VeR. 7.] SERMONS UPON HEBREWS XI. 187
obedience was the love of God. But he makes use of tlie other argu- ment : ver. 10, ' Knowing the terrors of the Lord, we persuade men.' It was the terror of the Lord which made liim so faithful in his work against all the disadvantages he met withal in the world. Sometimes it is necessary we should stand in the way of a furious lust with a flaming sword. The children of God find all methods little enough to break the force of a boisterous inclination.
2. Because the wrath of God is the proper object of fear, yea, tlie highest object. The wrath of man is the object of fear ; therefore much more the wrath of God. The apostle saith, Kom. xiii. 3, ' That rulers are a terror to evil-doers ; ' much more should the wrath of Ga<l and destruction from the Almighty be a terror to them ; Ps. xc. 11, ' Who knows the power of thine anger ? according to thy fear, so is thy wrath.' Affections may lawfully be exercised about their proper objects without sin. Fear was planted in us for this very purpose ; and grace doth not abolish nature, but regulate it ; as Joshua made the Gibeonites to be hewers of wood and drawers of water, so grace serves our natural afi'ections. Indignation and fear are good for the uses of the sanctuary, for the expulsion and extermination of sin ; indignation against ourselves for sins committed, and fear for the prevention of sin.
3. We may make use of the Spirit's argument without sin. Usually men, instead of being over-spiritual, grow over-carnal. Terrors and threatenings are prof)ounded to us to drive us from sin, even to men that are assured of God's love. Though we have an indefeasible right in the great inheritance, yet we must look upon the Lord ' as a consuming fire,' Heb. xii. 29. The Lord would help our infirmity this way. This argument is of most force, because the Spirit of God argues and discourseth in the heart of believers just as he argues in the scripture ; now, thus the Spirit argues in the scripture, and there- fore the word of God is called ' The sword of the Spirit,' Eph. vi. 17- In all your inward combats, or the civil wars of the soul, the renewed heart makes use of scripture arguments ; and in scripture, as God encourageth with love, so he aweth with threatening.
4. The threatenings are a part of the object of faith, and therefore they may be used. They are propounded to be believed as well as the promises ; and you should as surely consider God will condemn the wicked and impenitent as save them that believe and repent ; and as there should be a closing with and loving the promise, so a trem- bling at the threatening ; it is a note of God's children, Isa. Ixvi. 2, ' They tremble at his word.'
5. I prove it from the example of the saints ; and surely they were not under a lower dispensation than we are. Job bridled and curbed the excesses of his power and greatness hereby, for saith he. Job xxxi. 23, ' Destruction from God was a terror to me.' Men in great places have shrewd temptations to oppress : Oh, but, saith he, I dare not, because of God's terrors. So Noah was warned by God, and out of fear of the threatening prepared the ark. So Paul, he mortified and kept down his body, ' Lest,' saith he, ' I should be a cast-away,' 1 Cor. ix. 27. We cannot pretend to a higher dispensation than Job, Paul, and other holy persons, as if they were but novices in the school of Christ. Your undaunted courage is to be suspected. Sin is not less
188 SERMONS UPON HEBREWS XL [SeR. XXXVI,
rooted in us iha.n it was in Paul, or less dangerous to us ; neither are we more skilful than holy Paul : the devil is as subtle and our corrup- tions are as strong as ever.
6. The promises will be the better relished when we reflect upon the threatening ; the bitterness of the threatening makes us to relish the sweetness of the promise. God is therefore the most desirable friend, because he is the most dreadful adversary. Look, as the sight of the Red Sea and the floating Egyptians, when they were drowned there, moved the Israelites to praise God ; so when we consider the curse w4ierewith wicked men are overwhelmed, it is a great argument to quicken and stir us up to praise. Solomon would have us view the field of the sluggard. The brambles and briers that grow in the sluggard's field commend diligence ; and so look upon the portion of wicked men- — the snares, and brimstone, and horrible tempest, which is the portion of their cup : this commends our portion in Christ, and makes the promises more sweet.
Use 2. Direction how we are to use the threatening.
1. When you consider the threatening, let the punishment of loss be more terrible to you than the pain ; I mean, let separation from God work more upon you, than your own misery and distress : ' Depart from me ' is worse than ' eternal fire.' It is the greatest evil that can fall upon creatures to be separated for ever from the chiefest good. I press this, partly because nature will reflect upon its own pain, but grace counts the loss of God the chiefest misery. The wicked will think this no punishment to depart from God ; they excommunicate, and cast God out of their company now — 'Depart from us, for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways,' Job xxi. 14. And partly, be- cause such considerations will be of great use ; they that prize communion with God will be afraid to lose him by their sins ; for they thus argue, this will work a divorce between me and my God. Look upon the privative part of the threatening rather than the positive part of it ; 1 Cor. ix. 27, ' I keep under my body,' saith the apostle ' lest I be a cast- away.' The main thing he feared was to be cast out of the favour of God, and lose the fellowship of God.