Ohj. Aye, but I am a wretched sinner, there is little hope of me.
Ans. Yes ! St Paul will come and comfort thee by his example and ex- perience : ' This is a faithful saying, that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the chief,' 1 Tim. i. 15.
Ohj. Aye, he came to save such sinners as St Paul was.
Ans. Aye, saith St Paul, ' and that I might bo an example to all that shall believe in Christ, to the end of the world,' 1 Tim. i. 16. He takes away that objection. And the apostle is so heavenly wise, that where he speaks of privileges, he enlargeth it to others, ' There is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus,' Rom. viii. 1. 'And what shall separate us from the love of God?' ver. 35. But when he speaks of matter of abasement, that we may see that he was, in regard of his corruptions, as much humbled as we, then he speaks in his own person : * 0 wretched man that I am ! who shall deliver me from this body of death ? ' Rom. vii. 24. Therefore his comforts belong to thee. Now, as these examples in Scripture, and the experiences of God's children there, be applicable to us, so much more the experience of God's children that are alive. There- fore we should be willing to do offices of comfort in this kind.
Those that are of ability, either men or women, they will have in their houses somewhat to comfort others, they will have strong waters, and cor- dials, and medicines ; and they account it a glory to have somewhat that their neighbours may be beholden to them for. And though they bestow it freely, yet they think and account it a sufficient recompence that they can be beneficial to others. People do this for things of this life, and think they deserve a great deal of respect for their goodness in this kind. Surely, if we consider, there is a life that needs comfort more than this fading life, and there are miseries that pinch us more than the miseries of the body ! Every one should labour to have in the house of his soul somewhat, some strong waters of comfort, that he may be able to tell others, This refreshed my soul, this hath done me good ; I give you no worse than I took myself first. This wondrously commends the comfort in the party that gives it, and it commends it to the party that receives it, to take benefit by the comforts of other men. For is it not a strengthening to our case when another shall say to our comfort. It was my case ? Is it not sealed by tho evidence of two ? Surely it is a great assurance when we have another to tell us his experience.
Use 1. Again, if this be God's order, that he will convey comfort to us * That is, ' anticipates.' — G.
2 CORINTHIANS CnAP. I, XKR. 4. 76
by others, then we ought to depend upon God's ordinance, we ought to ex- pect comfort one from another, especially from the ministers, who aro messengers of comfort. I speak it the rather, because in what degree we neglect any one means that God hath ordained to comfort us, though ho be the God of comfort, yet in that measure we are sure to want comfort. And this is one principal ordinance, the ministry, and the communion of saints.
Some there be that will neglect the means of salvation. They have dead spirits, and live and die so, for the most part. They have much ado to recover comfort. Those men that retire themselves, that will work all out of the flint themselves, they are commonly uncomfortable. God hath ordained one to help another, as in an arch one stone strengtheneth another. The ministry especially is ordained for comfort.
2. And likewise God hath ordained one Christian to comfort another, as well as the ministers. Let us therefore regard much the communion of saints. Let one Christian labour to comfort another, and every one labour to be fit to receive comfort from others, labour to have humble and wilUng spirits. It is so true that God doth convey comfort, even by common Christians as well as the ministers, that St Paul himself, Rom. i. 12 ; he desires to see the Romans, ' that he might receive mutual comfort from them.' For a minister may have more knowledge and book-learning per- haps than another Christian that may have better experience than he, espe- cially in some things ; and there is not the meanest Christian but he may comfort the greatest clerk in the world, and help him by his experience that God hath shewed to him, by declaring how God shewed him comfort at such a time, and upon such an occasion. The experience of God's people, the meanest of them may help the best Christians. Therefore he will have none to be neglected.
There is never a member of Christ's body, but hath some ability to com- fort another ; for Christ hath no dead members. God will have it so, be- cause he will have one Christian to honour another, and to honoui" them from the knowledge of the use and necessity that one hath of another. If God should not derive comfort from one to another in some degree, and from the meanest to the greatest, one would despise another. But God will not have it so. He will have the communion of saints valued to the end of the world. What will one Christian regard another, what would weak Christians regard the strong, and what would strong Christians re- gard the weak, if there were not a continual supply one from another? Therefore God hath ordained that by the ministry, and by the communion of saints, we should comfort one another.