1 Qu. ' aloft ' ?— Ed. VOL. IX. Q
242 sermons upon psalm cxix. [Seb. CLXXXIII.
your masters according to the flesh ; not with eye-service, as men- pleasers ; but in singleness of heart, fearing God : and whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men.' Still the con- sideration of God's eye is suggested to them ; they must be careful of their master's concernments, whether their master be present or absent, or whether the tilings they do will come to his knowledge, yea or no ; for though the eye of man will not find them out, yet the eye of God must be regarded ; therefore, with respect to God, they must be care- ful and faithful. So again, Eph. vi. 5, 6, ' Servants, be obedient to them which are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ ; with good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men.' They should be cheer- ful, laborious, painful, showing all faithfulness in things committed to their trust, even to a pin or the smallest matter, not saucy, stubborn, and malapert ; because the Lord looketh upon them, and if they so do, will own them and bless them. Thus you see we should have better magistrates, better ministers, better masters, better servants, better fathers, better children, if this principle were once deeply imprinted upon their hearts, that all their ways are before the Lord, and he still observeth what they do in all their actions.
Use. To press us to walk as in the sight of God, and to foresee him before j'ou in all your ways. To press you hereunto, consider these things: —
1. You are in the sight of God, whether you think so or no. We can no more be removed from the presence of God than from our own beings, for he is in everything that subsists, and it subsists by him. The apostle telleth us, Eph. iv. 6, ' There is one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.' The sun is some representation of God's eye ; nothing is hid from its sight : if the sun were an eye, it would see all things that it shineth upon. So doth God ; only with this difference, the sun cannot pierce through dark and thick bodies, but God is over all, and through all, and in all, upholding and overruling all by his powerful providence. Therefore you cannot lie hid from God ; only this sight is not comfortable and profitable to you, unless you see him as he seeth you. They say of the panther, when it hideth the head it thinketh it is not seen because it seeth not, and so is taken by the hunters. This an emblem of wretched sinners ; they see not God, and therefore think they are not seen by him, and so go on doing evil till their iniquities find them out.
2. What a noble thing it is always to live in the sight of God ; for by this exercise, in some measure, and as this mortal state will permit, you enjoy the happiness of the blessed angels, for this is the privilege of the blessed angels: Mat. xviii. 10, 'That they always behold the face of our Father which is in heaven.' So when you live in the thought of God in some measure, you are doing their work, and your minds become as it were another heaven ; for heaven is where God is, and there God is in that heart that thinketh of him ; not only there by the powerful effects of his providence, and the impressions of his grace, but there by the workings of our hearts.
3. The profit is exceeding great. By conversing with God often ye become like him. As musing of vanity maketh us vain, heavenly and
VeR. 168.] SERMONS UPON PSALM CXIX. 243
holy thoughts produce a heavenly mind, and frequent remembrance is one means to introduce the divine nature. Moses, in that extra- ordinary converse with God, his face shone, he carried away some strictures and rays of the divine majesty in his countenance. We cannot look for that effect upon our bodies, but serious and ponderous thoughts leave some change upon the soul ; there is the lustre of grace, and the beauty of the divine nature, which is a greater thing left upon us. The apostle saith, 2 Cor. iii. 19, ' For we all with open face, beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image, from glory to glory, as by the Spirit of the Lord.' By seeing him in the word, considering him as always present with us ; the heart is coloured and dyed by the object it often thinketh upon. Oh ! therefore be persuaded to set the Lord before you. For means.
1. To see God aright we need faith, for God is invisible, and in- visible things are only seen by faith, Heb. xi. 1 ; and the instance is in Moses, ver. 27, ' By faith he saw him that was invisible/ Many have an opinion that God knoweth all things, but they have not a sound belief of it ; it is what is owned by the tongue rather than the heart. Cold and dead opinions are easily taken up, but a lively faith is God's gift ; this is a sight not easily gotten.