He promised Abraham a child, but his body was dead in a manner first, and Sarah's womb. He promised Joseph to raise him up so high ; but alas ! the iron entered into his soul first. He promised that Christ should come, but all was desperate fii'st, ' The sceptre was departed from Judah,' Gen.
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xlix. 10. So he hath promised, that we shall rise from the dead, but we must rot in our graves first. He hath promised forgiveness of sins, that he will be merciful to us, but he will waken our consciences to see our desperate estate, that we are forlorn creatures fii"st, and unworthy of any respect from him. He hath promised us happiness. We that are Christians are the happiest creatures in the world, yet in the sense and eye of the world for the present we are the most forlorn creatures that are. Yet he pei'forms his promise with comfort here, and at last will fully manifest his love to us. So at the last his promises shall be wonderfully performed.
God doth not perfonn his promises according to human policy ; he will not do thus, because we look he should do thus and thus. He will cross our expectation, and yet perform his promise. St Paul looked to come to Rome, Rom. i. 15, but he thought not of coming to Caesar by whipping, and peril, and shipwreck. Moses knew he should come to see Canaan, did he think to have such a conflict in the wilderness ? Alas ! he thought not of it. God doth wondrous strangely perform his promises by contraries ; he crosseth our imaginations and conceits directly, and yet he is true of his promise.
3. Another branch of this is, that though God's promises be ' yea and amen ' in his time, yet he usuaUy defers his pwiiiises for a time, and why ? Among many other reasons, to mortify self-confidence, to fit us for his blessings ! for except he deferred them, we should not be fit for them. He defers them, that we may be fitted for them long before they come ; that we might mortify self-confidence, to see that he immediately and graciously per- forms his promise. And in the mean time, to exercise faith and repent- ance, and desire, and prayer, therefore he defers them ; but they are amen at last, though he defer.
God's time is better than ours, he knows better than we. The physician knows his time better than the patient. Hereupon comes a duty conse- quently upon this dispensation of God. If he perform his promises won- drously, and unexpectedl}', and perform them in delay ; let thy duty be answerable to his dealing, trait, wait upon God, tie him not to such and such courses. He can transcend, and go beyond thy imagination, and do more than thou art able to conceive, as the apostle saith. Therefore wait his good time, ' He that shall come will come,' Heb. x. 37, stay God's leisure, prevent him not, run not before him.
And as he doth things by contraries, so when thou art in contraries look for contraries. When thou art in sin, and feelest it on thy conscience, be- lieve that he is made righteousness to thee. He hath promised it. It is ' yea and amen ' in Christ. When thou shalt be turned to dust in the grave, be- lieve that he will raise thy body. This promise is ' yea and amen,' and as a pledge of it Christ is gone to heaven. When thou art miserable, remem- ber the promise, thou shalt be glorious with Christ as he is glorious. ' All his promises are yea and amen.' In contraries believe contraries; because in contraries he performs contraries ; and say as Job doth, ' Though he kill me, yet will I trust in him,' Job xiii. 15. I know thou canst not deny thyself, and thy ' promises are yea and amen.'
In the worst estate that befalls us, let us learn to wrestle with God in the promises, and implead his promises. Why ! Lord, thou hast promised forgiveness of sins to them that ask it ; thou hast promised grace, and mercy, and favour ; remember thy promise, thou canst not deny thyself, thou canst not deny thy gi'acious promise, thy word is thyself, thou art Amen, and thy word is * yea and amen,' only give me grace to wait thy
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good leisure ; yet I will not lot thee depart without a blessinpf, I will hold thoc till I have received a gracious answer, as Jacob wrestlcsd with him till he had the blessing, Gen. xxxii. 21, scq. Let us labour to answer the promise with our faith, and lal)()ur to bring our souls to be like his pro- mises. They are 'yea and amen.' Though they be not presently performed, let us constantly believe a constant promise, let us cleave to God, let us have an ' amen' for God's ' amen.' Are the promises amen ? Amen let the soul say. Lord, * So be it,' so it shall be, I will seal thy amen in thy promise, with my amen in my faith. So let us have an amen for Christ's amen. They are all, and will be all amen in Christ in tit time ; all the gracious promises will be ' yea and amen ; ' let our souls echo, and say, Amen. For our faith must answer the promises. Faith and the promises be correlatives ; for the promise is not except it be applied. Let faith answer the promise. Let us labour to be established in the promises in God's word.