"And thus if we do, as Peter saith, ' There is a spirit of glory shall rest upon us,' 1 Pet. iv. 14. The ground we have of comfort imdcr rebuke and dis- grace, there is a spirit of glory. What is that ? A large spirit enlarging our hearts with inward comfort,- inward joy, inward love of God. 'A * That is, ' applaudeth.' — G.
492 THE MAKRIAGE FEAST [SeRMON YII.
spirit of glory shall rest upon you,' and shall continue witli you as long as disgrace shall continue. He opposeth this to all disgrace he meeteth with in the world.
God putteth sometimes a glory and excellency upon his children under disgrace and ill usage in the world, that he will daunt the world, as Ste- phen's face did shine as the face of an angel, which came from a spirit of glory that rested upon him, and expressed himself to be the servant of God. He that takes away from our good report, if we be good, he addeth to our reward. Our Saviour Christ saith as much, ' Blessed are you when you be ill spoken of, for great is your reward,' Mat. v. 11, 12.
THE SEVENTH SERMON.
Arid the rebukes of his people shall he lake airay from all the earth : for the mouth of the Lord hath sjn^keii it.- — IsA. XXV. 8.
Use 3. This is a great promise, and I pray you be comforted ivith it. For of all grief that God's people suft'er in the world, there is none greater than reproach, disgrace, and contumely. Movemur eontumeliis plus quam injuriis, we are more moved with reproaches than injuries. Injuries come from several causes, but disgrace from abundance of slighting. No man but thinks himself worthy of respect from some or other. Now, slanders come from abundance of malice, or else abundance of contempt ; and therefore nothing sticks so much as reproaches, specially by reason of opinion and fancy, that raiseth them over high.
Our Saviour, Christ, ' endured the cross and despised the shame,' Heb. xii. 2. That shame that vain people cast upon religion and the best things, they despise that and make that a matter of patience. They knew the cross would not be shaken ofi", persecution and troubles must be endured, and therefore they ' endured the cross, and despised the shame.' Now, to bear crosses, take the counsel of the holy apostles, look up to him, consider Christ ; and whatsoever disgrace in words or carriage we shall endure, we are sure, though we shall never know it till we feel it by experience, ' the spirit of glory shall rest upon us,' and rebuke shall be taken away.
Ere long there will be no gloiy in heaven and earth but the gloiy of Christ and of his spouse, for all the rest shall be in their own place, as it was said of Judas, that ' he went to his place,' Acts i, 25. Their proper place is not to domineer, but to be in hell, and ere long they shall be there. Heaven is the proper element of the saints ; that is the place of Christ, the head, and where should the body be but with the head ? where the spouse but with the husband ? I say this shall come to pass, that all the wicked shall be in their place, and all the godly in theirs with Christ, and then shall the rebukes of God's people be taken away. A great matter, and therefore it is sealed with a great confirmation, ' The Lord Jehovah hath spoken it.' There- fore it must and will be so. ' The mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.' This is not in vain added, for the Lord knoweth well enough we need it to be- lieve so great things, that there is such a feast provided, and that there is such a victory over death, our last enemy,- and that there will be such glory, that all the glory shall be Christ's and his spouse's, that the wicked that are now so insolent shall be cast into their proper place with the devil, by whose spirit they are led. They be great matters, and there is great disproportion betv/een the present condition and that condition in heaven ;
IsA. XXV. 8.] BETWEEN CHKIST AND HIS CHURCn. 493
and infidelity being in the soul, it is hard to fasten such things on the soul, that so great things should be done. But they are no greater than God hath said, and he is able to make good his word. ' The Lord hath said it,' and when God hath said it, heaven and earth cannot unsay it. When heaven hath concluded it, earth and hell cannot disannul it. ' The mouth of the Lox'd hath spoken it ; ' that is, truth itself hath spoken it that cannot he. A man may lie and be a man, and an honest man too. He may some- times speak an untruth ; it taketh not away his nature. But God, who is pure truth, unchangeable truth, truth itself, cannot lie.
When we hear of great matters, as matters of Christianity be great matters, they be as large as the capacity of the soul, and larger too, and yet the soul is large in the understanding and aflection too ; when we hear of such large matters, ive need a great faith to believe them. Great faith needeth great grounds, and therefore it is good to have all the helps we can. When we hear of great things promised, great deliverances, great glory, to strengthen our faith, remember God hath spoken them. He knoweth our weakness, om* infirmity, and therefore helps us with this prop, ' The mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.' Let us therefore remember those great things are promised in the word of God, in the word of Jehovah, that can make them all good, that gives a being to all his promises. He is being itself, and gives being to whatsoever he saith. He is able to do it. Set God and his power against all opposition whatsoever from the creature, and all doubts that may arise from our own unbelieving hearts, ' The mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.'