I shall make one observation from the words, and speak a little very briefly and plainly to it : —
Observation. A diligent search into, and consideration of, the means and causes of the preservation and 'protection of the church in the greatest dangers and difficulties, is a duty incumbent on us, for our own support against sinful fears, and to enable us to that testimony tvhich is required for future generations, to encourage them to trust in the Lord.
Every age is to give over a good testin ony of God's dealing with Zion to the age that comes after. And a diligent search and inquiry into the causes and means of the protection and preservation of the Church of God in the midst of imminent dangers and difficulties, is a duty incumbent upon us, that we may be fortified against sinful fears in ourselves, and encourage succeeding generations to trust in the Lord. As we have received the testimony of such who have gone before us, so we are to give our testimony to those who shall come after.
All that I shall do at present is to answer these five questions : —
I. What is to be understood by the preservation and protection of the church? so as we may look neither for less nor more than what we are like to meet with.
II. What is meant by searching into, and considering of, these causes and means of the church's preservation? " Walk about Zion, l tell her towers, set your heart to her bulwarks, consider her palaces," etc.
III. What are those causes and means of the church's preserva- tion, those towers and bulwarks which will not fail, whenever Zerah * or Sennacherib comes, or whatever attempts are made upon Zion?
IV. What reason is there why we should thus search into and consider these causes of the church's preservation and protection ?
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V. What is the testimony which we have to give concerning this matter to the ensuing generation? " That ye may declare it to the generation to come/''
I shall speak a little in answer to these five inquiries : —
I. What is that preservation and protection of Zion, the church of God, that we may expect, — whose causes and means we should inquire into?
This may be reduced unto three heads: —
1. The eternal salvation of the church of God. This is the goal and the prize that all this great running is about in the world. Satan is, in his own nature, as active and restless as he is malicious; and yet, I suppose, if this end was taken away, if this was not in his eye, — the eternal salvation of the church, of all that believe, — he would give himself much more leisure than he doth. All things here, evils, trials, persecutions, and the like, are but skirmishes ; but where goes eternal bliss, there goes the victory. This, therefore, is part of that pre- servation and safety of Zion which we are to look after, — namely, as the apostle saith, " That all Israel shall be saved." You have a great security, that our Lord Jesus Christ gives of it, John x. 2 7, etc., " My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me : and I give unto them eternal life ; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. I and my Father are one."
This is the first thing in the church's preservation, — namely, that, let the conflict be never so great, never so severe, all true believers shall be eternally saved. And if we do not lay the principal weight in our thoughts upon this, our concern in other things will be of no moment unto us. There is one false opinion doth more mischief to the honour of God in the world in this matter than all the devils in hell are able to do ; and that is, of the total and final apostasy of true believers : for if that be so, we have lost our very first principle of the preservation of Zion, — namely, that " all Israel shall be saved," and that none shall take believers out of the hands of Christ.
2. There is this in it also, that there shall be a church, a professing church, preserved in the world throughout all generations, in despite of all the oppositions of Satan and the world; that is, there shall be a called number, yielding obedience internally unto Christ, and openly professing that obedience, always preserved unto the end of the world. It is expressly included in that promise, Isa. ix. 7, " Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to estab- lish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever, the zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this." However it may fall out in particular places and nations, yet Zion will be preserved;
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God will reserve for Jesus Christ a church visibly professing and yielding obedience unto him according to the gospel.
But you will say, perhaps, " Where was there such a church in the time of the antichristian apostasy ? did not the visible church wholly fail?"