Use 2. [l.J What a comfort is this in all troubles, that God will sanctify all conditions to us, and us to them. Who would be disconsolate in any condition whatsoever ? Who would be disconsolate to live, when he knows that life is his ? If God had not good to do by his life, he would take him away. Who would grieve when death comes, when he knows that death is his ? So that a Christian may say, if poverty, if disgrace be good ; if the order of evil things will help me ; if cross winds will blow me to heaven, I shall have them. For the world and the miseries of the world, the persecutions and afflictions, ' all are ours.' The worst things are commanded to serve for our main good. Therefore let us comfort ourselves. We cannot be at loss in becoming religious and true Christians, for then ' all things are ours.' He loseth nothing that, by losing anything, gaineth all things.
[2.] For grace : for seeing * all things are ours,' this should teach us to use all things to the honour of him that hath giren iis all things, not to he servants to anything, not to be subject to any creature, as St Paul saith of himself, ' I will cot be in bondage to anything,' 1 Cor. vi. 12. Why? A Christian is master and lord over all. What a base thing is it for a man to be enthralled to such poor things ? As you have some in bondage to a weed.f Some are in bondage
* That is, ' the option.' — Q. f That is, ' tobacco' = smoking. — G.
A CHUISTI.\^'S CHAKTES. 21
to this affection and some to that, some to an idle custom. For a man to be as Rachel, ' Give me my children, or I die,' Gen. xxx. 1 ; I must have wealth, I must have pleasure, or else I cannot live ; as you know that wretched man Amnon, he pined away to have his will ; and so Ahab, who pined away himself because he had not that he would have — are these men masters ? No. The}' bring themselves in slavery and subjection to the creature. Can they say as Paul, ' All things are ours ; things pre- sent or to come' ? when they put themselves in subjection, and those blessed souls of theirs, they make slaves to their servants, to things worse than themselves, that they trample on. If all things be ours, let us bring ourselves in subjection to nothing ; but labour rather to have grace to sub- due and use all things to right ends.
Use 3. Again, this should increase in ns the (jrace of thankfulness. Hath God thus enriched us ? Hath he made all things ours to serve our turn (in such a way as he accounts service) ; that is, that whatsoever we have shall help us to heaven and hath a blessing in it ? Though it be sickness, or want, it is ours, and for our benefit. Lord, do what thou wilt, so thou bring me to heaven. If thou wilt have me poor, if it will do me good, let me be so ; if thou wilt have me abased, I am content, only sanctify it to bring me to heaven. How thankful should we be to God, that hath placed us in this rank, that he hath put all things under us, and made all things our servants ! It was at his liberty to have made us men or not, and when we were men, to make us Christians or not. But being made, we are made lords over all ; all things are put under our feet, being one with Christ, as Ps. viii. 6. In the thoughts hereof our hearts should rise up tt) the Lord thankfully, and say, as he doth there, ' Lord, how wonderful is thy name in all the world.'
Use 4. And fourthly,* it should teach us, for matter of judgment, though it be a shame for us to be taught it, that there is a God and a ivise God. There are a companj^ yea, a world of things in the world of different ranks and natures, as evil and good, &c., and yet you see how one thing is dis- posed for another. The sun shines upon the earth ; the earth is fruitful for the beasts ; the beasts serve man ; and we are Christ's, and Christ is God's. Wh«re there are many things, and things that understand not themselves, and yet there is subordination, there must needs be a wise God that made all things, and sets all in this frame and order. And as it shews there is a God, so that this God is one, because all tend to one. There are a world of things, but all are for man. There are a world of Chris- tians, but all are for Christ, and Christ is for God. Where there are variety of things, and all ordered to one, there must needs be one eternal, wise God. It helps and stablisheth our faith in that grand point, to know that there is a wise, understanding, gracious, powerful God, that rules and marshals all the creatures, otherwise than themselves can do. If there be order in things that have no understanding, sm'ely the ordering of them must come from an understanding. The work of nature, as we say, is a work of intelligence : as in bees, there is planted a wonderful instinct, and in other things, but they understand it not themselves. Therefore the work of the creature, being a work of understanding, it must needs come from him that is a higher understanding, that orders these things. If all these things, good and evil, creatures, states, and conditions, serve God's children, and they are for God, then certainly there is a wise God that orders these things out of goodness to us. And we finding all * Misprinted ' thirdly.' — G.