The truths we are to deliver out of the words are these :
First of all we must know, that since the fall of man it hath pleased the di\ane nature, the three persons in Trinity, to stahlish a coven%.nt of fp-ace, and so of salvation in Jesus Christ ; and to make him a second princij^le, a second Adam, hy whom mankind is restored to a better estate than ever ice had in the first Adam. God now since the fall takes another course to bring us back again to him. He doth not leave us as he left the angels that fell, in a state of perdition for ever ; but as we fell by infidelity and distrust of him, so now we are recovered again by promises, and by faith in them.
There can be no intercourse between God and man but by some promise on his part. ^
, Ohs. God deals with man by jnwnises.
Reason 1. The reason is this, how can man dare to chaUenye any- thiny of the yreat majesty of God without a ivarrant from himself^ How can the conscience be satisfied? The conscience looks to God. 'It is a knowledge together with God ; how can conscience rest but in that it knows comes from God ? Therefore for any good that I hope for from God, I must have a promise.
Reason 2. For this is God's constant dispensation, while we live in this world we are ahiay under hope. We are children of hope. ' We are saved by hope,' Rom. viii. 24 : 'we rejoice in the hope of gloiy,' Rom. v. 2 : and hope looks to the promises, whereof some part is unperformed. How doth heaven and earth differ ? Heaven is all performance. Here is some performance to en- courage us, and there is alway some promise still unperformed. We are alway under some promise ; and therefore the manner of our apprehending God in this world difiers from heaven. Here it is by faith and hope, there by vision. Vision is fit for performance. Faith and hope looks to the promise alway here. Therefore God rules his church by promises ; partly, I say, to secm-e the soul of man. We cannot have any thing from God but by the manifestation of his own good will. How can we look for any thing from God but by promise ? Can we look for anything fi'om God by our own conceits ? That is a fool's paradise.
Further, God will have his church ruled by promises in all ages, to exer- cise faith, and hope, and prayer, and dependence upon God. God will try of what credit he is among men, whether they will depend upon his pro- mise or no ; so that knowing he is trae, by promise, it may be certain to them, they shall have performance in time. He gives men promises to see if they wiU trust him.
Reason 3. God will have this manner of dispensation to rule his church by promises, to arm us i)i this world ayainst fears and discourayements ; therefore we have alway some promise. He might have done us good, and have given us no promise ; but now having given us promises, he will ti-y the gi'aces that are in us, and ann us against all discouragements and difficulties, till the thing promised be performed. For we must know that a promise is a divine thing, better than any earthly performance. Let
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God give a man never so much in the world, if he have not a promise of bettor things, all will come to nothing at the last. Therefore God supports the souls and spirits of his children with promises, to arm them against all temptations on the right hand and on the left, that would draw them from trusting in his promise. He will have them live by faith, and that hath alway relation to the promise.
Qiient. This is a general ground then, that God now in Christ Jesus hath appointed this way to govern the church with promises. Now what is a promise ?
Ans. A promise is nothing but a manifestation of love, an intendment of bestowing Some good, and removing some ill. A manifestation of our mind in that kind is a promise of conferring of a future good, or removing of a future ill ; therefore it comes from love in the party promising.
There are three degrees of loving steps, whereof a promise is the last. The first is inward love ; the second is real perfonnance ; and the third is a manifestation of performance intended before it be ; and this, I say, is a degree of love. For love concealed, it doth not comfort in the interim, in the time that is betwixt. Now God, who is love, doth not only love us, and will not only shew his love in time, but because he will have us rest sweetly in his bosom, and settle ourselves on his gracious promises, in the mean time, he gives us rich and precious promises. He is not only love, and shews it in deed, but he expresseth it in word. And we may well build on his word, as verily as if he had performed it in deed ; for whatsoever he saith is ' Yea, and Amen.' This is the nature of a promise. It is not only love, and the expression of love in deed, but the expression of it in word, when he intends to solace, and comfort, and stablish, and stay the mind of man till the good promised be performed.