He accounts it an honour when we trust him, but indeed it is an honour to us that we have a throne of grace through Christ to go to ; that he hath devised a wa}' that we might trust him, and not run from him ; that we may go to him in Christ, who sits at his right hand, who is our intercessor, who hath redeemed us with his precious blood. It is our happiness that he hath made himself a gracious and loving Father, that he calls us to him, and thinks himself honoured by our trusting in him.
Again, we see here that,
Doct. Trust in God is a main duty.
He is the object of trust, and it is a main duty. It is a spring of duty out of which all comes ; for we see here all doth aim at this. Afflictions they come to mortify our self-confidence. Self-confidence is subdued that we may trust in God. Our trust must be carried to him. He is the object of it. And this trust in God is a main duty, which in this world we ought to labom* for. It is that that God doth aim at, and it is that that we should aim at. God doth aim at it in exercising of us ; and we should aim at it on our part, in om* hearing, in our receiving the sacrament, in everything, that our trust and afiiance and confidence may be in God, and that we may grow more and more and more in it.
Well, since God is the object of trust, and trust is such a necessary grace, that God doth all to bring us to trust in him, let us come to search ourselves, how shall we know whether we trust in God or no ? And then to direct us, how to come to trust in him, to give some means and helps.
1. He trusts in God reconciled in Jesus Christ that flies to him in extre- mity. That a man trusts unto, that when he is pinched he flies unto. How shall a man know that he is a covetous worldling '? If he be in ex- tremity, he goes to his purse, he makes a friend of that. How shall a man know that he trusts to the arm of flesh, that he trusts his friend too much ? In extremity he runs to him, presently he goes to a friend he hath. What we run to, that our trust is in. A Christian, he runs to his God ; and happy is that Christian that is in covenant, that he hath a God to run to in all extremities, in sickness, in death, at all times. He is happy that he hath a God, when all fails, to trust in.
Wilt thou know therefore whether thou trustest in God or no ? Whither goest thou ? A carnal man, he goes to one earthly prop or other. If God answer him not presently, then he goes with Saul to the witch, to the devil himself perhaps. If God do not send him present help, he goes to one carnal help or other, to fetches * of his wit, to pohcy, to crack his con- science, to bear out things with impudence. He hath not learned to trust in God, and he runs not to him, but to some wicked course or other.
All that go not to God in the use of good means (for we must put that in, we must go to God in the use of his means, in the use of good means only), they trust not God ; for God will not be tempted, but trusted. We * That is, ' devices.' — G.
VOL. III. K
14G COMMENTARY ON
must go to him by prayer, and in the use of lawful means, and only of lawful means ; or else, if we trust him and do not use the means, we tempt him. We must sen^e God's providence in usinf; the means.
2. Therefore, secondly, he that trusts in God iisrtli his mcaun. He that trusts God for a harvest nmst plough, and sow, and do all that belongs to the providence of God.
So a merchant that will increase his estate, he must get a ship and other provision to do it with, for we must serve God's providence as well as trust God's providence. When we neglect good and lawful means, and run into ill courses, and use ill means, we serve not God, nor trust him. Those that grow rich by calling ' evil good, and good evil,' Isa. v. 20, they have not learned to trust in God. Those that think except they leave their posterity great they shall not be happy, and therefore they will neglect the Sabbath, and neglect all, to scrape an estate ; — is this to trust in God ? Have they learned to trust in God, when sacrilegiously they take away the time dedicated for the salvation of their souls and the service of God ? Is this one means that God hath ordained to trust him m ? They that flatter and serve men's humoiirs when they know them to be in a naughty and ill vf&j, is this to trust God, when they go out of his means and way, and make an idol of flesh and blood to serve their owii turn ?