They had dispute upon dispute, which of them should be accounted greatest ; they had often sharp contests among themselves, which of them should have the greatest honour, the best office, and the highest perferment in Christ's earthly kingdom ; and indeed their thoughts, heads, and hearts were so taken up about an outward king- dom, a worldly kingdom, that they little minded either the spiritual kingdom of God within them, or the glorious kingdom of God above them. As the foolish Indians prefer every toy and trifle before their mines of gold, so many Christians, who are low in holiness, pre- fer the trifling vanities of this world before the glorious treasures and endless pleasures that be at God's right hand, Ps. xvi. 11. Oh, but where holiness is risen to any considerable height, there men will make a very footstool of their crowns, for Christ to get up and ride in triumph. There all the glory and bravery of this world will be but as dross and dung, Phil, iii, 7, 8 ; there men would, like the woman, the church, in the Revelation, ' trample the moon^' that is, all the things of this world, which are as changeable as the moon, ' under their feet,' Rev. xii. 1. Were there but more holiness in your hearts, all the gay and gallant things of this world would be more contemptible in your eyes. 0 sirs, if Midas was condemned to wear ass's ears, because he preferred Pan's pipe before Apollo's lute, that is, human policy before divine providence, how severely are they to be censured who prefer the poor, low, empty nothings of this world before all the glory and happi- ness of another world ! &c. But,
[3.] Thirdly, You have attained to but little holiness ; witness your fears and fainting s in a day of adversity. Though there be as many fear nots, as there be fears in Scripture, yet in a day of calamity, how easily and frequently does your fears get above your faith ! Isa. li. 12, 13, and xli. 10, 14 ; and what fainting-fits does then attend you ! Prov. xxiv. 10, ' If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small,' or as the Hebrew has it, ' thy strength is narrow or straitened.' i Look, as bodily faintness discovers bodily weakness, so soul faintness discovers soul w^eakness. It is troubles that are the trials of a Chris- tian's strength. Afflictions will try what sap and life we have within us. As the man is for holiness, so is his strength under trials. He that has no holiness, has no strength, and he that has but a little holi- ness, has but a little strength : but he that has much holiness, has much strength, and accordingly will bear up bravely in a day of trial ; his bow, with Joseph's, will then abide in strength, Gen. xlix. 23, 24. Though Noah in the building of his ark met with many a sore trial, and many a sad affront, and many a broad jest, and many a bitter Bcofi"; and though the people generally laughed at the good old man, thinking that he did not only dote, but dream, not of a dry summer, but of a wet winter, as we say ; yet Noah, being eminent in holiness, his bow abode in strength, and he held on building of the ark, till he had finished the work that God had commanded. But oh the sadness, the weakness, the faintness that attends most persons in the day of their adversity 1 Jer. viii. 18, 21, ' When I would comfort myself against sorrow, my heart is faint in me. For the hurt of the daughter
^ Tiar, *il{. It signifies to be etraitened, aa men are straitened that are closely besieged in time of war, &c.
336 THE NECESSITY, EXCELLENCY, RARITY, [HeB. XII. 14.
of my people am I hurt ; am I black ; astonishment hath taken hold on me/ Chap. xlv. 3, ' Thou didst say, Woe is me now ! for the Lord hath added grief to my sorrow ; I fainted in my sighings, and I find no rest.' Lam. i. 22, ' For my sighs are many, and my heart is faint.' Chap. v. 17, ' For this our heart is faint, for these things our eyes are dim.' Now this faintness in the day of adversity speaks out much spiritual weakness ; for where holiness is risen to a noble height, there men will bear up courageously, even in a day of calamity. The eagle is the king of birds, and therefore the Komans, who were the greatest potentates on earth, still bore the eagle in their standards. Now the naturalist observes concerning this royal bird, that whereas all other birds make a noise when they are hungry, this princely bird makes no noise at all, though he be never so hungry, for such is the greatness and the nobleness of his spirit, that whatever befalls him, he won't cry, and whine, and repine, as other birds will do when they want their food; his princely spirit carries him above all hunger, thirst, or danger, i So men that are eminent in holiness, are men of such noble, princely spirits, that they won't faint, nor vex, nor fret, nor complain, nor whine, whatever their wants, trials, or straits may be. Such afflictions as would break other men's hearts, cannot so much as break their sleep ; they still hold on their way, and whatever they meet with, they will be still a-mounting nearer and nearer to heaven. But now where there is but a little holiness, there men will be like the common fowls of the air, still a-making a noise, they will still be a-crying, whining, and repining under every trial and trouble they meet with. But,
[4.] Fourthly, You have but a little holiness ; witness your easy, your ready, arid your fi-equent fallings before temptations and motions to sin. 0 sirs, when the temptation does but touch and take, when you are no sooner tempted but you are conquered, no sooner assaulted but you are vanquished, certainly holiness is at a very low ebb in your souls. That garrison, without all peradventure, is very weak, that is taken at the first assault, and that ship is but meanly manned, that is carried at first boarding, and that soldier is but slightly armed, that is run through at the first thrust ; and so that Christian has but little spiritual strength in him, who is worsted and vanquished upon the first appearance of a temptation. When men's understandings are easily corrupted with error, or their judgments with levity, or their wills with frowardness, or their affections with disorderedness, or their con- sciences with unrighteousness, it is a very great argument that there is but little holiness within. 0 sirs, men eminent in holiness, in their ordinary course, have been always eminent in the resisting and with- standing of temptations, as is evident in Joseph, Job, Daniel, the three children, &c.2 Austin thanks the Lord that his heart and the temptation did not meet together. The devil tempting Bonaventure, told him that he was a reprobate, and therefore persuaded him to drink in the present pleasures of this life, for, saith Satan, thou art excluded from the future joys with God in heaven ; to whom he answered. No, not so, Satan, for if I must not enjoy God after this life, I will labour
^ Aristotle, lib. ix. de Historia Animalium, &c. ' Gen. zxzix : Job i. ; Dan. iii. and vi.