436 SERMONS UPON HEBREWS XI. [SeR. LVIII.
2. Faitli gives us right thouglits of things present. It shows us the nothingness of worldly greatness, and the greatness of present -spiritual privileges.
[1.] The nothingness of worldly greatness and honours. It is but a vain appearance, a mere pageant, a nothing, a fancy : Acts xxv. 23, ' Agrippa and Bernice appeared with great pomp,' ixera ttoXA,?}? ^avTaaia<i, with great fancy. It is but a vain show, more in appear- ance than in reality : Ps. xxxix. 5, 6, ' Every man at his best estate is altogether vanity. Surely every man walketh in a vain show ; ' Prov. xxvi. 5, ' Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not ? ' They are but poor, gilded nothings. Nature and sense do judge amiss. As faitli makes Christ and heaven another thing, so it makes the world another thing : Prov. xxiii. 4, ' Labour not to be rich ; cease from thine own wisdom.' How dotli the Holy Ghost put these things together ! If a man be guided by his natural understanding, and by carnal and present sense, all his business will be to be great, honourable, and rich ; but if he hath a spiritual light, and doth cease from his own understanding, if he looks upon these things by an eye of faith, then he sees these poor empty things notliing in comparison of those better things which are offered to us by Christ : Ps. cxix. 96, ' I have seen an end of all perfection ; ' — it was not only his observation but experience ; a man that hath an eye of faitli may look to the end of worldly greatness and see through and through it ; — ' but thy commandment is exceeding broad ; ' that is the benefit we have by obeying the commandment of God, we cannot see through and through it. So that faith helps us to look upon present things, and to discern what a poor, gilded nothing, what a fashion, what a vain appearance all worldly things are !
[2.] On the other side, it shows us the worth of spiritual privileges, that peace of conscience is better than worldly happiness ; that communion with God and his people, though they be an afflicted people, is better than the pleasures of the court ; that it is better to be a member of God's church than to have a being in the courts of princes ; that adoption is better than to be an heir to the greatest kingdom, — to be a son of God is much more than to be the son of Pharaoh's daughter. Faith rectifies our judgments about things spiritual. Carnal men cannot value these things, because they have ■10 spiritual discerning, neither of the truth, nor of the worth of these things : 1 Cor. ii. 14, ' For the natural man perceiveth not the things of the Spirit of Cod, for they are foolishness unto him, neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.' Mark, the world cannot well be understood without faith, nor spiritual things without faith. They which constantly attend upon God, and depend upon him, have much more a sweeter life than those that wait upon princes with great observance and expectation : Ps, cxviii. 9, ' It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.' A servant of the Lord is better provided for than the greatest favourites and minions of princes.
VeR. 24.] SERMONS UPON HEBREWS XI. 437
SERMON LIX.
By faith Moses, when he loas come to years, refused to he called the son of Pharaoh's daughter. — Heb. xi. 24.
Faith apprehends two things, that the servant of the Lord hath a sweeter taste, and that he is upon surer terms ; and therefore to faith all the honours of the world are hut a child's game, or a man's dream, to the true privilege and real glory that we have hy being the servants of God.
1. The service of the Lord is a sweeter w'ork. It is much better to serve the Lord than to humour the highest princes of the earth. The life of the greatest courtier in the world is an improfitable drudgery in comparison of the life of the poorest saint, who daily is taken up with attendance upon God, and is by faith a courtier and family- servant of the King of kings, the infinite Sovereign of heaven and earth. What a happy life doth he lead whose heart is employed in loving of God, and in praising of God, and in serving of God ! This man while he remains on the earth hath his conversation in heaven, and converseth with God in the spirit, and waits upon God.
2. They are upon surer terms, because of the uncertainty of princes' love and life. Of their love, they depend upon God that never changes : Mai. iii. 6, ' I am the Lord, I change not ;' they have a surer interest in the love of God than the highest favourites have in their prince's love. They are beloved of God that are faithful and upright with him, and careful to serve him. They have access to him upon every just occasion, they have daily supplies, renewed testimonies of the favour of God ; they live here upon his giace, and expect shortly to live with him in glory. Then for life : Ps. cxlvi. 3, 4, 'Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help ; liis breath goeth forth, he retm-neth to his earth ; in that very day all his thoughts perish.' Mark, the drift of that place is to show that princes are not able to do so much for their servants as God is able to do for his servants. They seem to be able to jiromote us to great dignity and honour here in the w-orld ; but they neither can deliver you nor themselves from death. Mark, ' He returneth to his earth.' A prince is earth in his constitution, dust is his composition, and he will be dust again in his dissolution — ' Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was,' Eccles. xii. 7. So does the dust of the prince ; their whole being every moment depends upon the will of God. What then ? When he returneth to his earth, as all mortals shall, then ' in that very day all his thoughts perish ; ' his thoughts, that is, his designs, purposes, promises, are frustrated, and come to nothing : it may be he hath a great good-will to his servants, but when he dies all will come to nothing. The speech of Bathsheba is to be regarded, 1 Kings i. 21, ' When my lord the king shall have slept with his fathers, I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders.' Then they that have been most faithful to their pvince, and most assured of his favour, it may be, shall be offenders in the eyes of the successor for their fidelity to their former prince. Now faith sees all this, and