[3.] Because God would observe a congruity and decency. As death entered by the ear, so doth life and peace : Eom. x. 14, 15, ' How shall they call on him in whom they have not believed ? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard ? and how shall they hear without a preacher ? and how shall they preach except they be sent ? ' By the same sense by which we received our venom and poison, God will send in our blessings, work faith and repentance in us by the ministry of reconciliation. Besides, as vision and seeing are exercised in heaven, so hearing in the church ; it is a more imperfect way of apprebension, but such as is competent to the present state : Job xlii. 5, ' I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear, but now mine eye seeth thee,' speaking of his extraordinary vision of God, which is a glimpse of heaven. Now we have a report of God, and his grace ; satisfying ocular inspection is reserved for heaven ; but now we must be contented with the one without the other.
G. That to preach the word to us, God hath appointed men of the same mould with ourselves, and entrusted them with the ministry of reconciliation. As the fowler catcheth many birds by one decoy, a bird of the same feather ; so God dealeth with us b}' men of the same nature and affections, and subject to the law of the same duties, who are con- cerned in the message they bring to us as much as we are — men that know the heart of man by experience, our prejudices and temptations,
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for the heart of man answereth to heart as the face in the waters, Prov. xxvii. 19 ; and so know all the wards of the lock, and what key will fit them. Now the love and wisdom of God appeareth herein, —
[1.] Because God will try the world by his ordinary messengers : Col. i. 21, ' It pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.' We now live by faith and not by sight, and there- fore he will not discover his own majesty, and send ns nuncios and messengers out of the other world, or deal with us in an extraordinary way to lead us to faith and repentance, but send mean creatures like ourselves, in his name, who, by the manifestation of the truth, shall commend themselves to every man's conscience, to see if they will sub- mit to this ordinary stated course. We would have visions, oracles, mu-acles, apparitions, one come from the dead, but Christ referreth us to ordinary means ; if they work not, extraordinary means will do us no good : Luke xvi. 30, 31, ' And he said, Nay, father Abraham, but if one went from the dead, they will repent : and he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.' When God used extraordinary ways, man was man still : Ps. Ixxviii. 22-24, ' Because they believed not in God, and trusted not in his salvation, though he had commanded the clouds from above, and opened the doors of heaven, and had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them the corn of heaven.' They had their meat and drink from heaven, and yet they were rebels against God and unbelievers. Their victuals came out of the clouds, their water out of the rock ; so that miracles will not con- vert, nor beget saving faith in them with whom ordinary means do not prevail. An oracle ; Samuel thought Eli called him, when it was the Lord : 2 Peter i. 19. — ^e^aiorepov \6yov, ' We have a more sure word of prophecy.' Or one from the dead. Christianity is the tes- timony of one that came from the dead, Jesus Christ. There can be no better doctrine, no more powerful persuasion, nor stronger confirm- ation, or greater cooperation. God trieth us now ; but we would have all things subjected to the view of sense.
[2.] He magnifieth his own power, and useth a weaker instrument, that we might not look to the next hand, and gaze upon them, as if they, by their own power and holiness did make the dead live, or the deaf hear, or convert the sinner to God : 2 Cor. iv. 7, ' We haye this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us ; ' that the efficacy of the gospel may be known to be from God alone, and not of men. He can blow down the walls of Jericho by a ram's-horn, by weak men bring mighty things to pass. Treasure in an earthen vessel is supposed to allude to Gideon's strata- gem of a lamp in a pitcher, Judges vii. 16. What was that to fight against the numerous host of Midian ? They brake their pitchers, and cried, ' The sword of the Lord and Gideon ! ' So we have this light in an earthen vessel ; ' the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God,' 2 Cor. x. 4. God chose ra firj ovra, 1 Cor. i. 28, ' foolish things to confound the wise, and weak tilings to confound the mighty, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are.' God's ordinances are simple in appearance, but full of power.