The precious favours God confers upon his, make them temptation- proof ; they make believers trample upon the most amiable baits. ' How can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God,' says Joseph. Joseph's sense of Potiphar's favours heaped upon him, strengthened him against the impudent solicitations of his wanton mistress, Gen. xxxix. And shall not the singular favours that God confers upon his dearest ones strengthen them against Satan's assaults ? Surely gracious hearts are "^\T0ught more upon, and bettered and strengthened more by spirit- uals than by temporals ; by eternals than by externals ; and if Satan do not find it so, I am much mistaken.
Well, remember this, Satan's overcoming the saints gives him the greatest advantage to boast and. triumph over Christ.^
Ambrose brings in the devil boasting against Christ, and challenging Judas as his own ; He is not thine, Lord Jesus, saith he, he is mine ; his thoughts beat for me ; he eats with thee, but he is fed by me ; he takes bread from thee, but money from me ; he drinks with thee, but sells thy blood to me. So when Satan prevails over the saints, look, O Christ, says he, are these the price of thy blood ? are these the objects of thy love ? are these the delight of thy soul ? what, are these thy jewels ? are these the apple of thy eye ? are these thy pleasant portion ? Why, lo how I lead them ' lo how I triumph over them ! they seem rather to be mine than thine. Ah, Christians ! resist as for life, that Satan may never have occasion thus to insult and triumph over Christ, &a
[6.] Sixthly and lastly, Christ gives the best gifts to his dearest ones, that they may be an honour and a j^vaise unto him in the gloinous day of his oivning of them, and marriage to them before nil the ivorld.
Believers in this life are but betrothed to Christ : ' I will betroth thee unto me for ever ; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in loving-kindness,' Hosea ii. 19, 20. Their marriage-day is put off till the glorious day of Christ's appearing ; the great day of his glory will be the day of solemnity ; Rev. xxi. 2, 9, 10, compared.2 It would not be for the honour and glory of Christ, that his spouse in that day should be clothed with rags ; therefore he hath given them the bracelets, the ear-rings, and the jewels before-hand, that they may be a praise and an honour to him in the marriage day. Oh ! when the saints shall appear with all those glorious jewels about them, that Christ hath bequeathed to them, how will their splendid glory darken all -other glory, and make the very sun to hide its face. This is our betrothing day, that will be our marriage day.
Bishop Ridley, the night before he suffered, invited his hostess and the rest at table to his marriage, ' for,' said he, * to-morrow I must be mar- ried.''' so several other martyrs went as men'ijy to die, as to dine ; knowing that their dying day did but make way for their marriage day. The Lord doth by his rich and royal favours trick and trim up his bride beforehand, that she may be an honour and a praise to him in the day
* Tlie devil marclieth well armed and in p:ood array, saith Luther.
* The good things of eternal life are so many, that they exceed number ; bo great, that they exceed mta.'ure ; so precious, that they are above all estimation. — Auguetine, de Triplici habit u, cap. 4. ' Foxe, as before. — Q.
EpH. III. 8.] RICHES OF CHRIST. 117
of coronation, in the day of marriage, in the day of solemnity, when he will own her before devils, angels, and all reprobates ; when he Avill say, ' Lo, here am I, and the bride, O Father ! that thou hast given me.'
And thus you have a brief account of the reasons of the point, why the Lord gives the best gifts to his own people.
We shall make some short but sweet uses of this point. And, first,
[].] Doth the Lord give the best and greatest gifts to his people? Then you that are hw 2)eople, sit down and wonder at this condescend- ing love of God.
Oh I what is in thy soul or in my soul, that should cause the Lord to give such gifts to us as he hath given ? We were all equal in sin and misery; nay, doubtless, we have actually outsinned thousands, to whom these precious gifts are denied. Let us therefore sit down and wonder at this condescending love of God. Oh! we were once poor wretches sitting upon the dunghill, yea, wallowing in our blood, and yet behold the King of kings, the Lord of lords, hath so far condescended in his love, as to bestow himself, his Spirit, his grace, and all the jewels of his royal crown upon us. Oh ! what heart can conceive, what tongue can express, this matchless love ! I will be thine for ever, says Christ, and my Spirit shall be thine for ever, and my grace thine for ever, and my glory thine for ever, and my righteousness thine for ever ; all I am and all I have, shall be thine for ever. O sirs ! what condescending love is this. Oh ! what a Christ is this.^
[2.] But then, secondly, Be greatly thanhful, oh he greatly thanJcfid for the great gift thcd Christ hath bestowed upon you.
It is not a little thankfulness that will answer and suit to the great gifts that the Lord Jesus hath bestowed upon you. Oh say with the psalmist, ' What shall I render to the Lord for all his favours, and great benefits. I will take the cup of salvation, and will call upon the name of the Lord,' Ps. cxvi. 13, 14. Yea, say again with the psalmist, 'I will praise thee more and more.' Or as it is in the Hebrew, 'I will add to thy praise,' Ps. Ixxi. 14. Oh when thou lookest upon the jewels, the pearls that Christ hath given thee, say. Lord, I will praise thee more and more, I will rise higher and higher in thy praises, I will be still a-adding to thy praise. The very law of nature bespeaks great thank- fulness, where great favours are given ; and the law of custom bespeaks it, and doth not the law of grace bespeak it much more V
When Tamerlane had taken Bajazet, among other questions he asked him * if ever he had given God thanks for making him so great an emperor ?' He confessed immediately, that ' he never thought of that ;' to whom Tamerlane replied, 'It is no wonder so ungrateful a man should be made a spectacle of misery.^ Oh ! what do they then deserve that are unthankful for spiritual favours. Tell me, O Christians, are not the gifts that Christ hath conferred upon you, peculiar gifts ? And will you not be thankful for them ? Were they but common gifts, you
^ 0 Lord Jesus, saith Bernard, breaking forth into an admiration of Christ's love, I love thee plusguam mea, jylnsquam meos, plusquam me, more than all my goods, more than all my friends, yea, more than my very self, &c. [Sermons on Canticles, as be/ore. — G.]
^ Injuries shall be writ in the dust, Ijut our mercies on marble, that our hearts may be the better provoked to praise and thankfulness.
3 Turk. Hist. 220, &c. [Kuolles, as before.— G.]
118 THE UNSEARCHABLE [EPH. Ill 8.