4. These endeavours are supported by affiance, or a resolution to wait upon God till the blessings of the covenant be accomplished and made good. Though they meet with difiiculties, they keep wrestling with God : Gen. xxxii. 26, ' I will not let thee go unless thou bless me.' There is an obstinate purpose : Job xiii. 15, ' Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him.' So they will have Christ, whatever it cost them : Phil. iii. 8, 9, ' I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, and be fovmd in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is after the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.' Faith may be shaken, but it will not lose its hold ; as a tree groweth though it be bended with the wind. Thus you see what it is to receive the word with our whole heart : not only to acknowledge the truth of it, but to choose and accept it as our direction, with all cheerfulness, and accordingly make out after the hopes of Christianity, resolving not to be discouraged, whatever entertainment we meet with from God and the world.
Secondly, There is a receiving Christ with the whole heart. Art thou willing to take Christ upon these terms ? Yes, saith the soul.
VeR. 8.] SERMONS UPON JOHN XVII. 235
with all my heart. This answer were enough, if it were simple and genuine. But because we profane and prostitute these words to every slight matter, the deceit is not so easily discovered. We are wont to say of every trifle, I love such a thing with all my heart ; I will do it with all my heart ; whereas these words are of a sacred sound and importance ; and did not we adulterate them so often as we do, but keep them consecrate to God, to whom alone they are proper, the very pronouncing of them would awaken conscience ; we could not give such an answer but conscience would give us the lie. Let us then inquire into the thing, and see a little in the nature of the thing (for there is no trust in the expression), what this believing in Christ with all the heart, or receiving Christ with all the heart, doth imply. I answer —
1. It implieth that your whole and sole dependence must be entirely carried out to him. God will have no rivals in the trust and confidence of the creature. A king in his progress, that takes up an inn, will have it wholly to himself, much less will he have any to share with him in his own bedchamber. So here, you must trust Christ alone with your welfire. We believe with our whole heart when we have such a persuasion of his sufficiency that we durst venture all in his hands ; in matter of remission of sin we mind no confidence but in his grace : Heb. x. 22, ' Let us draw near with a true heart, in full assurance of faith,' dXi^Oivfj KapZia, a heart that doth not secretly run out to other props and confidences. Truth and sincerity in believing is there intended, not in obedience. Faith is a simple single trust in God's mercy ; the heart is very deceitful. Christ beareth the name, but the confidence is secretly built on our own merits ; as those women in Isaiah, chap. iv. 1, ' We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel, only let us be called by thy name.' People will say they trust in Christ alone, and yet secretly rest on their own innocency and good meanings. But most sensibly this perverseness of trust is discovered in matters of providence ; those that put half their trust in Christ, and half in the world, do not believe with their whole hearts. They pre- tend they can trust Christ for pardon, grace, and glory, and yet cannot trust him for a morsel of bread ; they find no difficulty in believing in Christ for salvation and remission of sins, and yet cannot believe that he will give them daily bread. What should be the reason ? Heaven and pardon of sins are greater mercies, and, if conscience were opened, we should see the difficulty to obtain them to be greater. There are more natural pr-ejudices, but bodily wants are more pressing to a con- science not sufficiently convinced. And here faith is presently to be exercised with difficulties. In matters of grace, men are more slight and inconsiderate, and content themselves with some general cold per- suasions, and therefore do not believe with their whole hearts. Alas ! temporal salvation is more easy. Can you look for heaven, who cannot trust him for a crust of bread ? Do you know what it is to venture your souls in Christ's hands, notwithstanding sins, notwithstanding death, and yet soon despond in time of danger, and when outward means of preservation fail ?
2. To receive Christ with the wliole heart is to receive him as an all- sufficient saviour, when every faculty seeketli contentment in Christ.