SHINE IN OUR WORKS. 477 Paul tells us what the good works are which we must be always ready to ; " Tó speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers ; but gentle, showing all meekness to all men ;" Tit. iii. 1, 2. The Scripture speaks more of this than I have leisure to recite. See Gal. v. 23. and vi: 1. 1 Tim. vi. 11. 2 Tim. ii. 25. 1 Peter iii. 15. Jam.iii. 13. Zeph. ii. 3. Isa. xxix. 19. Psalm cxli. 4. and lxxvi. 9. and cxlvii. 6. and xxxvü. 11. 3. And patience both towards God'and man is a necessary com- panion of humility and meekness. This greatly differeth from nat- ural dullness and an insensible temperature. When a man's soul is. partly so much awed 'by God's authority and presence, andpart- ly so much taken up with the great matter's of his service, and partly so much contented with his favor and grace, and the hopes of glory, as to make light ofall the interests of the flesh as such ; and therefore to bear patiently such losses and crosses, and wants and sufferings, as touch the flesh, as taking it for no great matter to lose all the world if we save our souls, this is true patience by which God is glorified. For by this men will see that Christians have, indeed, such great things in their hopes, as set them quite above the transitory things of the flesh and the world ; but when they are much troubled at every cross and loss, and whine and complain as if they were undone, if they live in poverty and re- proach ; and are at their wit's end in every danger, and fret and stormat every ill- word, or every one that wrongeth them, they are the shame of their profession, and scandals to the world. It is not a sudden anger which is the great sin of impatience ; but an impotent disability o suffer in the flesh, in estate or name; and 'a repining under every want, which showeth a fleshly, worldlymind, and a want of true believing the heavenly felicity; though I con- fess that pity must make some excuse for many poor women, whose natural temper maketh their passions, troubles, and fears invincible. He that said, " In your patience possess your souls," doth intimate, that we have lost ourselves, and the government, or- der, and peace of our souls, when we have lost our patience ; Luke .xxi. 19. See Eccl. vii. 8. Jam. v. 7, 8. 1 Pet. ii. 20. 1 Thes. v. 14. " Be patient towards all men." 1 Tim. vi. 11. Col. i. 11. Whatever zeal you seem to have in prayer, in preaching, and forpurity of worship, if you can bear wants, and sickness, and the loss of all the'world no better than others, you will appear no better in their eyes ; for " if you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small ; " Prov. xx. 10. XII. And as a special fruit of humility, an easy and thankful bearing of reproof, and readiness to confess a fault upon due con- viction, is a necessary duty to the honoring of God. It will show Rien that you are enemies to sin indeed, and that you are not hyp-
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=