SBCT.XII. OfEffetstnal Wing, 629 Who canbear it? The firft Doftrine tobe railed from the wordsis, That thereare Manyoutwardly called, Whops. neverpartake of the p4wei-ànd be- pea. aefit ofthis mercy: There are thofe who fit down at Chrifls feafl, yet for want 'ofaweddinggar- ment are excluded. To confider this point let us obferve, What this outward calling is, and the event of it. Andbecaufe I have already fhewen, wherein the Nature of the outwardcalling of God dothconfifl, 1(hall only take fo muchas is implied in the fimilitude this Parabledothhold forth ; for when we fee Chrift himfelffiat, ing with fuch a futablebait as this is, whenhe that is truth it felf doth ufe fuch expreffions, Who canbut believe? Whocan but receive? And firft in that the wordof Godcalling men to Faith and Repentance, is thus defcribed under the notionofa great Feaft, it implieth, There is in it a fa- tisfaktien to everyfoal, that is fjtiritually hungry and thirdly. Ho every one that thirfeth, faith our Savióur, let him come an, drink Joh.7.37. Chriftfaith, He is the bread that comesb,downfrom heaven, Job.6.35. Hewas born in Bethlehem,, thehoufeofbread. 'Now thefe exprellions imply two things: t. That there' ought to be in allmen an hungring and tbirfling after Chrifl, and the priviledges be offers. For ifyou tell a full manofa great feaft, he matters it not; becaufe fuch anone loatheth thevery honey-comb; but a thirdly man, as you fee by Samfen ; or an hungryman, as you fee by theLepers, and thofe that lived in the timeof famine in /filed, Ohwhat would not they do? How did they rejoycetohave one drop, orone cruet ? Lazarus was glad ofa cruet ; andthus it is here : A man full of his own righteoufneffe, ofhis owngoodneffe; He loatheth all this preaching, he preferreth his husks before the fattedcalf. But now take a mandeflituteof all thefe, and fenfible of his leanneffe : Oh how doth his foul thirft and hunger after Chrift I Thus Paula called onejudg- eth all things dung anddroffe for the knowledge of Chrif : All bis former privy- ledges he renounceth, and Nonebut Chrif , none but Chrifdoth replenifh him. Ohwhile men have their Own greatne(fe, their own goodneffe and righteouf- neffe, theywill never come to this feafl. David likewife he fpeaketh of his hunger and thirft after God, yea that hisfoulbreake.thfor the longing it bath al- wayes unto him ; loch a difpofition is fuppofed, when the grace of the Gofpel is comparedto a Feafl. And then in the fecond place, It dothfuppofe afatisfyingand filling of the foul. That whereas the wifemanobferveth, That the eye is notfatisfiedWith teeing ; and Thereare four things ?a'hicbnever/ay, There is enough; yet here, he that thirtieth whenhe drinketh of this water, he,never thirflethmore. That is not, as if he did notdefier more grace, and more communion with Chrift t Yea the more they tafle ofthis objed, the more they long to have, but theynever thirft fo, as to feek outfor a betterobjedI; They neverfayof God, as the Church of her Idols, l Will go tamy former Imp, andmyformerfins, for then it Was better Witit me, thenfince !cleaved to Chrifi. No, with Peter in his transfiguration, they fay, It -ùgood to be here; andwhich Peter didnot, theyknowwhat they fay. So then in making the graceof God offered to be like a fumptuous frail, it im- plieth, that there is no fpiritual defe& or want in thee, but it (hall be made up. That grace nomore thennaturewill not fuffer any vacuum ; Some Philofophers fpeaking how that Materia appetit mosses formas , yet fay that the heavenly matter Bothnot, becaufe there theexcellency ofthe form doth fatiate it. This ismuch more true in thegodly heart, wherein God dwels there it defireth to make no more change. Now how great a matter it is to hare all thy fpiritual longings fatisfied,the godly only know. Secondly, As thisphrafefuppofethfatisfallionof 'pinealhanger; fo italfa 'in- à tends pleafure and delight. A feafl is matterof by and comfort, Hence a good LIII 3 confci-
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