[3.] The act itself. All this was to be done by his own hand — an aged father to kill his own son ! the father of the faithful to sacrifice the son of the promise ! A jewel lately given was now demanded again. If God had told Abraham that his son must die, it had been grievous, but that he must offer him, hei'e was the trial.
3. Let us now look upon Abraham's behaviour under this great trial. Here is no disputing ; *he never questioned the oracle ; it is God's will, and I must obey ; he will provide for his promise well enough. ' In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen,' Gen. xxii. 14. Here is no delay, Gen. xxii 3, ' And Abraham rose early in the morning, and
YeRS. 17-19.] SERMONS UPON HEBREWS XL 355
saddled his ass, and took two of his young meu witli him. and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt otfering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God l-.ad told him,' Here is no shifting, though he carried the matter closely, concealing it from Isaac, and his servants. 'By faith he offered Isaac ; * faith is the root and principle of the action. ' He offered,' but Abraham did not offer him ; God interposed and prevented him. Yet God counts it done : James ii. 21, 'Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar ? ' And God said, Gen. xxii. 12. ' Now I know that thou fearest God, seeing tliou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son, from me.' Partly because of his purpose, and ])artly because it was not a naked purpose ; all things were ready, if God had not interposed — his son bound, and laid upon the altar.
Doct. 1. It is the property of faith to carry us through the greatest trials, with a ready, and cheerful, and acceptable obedience, and sub- mission to the will of God.
To draw forth the marrow of the text, I shall branch this doctrine into some lesser propositions.
First I observe, — Ere we come to heaven, we all have our trials. It is the common lot of the saints to be tried. God's trials, which he suftereth to befall us, are in scripture compared unto two things — to the winnowing of wheat, and to the refining of gold. To the win- nowing of wheat: Luke xxii. 31, 'And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift jou as wheat.' The devil may shake and toss us as the wheat is tossed from sieve to sieve, but all to purge away our chaff. Then it is compared to the refining of gold : 1 Peter i. 7, ' That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, w^hen it is tried with fire, might be found unto praise, and honour, and glory, at the appearing of Jesus Christ.' Gold is melted, and loseth nothing of its substance but its dross; so it is for our improving and bettering, that God permits us to be tossed and shaken by Satan and bitter afflictions. There is need of trials, or else God would not make use of this dispensation : 1 Peter i. 6, ' Though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations.' All of us take our turn and share. God trieth some of his people to discover their weakness to themselves, and he trieth others to manifest the grace that is in them.
1. God- will have the weakness of his own servants tried, that they may not conceit they have more grace than they have ; and that the evil which before lay hid, may be discovered and cured. Thus God tried Hezekiah : 2 Chron. xxxii. 31, ' God left him to try him, that he might know all that was in his heart.' And Christ tried Philip : John vi. 6, ' This he said to prove him, for he himself knew what he would do.'
2. He will have theu* grace tried ; and that for our comfort and for his own glory.
[1.] For our comfort. We have not ordinarily so clear a proof of the reality of grace, as under sore trials : Eom. v. 4, ' Tribulation workelh patience, and patience experience,' So/cifirjv, trial, and SoKifirj, experience, or trial, hope : then is any grace most seen. By knocking upon the vessel we see whether it be full or empty, cracked or sound,
35(> SKRMONS UPON HEBREWS XI. [SeR. LI.
SO by these knocks of providence we are discovered. Stars that lie hid in the day shine in the night. The rose is not so sweet on the tree as in the still. A sore tempest discovereth the goodness of the ship and the skill of the pilot, so in the night of afflictions the splendour of grace is best seen. When we are set over the fire, our fragrancy is discovered, und a christian's skill in a tempest is obedience.
[2.] It is for God's glory, that our ready self-denial and submission, and dependence on his wisdom, should be known, as the centurion said of his servants : Mat. viii. 9, ' I say to this man, Go, and he goeth ; and to another, Come, and he cometh. and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it." There was an exact discipline in the Roman camps ; so the Lord is honoured when his servants are tried, and they discover what a spirit of God and glory resteth upon them : 1 Peter iv. 14, ' If ye be reproached for the name of Christy happy are ye, for the Spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you ; on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.' God will have the world know that he hath a people who are at his beck, as he is said, Isa. xli. 2, ' To raise up the righteous man from the east, and call him to his foot.' Abraham went to and fro at God's command, as God did appoint him. The Lord hath a people that love him better than their lives, than their choicest comforts, and will endure any misery rather than deny any part of their duty. At the last day, by trial our faith will be found to praise and honour : 1 Peter i. 7, ' That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise, and honour, and glory, at the appearing of Jesus Christ , ' then it will be found to be such a faith as Christ will accept and reward. Now these trials are manifold : 1 Peter i. 6, ' Ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations ; ' and diverse : James i. 2, ' Count it all joy when ye fall into diverse temptations ;' because diverse things are to be tried. As, —