Ver.. 28. the 8th Chapter to the R OM ANS. .7), I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and, feekwy face; in their,' afflitlion they willleek me early. When our gull and tall of fpiritual and heavenly things is recovered, then we are awakened and in good earnell. 3. 'Tis a learning time ; this the Scripture witneffeth every where, Pfal. sig. 7 t. ''Tit good for me that 1 have been aflitied, that Insight learn thy ftatutes. Pfal.'94. 52.,'.Blepd it the man whom thou chafinefi, O Lord, and téachefi him out of thy law. God teacheth us though he teach us as Gideon did the men of Succoth, with briars and thorns, And we read of Chritt,Jefus himfelf, Heb. 5. 8. He learned obedience from the things which he fuf- fered. He did experimentally underftand what obedience was, in hard and difficult cafes, and fo could the better pity and help finners; when they obey God at a dear rate. In of hiftion we have an experimental knowledge of that, of which but a notional know- ledge before; We come by experience to fee how falle and changeable, the world is, what a burden fin is; What fweetnefs there is in the promifes g What a reality in the world to come 5 How comfortable an interell in God is ; Luther faid, psi tribúlantur, ['eras Srripturas mellus intelligent 5 f cirri Zr fortunati eas legnnt felt Ovidii carmen. The afElílted Cie more in the Scripturesthan others do the fecure and fortunate read them, as they doOvidi verfes.Certainly when the foul is humble,and we are refined and purified from the dregs of lent, we are more tra &able, and teachable, our underfiandings are clearer, and our affeáions more melting. Now fpiritual learning is a blefíìng that cannot be va- lited enough ; if Clod 'write his Law on our hearts, by his firipes on our backs, we have no reafon to complain. 4. 'Tie' a repentingtime, to ftir up the hatred of fin by the bitter éffe&s of it. Jer. 2. 19. Now know what an evil and bitter thing it is, that thou haft forfáken the Lord toy God, and that my fear is not in thee. Weigh with thy fd f, what hath brought all there evils upon thee; experience teacheth fools. So Lain. 3. 39. Wherefore doth a living man complain, a man for the punifhment of his fn ? He hath no reafon to murmur againui God, When he confidereth his own deferts, and that he fuffereth nothing but what he hath produced to himfelf by his fins: And therefore we ought to have deep Shame and forrow for our formet mifcarriages ; it conduceth to breed true remorse, to confider our folly, and the natty brought upon us thereby, Jer. 31. 18. Surely I have heard Ephraim be- moaning himf l f thus, Thou ha fi chaflifed me, and I was chaflifçd, as a bullock únaccufiowed to the yoke: turn thou me, and 1 !ball' be turned, thou art the Lord my God. Surely after that I was turned, 1 repented ; and after that I was iníirutied, I (mote upon my thigh, I was afhamed, yea even confounded, becaufe 1 did bear the reproach of my youth. 5. Tis a weaning time,. from the pleafures and conveniencies of the prefent worlds .l~irfi, the pleafures of the world ; pleafure it the great Sorcerers, that hath inchanted all mankind ; they all court pleafure, though in different (hapes 5''Tiedeeply ingrained in our nature, and the caufe of our many mifcarriages, Tit. g. 3. Serving divers lulls and pleafures ; and becaufe we have divers pleafures; God fendeth divers of iliions: The foul is almoll fo. funk in flu b, that it cealerh to be fpirit. john 3. 6. Pleafure is that which draweth us off from vod, and ingageth us in the Creature, Jam. r. 14. Bat every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lutt, and inticed. Now among the divers af< fli&ions, difeafes are natural penances which God hath put upon us, to reclaim us from vain pleafures. The gulf of the Hells would be too firong, if God did not check it, by imbittering our portion in the world. Secondly, The-conveniencies of the prefect life, riches, honours; frtendthips; affiltions are fent to cure our carnal complacency, and increafe the heavenly mind: Riches, Heb. 1o. 34: And took joyfully the fpoiling of your goods, knowing in your felves, that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring fubfiance. Re- lations, pepffions, t Cor. 7. 29, 30,31: The tome is port ; it remaineth, that both they that have wives, be as though they had none; And they that weep; as though they wept not; And they that rejoice, as though they rejoiced not ; And they that buy, as though they polled not ; And they that ufè this world, as not abufîng it ; for the fafhion of this world papeth away. Friend(hip, john. 16. 32, Doating on the Creature is fpiritual adultery, James 4. 4 Te adulterers and adulteref- fee, know ye net, that the friendfsip of the world is enmity with God? who ever therefore will be a friend of the world, is the enemy of God. It an image of jealoufie be let up, God will blaft it, he turneth the world loole upon us, lò that friends prove as broken reeds. 'Tis Bale for God to profper his people in the world, and fuit all things to their own deliires; but he knoweth odr pronenefs to carnal love, and how eafily our heart is inticed from himfelf. Our temptations would be tooilrong, if the world did appear in an over- amiable tempting drefs ; therefore he doth exercife us fometimes with the.,malicous, en- vious
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