Beloved, a man can commit his soul with no more comfort to God than he hath care to please him. If a man laiows such a one hath his evidences and leases, and may hurt him when he list, how careful will he be of pro- voking or giving olfence to such a man ? Suppose we knew a man that had the keeping of a lion, or some cruel beast, and could let it loose upon us at his pleasm-e, would we not speak such a one fair, and give him as little cause of discontent as may be ? Beloved, God hath dewils and wicked men in a chain, and can, if we offend him, set loose all the powers of darkness upon us ; he can make conscience fly in oui* faces, and cause us to despair and sink. All our evidences and assurances of salvation are in God's hands ; he can bring us into a state full of discomfort and misery, and make us in a manner to feel the very flashes and scorchings of heU itself. Oh who would ofi'end this God, much less live in the practice of any sin, and yet think of committing their souls to him !
Direction 5. To encourage you the more to trust in God, obsen-e the con- stant course of Jiis cleaUng toii-ards you. ' Lord, thou hast been my God from my youth,' saith David ; * upon thee have I hung ever since I was took out of my mother's womb ; forsake me not in my gray hairs, when my strength faileth me,' &c., Ps. Ixxi. 6, 9, xvii. 18. We should gather upon God, as it were, from former experience of his goodness, and trust him for the time to come, having formerly foimd him true. Beloved, it is good to lay up all the experiments of God's love we can, that we may trust him at the hour of death ; for all our strength then will be little enough to uphold our faith. When many troubles shall meet in one, as it were in a
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418 THE saint's hiding-place in the EYIL DAT.
centre, then a world of fears and distractions will seize upon our souls, the guilt of sin past, thoughts of judgment to come, forsaking of our former lusts and delights, trouble of mind, pain of body, &c. We have need of much acquaintance with God, and assurance of his love at such a time. Therefore let us learn daily to observe the experience of his goodness towards us, how when we have committed ourselves to him in youth, he hath been a God from time to time in such and such dangers to us. Ancient Chi'istians should be the best Christians, because they are enriched with most experiences. It is a shame for ancient Christians to stagger, when they yield up their souls to God, as if they had not been acquainted with him heretofore. You see how David pleads to God, ' Thou hast redeemed me,' Ps. xxxi. 5; he goes to former experience of his mercy; therefore now into thy hands I commend my spirit in this extremity. This psalm is a practice of this precept ; here is the precept, ' Commit your souls to God, as a faithful Creator;' here is the practice of David, ' Into thy hands I commend my spirit, for thou hast redeemed me, 0 Lord God of tnith,' &c. Therefore, I beseech you, let us treasure up experience of God's goodness, that so when extremities shall come, we may go boldly to him, upon for- mer acquaintance with his majesty ; and being strengthened with former experience. I beseech you, let us labour to practise these and the Uke rules prescribed, to encourage us in the performance of so necessary a duty.
Ohj. But will not God keep us without we commit ourselves unto him ?
Ans. We miist commit our souls to God if ice ivould he preserved. I answer, God having endued us with understanding and grace, will do us good in the exercise of those powers and gr,aces that he hath given us ; he will preserve us, but we must pray for it. Christ himself must ask before he can have : ' Ask of me, and I will give thee the heathen for thine inhe- ritance,' Ps. ii. 8, &c. We should therefore make it a continued act, every day of our lives, to commit all we have to the Lord's disposal ; and to that end observe how he dischargeth the trust committed to him upon aU occasions ; how faithful he is in delivering his poor church in greatest extremities, and ourselves also even in our worst times. ' Thou never failest those that trust in thee,' saith David, and ' How excellent is thy lovingkindness, 0 God, therefore the children of men shall trust under the shadow of thy wings,' Ps. xxxvi. 7. Daily experience of God's lovingkindness will make us daily to trust under the shadow of his wings. It should therefore be om' conti- nual course to observe the goodness, kindness, faithfulness, and other attri- butes of God, and often to support our souls with them.
Think, I beseech you, how he numbers the very bones of men ; they are all written in his book of providence ; he knows every joint, every part which he hath made ; he knows his own workmanship ; therefore we may well commit our souls to him. Doth God number our superfluities, and not our natural and essential parts ? Even our very hau*s are numbered ; our tears are taken notice of, and put into his bottle ; our steps are told ; our desires are known ; our groans are not hid. We shall not lose a sigh for sin, so particular is God's providence. He watcheth continually over us. There is not any of our members but they are all written in his book, so that he will not suffer ' a bone to be broken,' Ps. xxxiv. 20. We should therefore daily resign up our souls to his merciful tuition,* and bind our- selves to lead unblameable lives before him, resolving against every sinful course, wherein we would be afraid to look his Majesty in the face. What a comfortable life were the life of Christians, if they would exercise them- * That is, ' protection.' — Ed.