HoSEA XIV. 8.] THE RETURNING BACKSLIDER. 401
any man shelter us better ? There is no service to that of a king ; but is there any sendee to the King of kings, and Lord of lords ? Will he sufl'er his children to be abused in his own sight, or his followers disgraced ? Surely no. Therefore make this use of it, to get into the service of the great God, which is a rich, secure, and safe service.
Use 2. Again, it yields us an use of resolution, for to obey God, and to go boldly on in a good course. What should we fear, when God is our master ? He will shield us, and keep us safe, and give his angels charge over us, to shew that he hath a care over us. Indeed, he hath many keepers under him, but he is the grand keeper, who sets all a-work. For angels, magistrates, ministers, and our fi-iends keep us ; but God's Spirit within us, and his gi'acious good providence without us, are our chief keepers. Therefore let all our care be to serve God, and to be in his ways. He will keep us in his ways. What an encouragement is this to be in good courses, where we may look for the shadow of the Almighty God, without tempting of him ! If a man be in an ill way and course, he cannot look that the Almighty should shadow him. His heart will tell him, now God may withdraw his shelter and wing from me ; he may leave me naked to the devil and to the malice of men ; he may strip me of all comfort in my soul and conscience, and give me up to terrors of heart out of his way. If I trust him now, I tempt him, because he will be a defence only in his own ways. Therefore let us labour always to be in those ways, and then God will be as a green fir-tree unto us.
Use 3. And, last of all, let it be an use of comfort unto us, for all the time of our life to come. Whatsoever may come, we yet pass under a buckler. Let a whole shower and shot of arrows* fall upon us, we have a buckler. ' Thou, Lord, art my buckler ; thou. Lord, art my defence, my hiding-place, my castle,' Ps. x^iii. 1, 2. We are subject to a world of dangers whilst we live here, but we have God instead of all, to keep ofi" all. He is a buckler, a shield, a shadow, and a hiding-place. Let what iU soever be presented to our thoughts, there is in God some fence against it. For this purpose we have many excellent passages in Ps. xviii., which was made after a great deliverance. ' I love the Lord, my buckler, my shield, my defence,' as if he should say, I have in my hfetime been annoyed with many troubles, but I have found experience of God in all. ' He is my buckler, my shield, my fence,' everything to me. So let us comfort our- selves in this. Let come what will come, all shall come well to God's children. He will keep them, if not outwardly, yet in that they most desire to be kept in. He will preserve their spirits ' from every evil work,' 2 Tim. iv. 18, from doing ill, and from desperate falling from God ; and he will guard them inwardly, ' by the peace of God which passeth undtrstand- ing,' Philip, iv. 7. It shall guard their hearts ; they shall have inward peace in the midst of all the troubles of this world : a great comfort ! What a rejoicing is it to a poor passenger, when he passeth by the highway side in a hot, burning day, or in a storm, to see a goodly high tree, with spread- ing boughs, that he may hide and repose himself under it from the storm or heat. This pleaseth him marvellously, as Jonah's gourd did him. Do these outwai'd poor contentments so refresh us in this world '? and shall we not think that God, which provides such poor contentments for this sorry life in this world, will he not provide a shadow in regard of the main dangers ? Surely he will, if we trust him, and shew our trust by casting ourselves upon him in obedience suitable to our calling. Saith the apostle, Qu. ' a whole shower of shot and arrows ? ' — G. Vol. n. c c
402 THE RETURNING BACKSLIDER. [SeRMON XII.
' I am persuaded that neither thmgs present, nor to come, nor life, nor death, nor anything, shall be able to separate us from the love of Christ Jesus our Lord,' Rom. viii. 38, 39. Therefore let us be afraid of nothing that can befall us. God will be a shield and a buclder, and all in all to us in a good way. We have abundance of comfort everywhere in Scrip- ture, and want nothing but faith to apply it home in practice. Therefore we ought to beg of God so to enlarge our faith, that as his promises and comforts are very large, so may our vessels be to retain all these excellent comforts and sweet promises.