Now, it is a sign God hides his face, when we grow languid and cold in our endeavours. " Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD." We grow languid in our endeavours; warm one day and cold another, enlarged in prayer one day, and give over the. next; we do not warm one another: and yet our lives, and souls, and the glory of God, lie all at stake in this matter. Our hearts are feeble; it is an evidence God hideth his face. We do not wait upon him as we ought ; for they that wait shall not faint, what ever they do. It is wonderfully difficult, and we do not help one another as we ought. We do not go to one another, and advise with one another, to set one another in the way. And, lastly, we grow languid after we have been put into the way. The world cools our hearts, and we think enough is done upon such occasions. We shall not know the Lord in this matter, unless we follow on to know him.
Fourthly, Why doth the Lord thus hide his face from poor Jacob, from oppressed Jacob, from wrestling Jacob, — from his own people? why doth God thus hide his face from them as to all those things we have mentioned, — as to guidance, strength, joy, and deliverance?
The reasons are very plain why God doth it. It is, —
1. For their love of the world: Isa. Ivii. 17, "For the iniquity of his covetousness I was wroth, and I hid my face from him." It is our love of the world and conformity to the world that hath caused God thus to hide his face from us. I bless God that hath put it into
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the hearts of some among us to desire we may get together to con sider what remedies we may have to cure us of that great conformity to the world that is grown amongst us; and I shall desire of the congregation that we may have a time to consider of it, because it is that which will greatly, with apparent offence, take us off from bearing our testimony against the world, which Christ hath com mitted to us. But it is for our love of the world, all and every one of us. None of us but have greatly refused God's teachings in that particular of love of the world that is among us. " For the iniquity of his covetousness was I wroth, and smote him : I hid me, and was wroth." I would not judge any, nor reflect upon any; but I am afraid it is one great sin for which God is contending with our brethren at the ends of the earth, hiding his face from them, as at this day. Their hearts have too much gone out after the world, too much cleaved to it; and the word of God cannot fail. If Jacob will love the world, if the iniquity of covetousness be found in him, God will assuredly hide his face; the word of God cannot be of none effect. It is in vain to imagine, that under a worldly, carnal frame of spirit, we should have the shining of God's face upon us.
2. A frowardness in our walking is another reason why God hides his face from his people. God complains of Israel, they are " fro- ward children/' and a " froward generation ;" and so saith they shall not find him: Micah iii. 4, "He will even hide his face from them, as they have behaved themselves ill in their doings," — " fro wardly in their doings." When we behave ourselves frowardly in our ways, God hides his face from us. What is it to behave ourselves frowardly in the ways of God ? It consists in two things, — (1.) Unreadiness to comply with God's providence; and., — (2.) Unevenness, crooked ness, in our conversations in the world. The great thing God com plains of under the name of frowardness is unreadiness to comply with his providence. We do not come to that which God calls us unto ; we will not be at what God calls us unto. See a particular instance, Isa. xxii. 12-14, " In that day did the Lord GOD of hosts call to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth: and behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine : let us eat and drink ; for to morrow we shall die. And it was revealed in mine ears by the LORD of hosts, Surely this iniquity shall not be purged from you till ye die." Here is great frowardness. God calls to mourning, to humilia tion; instead thereof there is slaying of oxen and killing of sheep, every one rejoicing in what he hath according to his power, every one eating and drinking as they can, adorning themselves as they please, — and that at a time when God called to mourning. 'But it is not such a time now/ Then it was never such a time in this world.
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All the tokens of God's displeasure are upon us; what we hear in the world is near approaching, particularly to ourselves. *A11 the contests God hath had with this nation, by poverty, by that dreadful judgment of fire, and the like, threaten us every day. If these be not calls to mourning, we can have none from the word of God nor from conjunc tions of providence. Yet at this time, who doth not eat and drink and clothe himself as he can, refresh himself with what he is in trusted withal, from the highest to the lowest, especially those that are great and rich, even among professors? This is to walk frowardly with God, to walk uncomplyingly with providence. Neither our garb, nor countenance, nor food, nor raiment, nor any thing else, testifies we comply with the calls of God. And it is a dreadful word that follows: "It was revealed by the LORD of hosts, Surely this iniquity shall not be purged from you till ye die." For, "If ye walk contrary unto me, I will walk contrary unto you, and will punish you seven times more/' Instead of looking for the return of God and for the shining of his countenance, God speaks quite another language : " Ye walk con trary unto me, and I will punish you seven times more." It may be this comes home to our own state and condition, to God's dealing with his church and with particular persons. May be there is not that readiness in us to comply with the will of God in all things which he expecteth from us; and if we walk frowardly, God will never be prevailed upon by our frowardness.