It is little comfort to hear of the excellency and necessity of these hea- venly things, if there were not hope of them. Hope stirs up diligence and endeavour in the things of this world. What makes men adventure to the Indies, east and west ? They hope for a voyage that shall enrich them all their life. Hope in doubtful things stirs up industry. What makes the poor husbandman diligent to plough and to sow ? The hope that he shall have a harvest ; yet this is under a providence that may guide it another way. But spiritual things are more certain. Therefore hope in spiritual things must needs stir up endeavour. We need not call them into question. And as it stirs up to diligence, so it stirs up in the use of the means ; not to give over till we see our hopes accomplished. Then, in the third place, hope of success, that we shall not lose our labour, it enables and strength- eneth us to bear the tediousness of the time and the incumbrance of afflic- tions, and whatsoever is between us and the thing we expect. Though we have not that comfort from God that we would have, yet it makes us wait upon God.
Therefore when he saith, ' the violent take it by force,' it is to encourage us. The violent, eager, strong endeavours of a Christian in the ways of God, in the means of salvation, they are no successless endeavours.
He labours for that he knows he shall have ; his violence is not in vain. He that is violent in good things hath a promise. He that wrestleth with God shall overcome, and he that overcometh shall have a crown. Here is a promise to build on. Therefore here is encouragement to be earnest and violent, ' he shall overcome,' he shall enter the castle at the last, if he con- tinue striving, and give not over. Hence there is a difference to be observed between the endeavours of a Christian and of three sorts of other men.
(1.) First of all. If those only that offer violence to the kingdom of heaven, that set on it with encouragement, shall get it, and that by force, what a (jreat difference then is hetiveen them and those that in a contrary nay offer violence to the kingdom of heaven ; that is, those that wrong Christ in
808 VIOLENCE VICTORIOUS.
his members, and hinder the means of salvation. What promise have they to speed ? Surely they have no promise nor hope at all. Only their malice carries them amain in spite. Because the gospel reveals their hol- lowness and hypocrisy to all men, and forceth upon them a necessity to be other men than they list to be for the present, therefore they are eager in hating the gospel. There are thrcatenings enough against such as are violent against the gospel. They are violent in vain, for they ' kick against t'le pricks,' Acts ix. 5 ; they run themselves against a stone wall, and they shall dash themselves against it. Those that have ill will to Sion shall perish. There is one ' sits in heaven that laughs' all their attempts ' to scorn,' Ps. ii. 4. A Christian hath comfort in his endeavours. There is hope of good success, though there be inward and outward opposition. He shall prevail. Those that arc enemies have nothing but discouragement. They shall be * as grass on the house-top,' Ps. cxxix. G, &c., that no man blesseth, but is cursed of every one. No man bestows a good word on them. It is a fruitless endeavour. They ai-e under a curse.
(2.) Again, It shews us how to judge of the courses of other men, that are violent in other courses, about the worhl. A Christian he takes his kingdom at the last and enjoys it for ever ; but those that are violent for the world, after pleasures, after baser things than themselves, alas ! when they have it, they have but a shadow, and they become shadows in embracing it. Vanity embraceth vanity, and bow soon are they stripped of all ! If a man by -siolence scrape a great estate, he must leave it shortly. Here he found it, and here he must leave it, in spite of his heart, ere long ; and ' all is but vanity ' in the censure of him that knew all things the best of any man, even Solomon, that had gone through the variety of all things. And oft- times they miss of that they labour for ; ' they do not roast that they get in hunting,' Prov. xii. 27. They hunt after preferment and after riches, but ofttimes they do not enjoy them ; and if they do, they get the curse of God with them, and ere long they are stripped of all. But here is that that may strengthen our endeavours. ' The kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it.' It is not an endeavour that is lost.
(3.) Then again. This shews that the state of true Christians is different from the state of x^^rsons that are carried to good things, but not violently. * The violent take it.' He surpriseth the city at the last, he lays his siege, and will not remove till death. He will not give over till he have it. He will have it, or he will die in the business, and so at last he obtains his desire. The sluggish careless man he goes a little way. As Agrippa said to Paul, ' he was almost persuaded to be a Christian,' Acts xxvi. 28, so it is with such men. In some things they will be Christians, but there they are at a stand. They will go no farther. ' The sluggard desire th and wisheth, but his soul hath nothing,' Prov. xiii. 4. A sluggish, cold, lazy Christian he loscth all his pains. If a man be to go ten miles, and go but nine, and there sit down, he shall never come to his journey's end. If a man will give but seven or eight shillings for that which is worth ten, he shall go without it. Grace and glory are set at this price. There is required such strength of labour and endeavour and violence. Therefore without this, a man shall never attain it, unless he stretch himself to such a pitch. ' He shall never come to the end of his faith, to the salvation of his soul, to the high calling of God in Christ Jesus,' 1 Pet. i. 9. ' The sluggard wisheth and gets nothing.' The reason is, because he is a sluggard ; be- cause he will not strive ; but the striver gets the fort, and hath all in it, and is a man made for ever.