[12.] Twelfthly and lastly, If thou art a holy person, if thou art one that hast that real holiness without which there is no happiness, then know for thy comfort that all things shall ivork together for thy good: Rom. viii. 28, ' And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose.' All the afHictions, and all the temptations, and all the desertions, and all the oppressions, and all the oppositions, and all the persecutions that befalls a godly man shall work for his good. Rev. ii. 10. Every cross, every loss, and every disease that befalls the holy man shall work for his good ; every device, every snare, every method, every depth, every stratagem, and every enterprise of Satan against the holy man shall work for his good ; they shall all help to make him more humble, more holy, more heavenly, more spiritual, more faithful, more fruitful, and more watchful, 2 Cor. xii. 9, 10 ; every day of prosperity, and every night of adversity shall work for the holy man's good; every storm and every calm, every bitter and every sweet, every cross and every comfort, shall work for his good that is holy, Hosea ii. 5-7. When God gives a mercy, that shall work for his good ; and when God takes away a mercy, that shall w^ork for his good ; when God gives him large commons, that shall work for his good ; and when God cuts his commons short, that shall work for his good ; yea, and all the falls and all the sins of the saints shall work for their good. As I get hurt by my graces, so I get good by my sins, said famous Mr Foxe. Oh the care, the fear, the watch- fulness, the tenderness, the zeal, the revenge, that God raises in the souls of his saints by their very falls ! 2 Cor. vii. 8-13. Oh the hatred, the indignation, and the detestation that God raises in the hearts of his children against sin, by their very falling into sin ! Oh what love to Christ, what thankfulness for Christ, what admiration of Christ, what cleaving to Christ, what exalting of Christ, and what drawing from Christ, are saints led to by their very falls ! Oh what exercise of grace, what increase of grace, what magnifying of grace, what liftings up of divine power, and what a high price are holy men led to set upon the precious blood of Christ, and all by their falls ! It is the glory of God's
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holiness that he can turn spiritual diseases into holy remedies, and soul poisons into heavenly cordials ; that he can prevent sin by sin, and cure falling by falling. One calls that 8th of the Romans and the 28th verse the blind man's promise ; and I may call it the lame man's promise that is holy, and the deaf man's promise that is holy, and the dumb man's promise that is holy, and the needy man's promise that is holy, and the sick man's promise that is holy, and the languishing man's promise that is holy, and the dying man's promise that is holy. Oh the comfort, oh the sweet, oh the content, oh the satisfaction that this promise hath afforded to many a precious saint, when other promises have not been at hand ! 0 Christian, what though friends and relations frown upon thee, what though enemies are plotting and conspiring against thee, what though wants, like an armed man, are ready to break in upon thee, what though men rage and devils roar, what though sickness be in thy family, and death stands every day at thy elbow, yet there is no reason for thee to fear or faint, because all these things shall work for thy good. Yea, there is wonderful cause of joy and rejoicing in all the afflictions and tribulations that comes upon thee, considering that they shall all work for thy good. 0 Christians ! I am afraid, I am afraid, that you do not run so often as you should to the breasts of this promise, nor draw that sweetness and comfort from it that it would yield, and that your several cases may require. And thus I have done with this use of comfort and consolation to all God's holy ones. You see what com- fort, what consolation, yea, what strong consolation, waits upon all God's sanctified ones. I have been the longer upon this use, because the times require it, and the condition of God's people calls for the strongest cordials, and the choicest and the sweetest comforts.
And now I have nothing to do but to lay doion some positions con- cerning holiness, which may be of singular use for the preventing of some objections and mistakes, and for the giving of satisfaction, especially to such in whom the streams of holiness runs low, and who are still a-lamenting and mourning under the imperfections of their holiness, &c.
1. And the first position is tliis. Wherever real holiness is, it luill appear, it will discover itself, it luill shew itself, Eph. iv. 15, 16. It is the very nature of grace and holiness to manifest itself, and there- fore it is set forth in Scripture by the names of light, which shines abroad, Mat. v. 16, and of ointment and perfume, which cannot be hid, Prov. xxvii. 9 ; Cant. iii. 6 ; of leaven and salt, which deriveth its own nature and relish upon a whole lump. And it is very observable, that when the Holy Ghost was given, he was given in tongues, fiery tongues, and with a rushing of a mighty wind, all of which have a quality of self-manifestation, and notifying of themselves to others, Acts ii. 1-5.
Take a river that is dammed and stopped up, yet if the course of it be natural, and if it commonly runs downward, it will at length bear down all, and ride and run triumphantly over all that is in its way. So, though real holiness in a day of temptation, desertion, and afflic- tion, &c., may seem to be dammed and stopped up, yet at length it will make its way through all, and over all, and shew itself in its native colours. Though fire for a time may lie hid under the ashes,
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yet at last it will flame forth, and shew itself to be fire. Holiness is a divine fire, and though in some cases it may for a time seem to be hid, it will at length break forth, and shew itself to be holiness. I have not faith enough to believe that that man was ever really holy, whose holiness is still under a bushel, or in a dark lantern. Look, as natural life cannot be so hid but that it will discover itself a hundred hundred ways, so hoHness, which is a Christian's spiritual life, cannot be so hid but it will discover it a hundred hundred ways.