[1.] How precious is faith, that layeth hold of aU the graces in Christ, and makes them our own !
[2.j What precious grace is love, that makes us to deny ourselves and communicate ourselves to the good of others ! A world of good a loving soul can do.
[3.] And so the hope of life, what an anchor it is to stay the soul in all conditions patiently and contentedly !
And every grace is precious, and needs must every grace be precious, considering the price they cost. Things dearly bought are precious, and eveiy grace of the Spirit, and the Spirit itself, is purchased by the blood of Christ. For the Spirit hath no communion with us tiU peace be made between God and us by Christ ; but when God the Father is reconciled by Christ, then the Spirit, a friend of both, cometh from both, and assureth us of the love of both, discovering the secret love of God in Christ, and bestoweth all grace, to furnish and fit us for heaven. So that the graces of the Spirit are precious, and to be accounted precious, because they cost so dear as the blood of Christ.
(3.) And then/o/' usefulness, what use have we of every grace ? What were our lives without grace ? "What serve treasures for but to pay our debts ? Christ paid all your debts to God the Father, to God's justice. We are all discharged. One red line of his blood drawn over the debt-book crosseth all the debt. Satan hath nothing to do with us. In him we have remission of sins, and he is now in heaven to make intercession for us, and plead our cause as our friend. At God's right hand we have a friend and brother in our nature, that maintaineth the love of God constantly to us as his members and as his spouse.
Besides, we have comfort in all distresses ; and we have strength in all our weaknesses ; light and direction in all our perplexities, by the Spirit, * Sentence unfinished. — G.
344 COMJIENTARY ON
and gi-acc of the Rjjirit. So tliat in every respect Christ and the graces of the Spirit arc satislVini^' treasures.
(4.) The gospel which revealeth this is a treasure spccialh/for the time to come, for then is a treasure speciall}' useful. Christ is a rich storehouse, and in him we have all. For the time to come we have more in Christ than here. When Christ shall be revealed, and we shall be revealed, then our treasure will appear. And before that, at the hour of death, when all comforts shall be taken from us, then comes in the treasure of a Christian, then he hath use of Christ, of the Spirit of Christ, to support him ; and the spirit of faith and hope, to strengthen him with patience and willingness to go to Christ : then come in all tlie riches that he hath laid up, all the spiritual graces, for to help him at that hour. So that specially then in time of uecd comes in these treasures, Christ with his grace and Spirit. The best use of religion is in time to come. Now, we can make a shift with riches, and friends, and strength ; but when all is done, we must have a better treasure, that is, Christ and the gi-aces of Christ.
We may refer all to these two heads, Christ partly imparted and partly imputed. That that is imputed is his righteousness, by which we have freedom from hell, advancement to heaven ; and the imparted and bestowed favours are the graces of his Spirit for all times and services. We have remedies for all maladies. And they are of a higher nature than all other treasures whatsoever.
Therefore, to shew the difference between this and other treasures, to raise up the estimation of Christ, and the good things in him, these treasures we have in Christ imputed and imparted.
1. They are indejiendeut. The comfort of them doth not depend on any inferior comfort, or things in this world, but when all comforts are taken away, then they are of special use.
2. And as they be independent, so they be vnivcrsaL Christ and the good things in him are universally good for all tm'ns. There is, no other treasure but is for particular ends, and cannot do all things. Eiches can make a man as happy as riches can do ; and dainties make a man as lively as such things can do ; and friends can do what friends can do ; but all is limited : they cannot do more than in the sphere of their activity. But what is said of money, that it is good for all things, I am sure it is true of the grace of God in Christ. It is good for all things and all conditions : it is a universal good.
3. Then it is a treasure that is projmrtionahle to the d'ujnity of a man. It is proportionable to the soul, to satisfy the desires thereof. A man's desire is larger than any pleasure in the world. A man can spend all his contentment in an earthly thing. In his thoughts and affections he runneth through the contentment of all earthly things presently. If a man had all earthly contentments, the soul would pass through them all and see beyond them ; and when he hath done, he looks on them as soiled commodities and cast things ; but the treasures of the gospel in Christ are proportion- able to the soul. They be spiritual, as the soul is spiritual ; nay, likewise they be larger than the soul, the treasure is larger than the treasury. But of other things, the treasure is but little, the treasury large ; but here the treasure is larger than the treasury, for our soul is not capable of the fulness of Christ. There is more in Christ, and more in our state of happiness than the soul can contain. The soul can never spend nor run through all the good M'e have, for there is still more and more. Therefore the apostle calls it, Eph. iii. 8, * the unsearchable riches of grace.' Search more and