504 BAXTER'S FAREOE4t. SERMON. 7. There arecharitable sorrows for the dishonor of God, and, for the sin, hurt, and miseries of others. These, also, are our duties, and we must be agents in them as well as patients. As we must, first pray for the hallowing of the name of God, and the coming of his kingdom, and the doing of his will on earth as it is . done in heaven, so we must most grieve for the abuse and dishonor of God's name, the hindering of his kingdom, and the breaking ofhis laws; that so many nations see not the peril, and know not God, and have not the gospel, or will not receive it, but live in rebellion against their Maker, and in blindness, obstinacy, and hardness of heart, and aregiven up to .commit uncleanness with greediness; (Eph. iv. 18, 19:) that so many nations which are called Chris- tians are Captivated in ignorance; and, superstition, by the, blind- ness, pride, carnality, and covetousness of their usurping, self-ob- truding guides ; that so many men professing Christianity have so little of the knowledgeor power of what they generally and igno- rantly profess, and live to the shame of their profession; the great dishonor and displeasure of their Lord, and the grief or hardening of others ; 'that the church of Christ is broken into so many seat and factions, 'possessed with such an uncharitable, destroying zeal against each other, and persecuting their 'brethren as cruelly as Turks and heathens do ; that the best of Christians are to' few, and'yet so weak and liable`tó miscarriages. All these are the matter of that sorrow which God bath made our duty ; and all these sorts of sorrow do go before a Christian's fullest joy. Reason 1. God will have some conformity between the order ofnature and ofgrace. Non-entity was before created entity; the evening before morning ; infancy before' maturity of age ; weakness before strength ; the buried seed before the plant, the flower, and fruit ; and infants cry before , they laugh; weakness is soon hurt, and very querulous. No wonder, then, if our sorrows go before our joys. 2. Sin goeth before grace, and therefore our sorrows are before our joys. The seed is first fruitful which was 'first sown: Joy, indeed, bath the elder parent, in esse reali et absotuto, but not in esse càusali et relativo. We are the children of the first Adam, bèfore we are Children of the second ; we are born flesh of flesh, before we are born spiritual ofthe Spirit ; 1 Cor. iv. John iii. 6. Add where 'Satan goeth before Christ, it is equal that sorrow be before joy. 3. Our gracious Father and wise Physician doth see that this is the fittest method for our cure. That we may deny ourselves, we must know how little we are beholden to ourselves, and must smart by the fruit of our sin and folly before we are eased by the fruit of love and grace. It is the property of the flesh to judge by sense,
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=