* That is, ' without expedients.' — G. t That is, ' wise.' — G.
J That is, ' judgments, trials.' — G.
296 THE EETURNING BACKSLIDER. [SeEMON IV4
God, as Esther did, ' If I perish, I perish,' Esther iv. 16. She meant, ' If I perish, I shall not perish.' Such have a better condition in the love and favour of God than they had before, or should have had, if they had not perished. It is the way not to perish, so to perish. It is as clear and true as the sunshine, but we want faith to believe it.
Use 3. And then, again, let us make use of it in another kind, to resist another temptation. What will become of my poor children, if I do thus and thus, stand thus and thus, and go on in my innocency ? What will become of thy children ? It was well spoken by Lactautius, ' Because God would have men stand out and die in a good cause willingly, therefore he hath promised in a special manner to be a father to the fatherless, and a husband to the widow ' (d). Are we the chief fathers of our children ? No ; we are but under God, to bring those who are his children into the world. We are but instruments. God is the chief father, best and last father, * The everlasting father,' Isa. ix. 6, who takes upon him to be a father to the fatherless, whom he chargeth all not to hurt. Experience shews how he blesseth the posterity of the righteous, who have stood in defence of the truth. Therefore let us make no pretences either for baseness, dejec- tion of spirit, or covetousness, to keep us from well doing, for God will reward all.
Quest. Oh, say some, I could be content not to be so worldly, but it is for my children.
A)is. What saith the apostle ? ' Let those who are married be as if they were not married,' 1 Cor. vii. 29, meaning in regard of this scraping of wealth together by unlawful means of covetousness, or in regard of readi- ness to dio works of mercy. What, doth God appoint one ordinance of marriage, to take a man off of all duties ? No ; notwithstanding this we must do fitting works of mercy. God will be the father of the fatherless. Many use oppression, and go to hell themselves to make their children rich. Who commands us to make our children, in show, a while happy here, to make our souls and bodies miserable for ever? There is a mo- derate care, as the apostle speaks, so that ' he who cares not for his own, is worse than an infidel,' 1 Tim. v. 8 ; but we must not make this pretence to excuse injurious and extortive courses. But let God alone. He will do all things well ; trust him. Or, if anything should befall us otherwise than well, what if it do ? God is the God of the fatherless. Whatsoever he takes away, he supplies it better another way. For whence have the crea- tui'es that infusion to help ? Is it not from God ? And when the crea- ture is taken away, is not God where he was ?
Use 4. And let us also learn hence that we answer God's dealing, in shewing mercy to the fatherless and such as stand in need, as the apostle exhorts, ' Put on, therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercy,' &c., Col. iii. 12, as if he should say, as you would prove your- selves to be elect members of Christ and children of God, so shew your likeness in this particular, ' The bowels of mercy and compassion.' This hath ever been, and yet is at all times, a character of God's children, and shall be to the end of the world. It is a sign such a one hath found bowels of mercy, that is ready upon all occasions to pour forth those bowels of compassion upon others, as hard-heartedness this way shews a disposition which yet hath not rightly tasted of mercy. As we say in another case, those that are appeased in their consciences, in the sense of the forgiveness of sins, they are peaceable to others, because they feel peace. So here, those that feel mercy will be merciful, those that have felt love will be loving to others.
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' A good man is merciful to his beast, but the mercies of the wicked are cruel,' Prov. xii. 10. Those, therefore, that are hard-hearted and unmer- ciful, hardening themselves against the complaints of the miserable, there is, for the present, no comfoi-t for them, that the Spirit of God hath wrought any change in their hearts ; for then it would stamp the image of God upon them, they would be merciful to the fatherless, widow, and distressed per- sons. What shall we think, then, of a generation of men who, by gripping usury and the hke courses, have made many widows miserable ? Let such profess what they will, whilst they are thus hard-hearted they have not the bowels of Christ. God is so merciful that you see, as the Jews call them (e), he hath hedges of the commandments, that is, he hath some remote commands which are not of the main, and all to hedge from cruelty, as, ' Thou shalt not kill the dam upon the nest,' Deut. xxii. 6 ; ' Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother's milk,' Exod. xxiii. 19. "What tends this to ? Nothing but to shew the mercy and bowels of God, and that he would have us to abstain from cruelty. He that would not have us murder, would have us keep aloof off, and not be merciless to the very dumb creatures, birds and beasts. Therefore let us labour to express the image of our hea- venly father in this.