Prop. 5. His goodness to all the creatures should confirm his people in hoping for saving grace or spiritual good things. Why, all the business will be to show you the force of this argument, and that it is a prop to faith.
1. We may reason from the less to the greater. Our Lord hath taught us so for food and clothing : Mat. vi. 28-30, ' And why take ye thought for raiment ? Consider the lilies of the field how they grow ; they toil not, neither do they spin : and yet I say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Where- fore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to-day is and to-morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?' For fowls and lilies, they have no arts of
VeR. 64.] SERMONS UPON PSALM CXIX. - 189
tilling, spinning, are not of sncli account with God as mankind, as his people. So for protection : Mat. x. 29-31, ' Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing ? and one of them shall not fall to the ground without your Father: but the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not, therefore ; ye are of more value than many sparrows.' The reasoning is good ; if he hath mercy for kites, he hath also for children, who are not only in a higher rank of creatures, but in a renewed state, and reconciled to him by Christ, become his friends and children, whom he tendeth as the apple of his eye ; much more when they come for spiritual benefits pleasing to the Lord : 1 Kings iii. 9, 10, ' Give, therefore, thy servant an imderstanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad ; for who is able to judge this thy so great a people ? And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.' Now all these amount to a strong probability, if not a certainty. It is a mistake to think that faith only goeth upon certainties. No ; sometimes it is mightily encouraged by probabilities. These must not be left out ; for if I want any spiritual blessing, is it not a great encouragement to remember God's merciful nature shining forth in all his works ? If kind to his creatures, will he not be kind to me ? If he causeth his sun to shine upon the wicked, will he not lift up the light of his countenance upon my soul? If his rain fall upon their fields, will he not let the dew of his grace fall upon my barren heart ? Though the argument be not absolutely and infallibly conclusive, yet here is such a concurrence of probabi- lities that we should go and try what he will do for our souls.
2. They in their rank have their supplies, and we in our rank have our supplies ; therefore his kindness to all creatures should encourage new creatures to expect their help from him ; for God doth good to all his creatures according to their necessity and capacity ; his giving them sup- plies convenient for them is a pawn of God's pleasure to bestow upon his servants greater gifts than these. All things that look to God have necessaries provided for them according to the condition of their nature ; and therefore, if you have another nature, and besides the good things of this life do need the good things which belong to the life to come, he will give us gifts and graces as he giveth them their food ; for these are as necessary for this kind of life as food for that. As they in their rank find mercy, so we in ours ; his general goodness confirmeth us in expecting these more special favours ; for as there is a general benignity to all creatures, so there is a special to his children : Ps. xxxvi. 6, 7, 'Thou preservest man and beast. How excellent is thy loving-kindness, 0 Lord ! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.' His common kindness and his special love are often compared together ; they agree in this, that both come from a good God. Therefore the argument holdeth strong, if good to all creatures, then good to new creatures. Why should we think that he would not show his goodness to us also ? Again, they agree in this, that in doing good God doth not consider the worthiness of the creature, but his own goodness and self-inclination to preserve what he hath made ; as he did not disdain to give life to the meanest creatures, so he doth not disdain to preserve them. As they had their life from him at first, so they have their life still in him, the poorest
190 SERMONS UPON PSALM CXIX. [SeR. LXXII.
worm not excepted : not a worm, not a gnat, not a fly but tastes of God's bounty. God disdaineth not to look after the most abject things. So the plea of unworthiness lieth not in bar against the new creature, for necessary supplies God giveth out of his own goodness. Now, they differ in the kinds of the mercy, — one common, the other saving ; and the special subjects of them, — one is to all creatures, the other is to God's peculiar people ; and in the manner of conveyance, — the one floweth in the channel of common providence, the other is conveyed to us by the golden pipe of the Mediator. Well, then, the creatures have their mercies, and wicked men their mercies, that they prize and value ; and the people of God have also what they prize and esteem.