, nor no praying, nor no talking, nor no society that likes me and is sweet to me, but that that is most spiritual, most holy. It is not an exercise tricked and trimmed up with wit, learning, and eloquence ; it is not the hanging of truth's ears with countei-feit pearls, that takes me ; but the more plainness, spiritual- ness, and holiness, I see in an exercise, the more is my lieart raised to prize it and love it. And therefore, saith the weak saint, because Christ is perfectly and infinitely holy above all other, I prize Christ above all. Ordinances are sweet, but Christ is more sweet to my soul. Saints are precious, but Christ is far more precious. Heaven is glorious, but Christ is infinitely more glorious. The first thing that I would ask, if I might have it, saith the weak saint, is Christ. And the next thing that I would ask, if I might have it, is more of Christ. And the last thing that I would ask, if I might have it, is that I might be satiated and filled with the fulness of Christ. Let the ambitious man take the honours of the world, so I may but have Christ. Let the voluptuous man swim in all the pleasures of the world, so I may have Christ. And let the covetous man tumble up and down in all the gold and silver of the world, so I may have Christ, and it shall be enough to my soul.'
' It is reported of Bucer and Calvin, that they loved all them in whom they coulil espy aliquid Christi, anytljing of Christ. It is just so with these poor hearts tliat question their present condition.
2 Much in the word is wrapped up in a little ; it is more lo be admired tlian to have Homer's Iliads comprised in a nutshell. The word is like the stone, garamantides, that hath golden drops within itself, enriching of the gracious soul.
3 None but Christ, uone but Christ, said the martyr. [Sunders and Hudson, aa before. -G.]
EpH. III. 8.] RICHES OF CHRIST. 81
Well, is this all, 0 weak saint ?
No, sir ; I have one thing more to say,