^ Cant. ii. 11, 12 ; Jer, viii. 22, xlvi. 11, and H. 8. * Plutarch in vita Pomp.
He B. XII. 14.] AND BEAUTY OF HOLINESS. 339
all the angels in heaven, and all the men on earth, in arms at his pleasure ; and in the power of this God, raised holiness will enable a m an to glory all the day long. Where holiness is weak, there men stand and fall as second causes work, but where holiness is eminent, there men will live upon the first cause ; and, however second causes may wheel about, yet such a man will live upon him, and look up to him that hath a wheel within every wheel, Ezek. i. 15-22. But,
[7.] Seventhly, You have but little holiness ; witness that soul-lean- ness, barrenness, and unfruitfulness that is among you at this very day, Ps. cvi. 15. Ah, how may most cry out with the prophet Isaiah, ' Oh my leanness, my leanness ! ' Isa, xxiv. 16, and x. 16. Oh our lean- ness, our leanness, our barrenness, &c. ! though God has waited many three years for fruit, yet behold nothing but leaves. I have read of the Indian fig-tree, how that its leaves are as broad as a target, but its fruit is no bigger than a bean.i Ah, how many Christians be there in these days whose leaves of profession are very broad, but their fruits of righteousness and holiness are very small ; and as the Indian fig-tree, though it be of fair and goodly dimensions, yet it riots out all its sap and juice into leaves and blossoms. So many in these days, who, though they carry it fair, and make a goodly show, yet they riot out all that spiritual sap and life that is in them into the mere leaves and blossoms of an empty profession. Ah, how are many of our hearts like to the isle of Patmos, which is so barren that nothing that is good will grow on it ; all the good things that grow there is from the earth that is brought from other places. Look, as a company of ants are very busy about a molehill, running to and fro, and wearying themselves in their several movings and turnings, this way and that, and yet never grow great ; for after all their motions and stirring, they are still the same as to the slender proportion of their bodies : so many Chris- tians in these days run to and fro, they run from one duty to another, and from one ordinance to another, and from one opinion to another, and from one principle to another, and from one minister to another, and from one church to another, and from one way to another, and from one notion to another, and yet they make little progress in holi- ness, they grow but little in the love, the life, the likeness, and the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 Pet. iii. 18 ; they are like those silly women that Timothy speaks of, who were ever learning, and yet never able to come to the knowledge of the truth, 2 Tim. iii. 6, 7 ; and they are like Nazianzen's country of Ozizala, [?] which abounded with gay flowers, but was barren of corn ; so these abound in gay notions, and flourishing parts, but are barren of grace and holiness. Seneca hath long since observed that as the philosophers in his time grew more and more learned, so they grew less and less moral ; and is there anything more evident in these days than this, viz., that as men grow more and more in empty airy notions, and in a pompous religion and profession, so they grow less and less zealous and religious. The reason, say some, why Christ cursed the fig-tree, though the time of bearing fruit was not come, was because it made a glorious show with leaves, and promised much, but brought forth nothing. What is a barren tree, a barren ground, or a barren womb,
^ Athenseus; Deipnosophistce, lib. iii.
340 THE NECESSITY, EXCELLENCY, RARITY, [HeB. XII. 14.
to a barren heart ? Many in our days are like the cypress-tree, which, the more it is watered, the more it is withered ; so the more many are watered with the means of grace, the more they wither ; the more the dews of heaven falls upon them, and the more heavenly manna is daily rained round about them, the more lean, fruitless, and barren they grow. Such souls may do well to remember that those trees that are not for fruit are for the fire, John xv. 6 ; Heb. vi, 8. For a close, let me tell you that I fear, with that Father, [Augustine,] that many grieve more for the barrenness of their lands, than they do for the barrenness of their lives, and for the barrenness of their trees, than they do for the barrenness of their souls, and for the loss of their cattle, than they do for the loss of God's countenance. But,
[8,] Eighthly and lastly. You have but little holiness ; witness that great indifferency and inco7istancy that is to he found among you.^ Ah, how many Christians are there in these days of gospel light who are indifferent who they hear, or what they hear, who are indifferent whether they pray or not, or walk in gospel order or not, or keep Sabbaths or not, or maintain closet communion with God or not, or enjoy the Lord's supper or not, &c., and oh, what inconstancy is to be found among many in these days ! Many persons are only constant in inconstancy. Now they are for ordinances, and anon they are against them ; now ordinances are precious and glorious things, and anon they are poor low things ; now they cry up this and that for glorious truths, and anon they cry down the same things as dangerous and pernicious errors ; now they cry up Paul and cry down Apollos, and anon they cry up Apollos and cry down Paul ; now they are for this form, and anon they are for that ; now they are very zealous, and anon they are very lukewarm ; now they are for worshipping of God according to rule, and anon they are for worshipping of God according to the prescriptions of men ; now they have their gales of devotion, and anon they are quite becalmed ; now they are full of life, and anon they are very lumpish ; now they stand fast, and anon they are wavering ; now they are confident all will be well, and anon they give up all as lost ; now they will lay down their lives for Christ, and anon they are afraid to own Christ, &c. Now what does this indifferency and inconstancy speak out, but either a total want of holiness, or else that holiness is at a very low ebb in these men's souls ? Now these eight arguments do clearly evidence that many, oh that I could not say that most. Christians have attained but to small measures and degrees of holiness. But,
(2.) Secondly, To provoke you to labour after higher degrees of holiness, consider ^/iai it is possible for you to attain to greater mea- sures of holiness tJian any yet you have reached unto. Though the work be hard, yet it is possible ; and what great things won't men at- tempt upon the account of a possibility. Now that it is possible that
wL may attain to a greater perfection of holiness, I shall evidence
the 1 First, By many precious promises that are scattered up and