3. God either takes away or blasts the mercies which we are not thankful for. Sometimes he taketh them from us : Hosea ii. 8, 9, 'I will take away my corn in the time thereof, and my wine in the season thereof, and I will recover my wool and flax.' Why ? ' She doth not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and oil, and gave her silver and gold.' Where his kindness is not taken notice of, nor his hand seen and acknowledged, he will take his benefits to himself again. We know not the value of mercies so much by their worth as by their want ; uiairep 6(^6d\ixoi TO a'^/av Xafiirpov ovk opcoat — a thing too near the eye cannot be seen. God must set things at a distance to make us value thern. If he take them not away, yet many times he blasts them as to their natural use : Mai. ii. 2, ' And if you will not hear, and if you will not lay it to heart to give glory to my name, saith the Lord of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings ; yea, I have cursed them already, because you do not lay it to heart.' The creature is a deaf-nut ; when we come to crack it, we have not the natural blessing as to health, strength, and cheerfulness. Acts xiv. 17; or if food, yet not gladness of heart with it ; or we have not the sancti- fied use, it is not a mercy that leadeth us to God. A thing is sanctified when it is a bono in honum, if it cometh from God and leadeth us to God : 1 Cor. iii. 21-23, ' All things are yours ; whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come, all are yours, for you are Christ's, and Christ is God's.' You have a covenant right, a holy use.
166 SERMONS UPON PSALM CXIX. [SeR. LXX.
4. Bless liim for favours received, and you shall have more. Thanks- giving is the kindly way of petitioning, and the more thankful for mercies, the more they are increased upon us. Vapours drawn up from the earth return in showers to the earth again. The sea poureth out its fulness into the rivers, and all rivers return to the sea from whence they came : Ps. Ixvii. 5, 6, ' Let the people praise thee, 0 God; yea, let all the people praise thee : then shall the earth yield her increase, and God, even our own God, shall bless us.' When springs lie low, we pour a little water into the pump, not to enrich the foun- tain, but to bring up more for ourselves. It is not only true of outward increase, but of spiritual also: Col. ii. 7, ' Be ye rooted in the faith, and abound therein with thanksgiving.' If we give thanks for so much grace as we have already received, it is the way to increase our store. We thrive no more, get no more victory over our corruptions, because we do no more give thanks.
5. When God's common mercies are well observed or well improved, it fits us for acts of more special kindness. In the story of the lepers — Luke xvii. 19, 'Thy faith hath made thee whole,' — he met not only with a bodily cure, but a soul cure: Luke xvi. 11, 'If, therefore, ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches ? ' When we suspect a vessel leaketh, we try it with water before we fill it with wine. You are upon your trial ; be thankful for less, God will give you more. Means or directions : —
[1.] Heighten all the mercies you have by all the circumstances necessary to be considered. By the nature and kind of them : spiritual eternal blessings first ; the greatest mercies deserve greatest acknow- ledgment : Eph. i. 3, ' Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ' — Christ's spirit, pardon of sins, heaven, the way of salvation known, accepted, and the things of the world as subordinate helps. Luke x. 20, 'Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.' Then consider your sense in the want of mercies ; what high thoughts had you then of them ? The mercies are the same when you have them and when you want them, only your appre- hensions are greater. If affectionately begged they must be affection- ately acknowledged, else you are a hypocrite either in the supplication or gratulation. Consider the person giving, God, so high and glorious. A small remembrance from a great i^rince, no way obliged, no way needing me, to whom I can be no way profitable, a small kindness melts us, a gift of a few pounds, a little parcel of land. Do I court him and observe him ? There is less reason why God should abase himself to look upon us or concern himself in us : Ps. cxiii. 6, ' He humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven and in the earth.' We have all things from him. Consider the person receiving ; so unworthy : Gen. xxxii. 10, ' I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies and of all the truth Avhich thou hast showed unto thy servant ;' 2 Sam. vii. 18, ' Who am I, 0 Lord God, and what is my house, that thou hast brought me hithei-to ? ' Consider the season ; our greatest extremity is God's opportunity : Gen. xxii. 14, ' In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen,' when the knife was at the throat of kis son ;