Goodwin - BX9315 G6 v2

Of EM/ion. ~1brm{elves , then certainly he will bellow thofe Means effedually upon us,and BooK IV. carry us t.~rougll thofe Means unto that Glory. He will not !lick, after he hatll ~given the gre.tell, to give that which is a little more, and which is to follow 10 order to the obtaining of it. I Argue this from the Greater to tile Lefier; for fo the Apol\le Argues concerning Gods giving Chrill to dye for us, Rom. 8.p. He tbJ1 [pared 1101 bU ow11 Sa11, 6u1 delivered bim 11p for tu all; bow jhalt be 1101 will. him a!Jo jl-u!ygive tua!lthttJgJ? A right to Glory given at ~al• ling, is more than Calling it felf, and Faith and Holinefs that is to follow, to bri<Jg us CO I he obtaining of that Glory' 'Pf.11 s+ ]]. The Lord wilt give Gruce aud Glory, and 110 good thing wilt be Wtthotd; that is, that doth ferve effedually t~ work Grace, and that will bring us to Glory. Add, Tlli rdly , how lmle a fpace or whtle there ts between thy Calling ( efpeci– ally thee at ttle prefent ) and the Po!feflion of that Glory; and how the Scrip· tures, fpeakin g of this !pace, how fmall a mauer in Gods account, th~y make it, for him to kttp thee m that mean while, though to us it is a greater while; and therefore it is laid, we have need of Patience, Hebr, 10. 36, 37· For y·e have Nttd of 1',1tiena, that after ye have done the wit1 5f God, yt might rtaive tbr Promtjes: For y•et a lmle while, and he that }halt come wilt come, aNi will11M t ·zrry·. It is but a little fpace wherein thou art in danger, and which thou lhalt be tempted in. Now our great and All·wife God relieves himfelf thereby again!\ thy prefent fiolulnefs, that doth fall out in this mean time, and againll thy falls and thy backllidings. For thinks he with himfelf, yet a little while and I fhall have thee perfedly holy with me in Glory, a Spirit made pcrfed fhortly , and it is but my own dtfpenfation to have thee thus im· perfcdly holy in the mean time, and thus ftnful : But, if there had been an abfolutc donger in it, I would inllantly rather hove taken thee up to my felf,as I have done many Ct.ildren of mine, foon airer their Converfion. And if God calls upon us for Patience , for that little while we are to live, as in, He6r.1 o. 36, 37• himfclf will have it much more, And for the glory of his Juftice,God can and cloth bear with the Ve!\els of wrath; whilft they are fitting for de!\ru· dion; much more can he, and will he have Patience on a Ve!fel of mercy, whom h1mfel f is fitting and preparing bv all thole Temptations all that while for glory. As Rom. 9· 22,2 3· What zf Godwi!Ji11g to fbr-av bu wrath; a11d to mr1ke hi< power k1JOW.'t, mdured Wll h mttrh lu11g·Jufjrri11g the VeffeiJ of wrath fitted to tlef/ru8io1l: A11dthat h,e might make k1tow11 tht RichfJ of hu gloryonthevrffils of mercy, whichhthrzd afore prtptlred ttnto glory? Pure grace is of a r.mch more long fulfering temper and difpofition,than mercy mix. ed with eternal Jullice in the end: And he bath to relieve him that Idea or P 1dure of what thou fhalt be fhortly to him; and befides, hath the forefight of thy returnings back again to him, from all thy back-flidings, witha Heart broken , and made m~re holy 'ere tlcou diell. Let us pleafe ou r lelves a little with fo delightful a view, as the Profped of thot one place, Ephej: )·as to thefe purpofes, Verj. Z), 26, 27. Huj6auds love your Wtves, ,uL'hrifllovtd his Church, a11d gave htmfelf for it: That ht mi~ht SanBt}ie and clea11[e it with tht wafhing ofWater, 61 the word: That ht mtght prt[ent it to him(df, aglorio,., Church, 11ot havi11g [pot or Wrinklt, 'or a>!J juch thing: Buttb.tt it/boutdbeholy withotll blemi/b.f fhall take up the feries of thefe words, fo far as they ferve to this purpofe, thus. '· The Church in this World is fuppofed to be full of loathfomenefs and filthnefs to Chri!l, and therefore Chrill is fain continually to be cleanfing it, as with Wa· ter, by his Word, virtuous, Spirit-full Water, which fearches into, and fetches out all forts of Corruptions, though never fo inward, of which alfo the Prophet Ezek. 36. 2). fpeaks, I wt!J [prink!e clean Water upon)'Otl, and y·ou fln!l6t clemt from all yourfilthitltfl, t:!ic. and Analogoufly to this, in the 26 Ver(. A new Heart alfo will lgivt you, a11d a 11ew jpirit will I put withi11 you; mtd 1 willtake away thtflony Heart out ofyottr ftdh, andJwiO give you an Hort offiejh. And it is fpoken of cleanfing us by San~ificarion as is there exprc!fed , and as by Water with the word. It Imports it alfo, as difl ind from Ju!lification , as elfewhere when it is faid he came 6y Water and Blood; Water is fpecified as the Caufe of Sanl!ifying, and as made difiind from

RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=