Serm. CLXI. the troubles. of fe. 4öì The words are varioufly tranflated; by foine indicatively, re do believe in God, and ye da believe in me, therefore be not troubled ; by others imperatively, Believe in God, and believe likewife inme and then you can have no caufe oftrou- ble. Or elfe the firft claufe may be rendred indicatively,, and the latter impera- tively ; and fo our Tranflation renders the words, Tedo believe in God, believeal- fo in me ; as you believe in God the Creator and Governor of the World, fo believe alfa in me the Sonof God, and the Saviour of theWorld. But which way foever the words be render'd, the fenfe comes all to one ; that Faith in God, and in our bleffed Saviour, are here prefcribed as the proper and molt powerful Reme- dies againft trouble. Let . not your heart be troubled : yebelieve in God, believe al- fo in me. In the handling ofthefe words I (hall do thefe two things. Firfl, I (hall confider what fort oftrouble ishere forbidden, or withwhat reafo- nable limitations this general prohibition of our Saviour is to be underftood, Let not your heart be troubled. Secondly, I fhall endeavour to thew what virtue and force there is in the Reme- dy here prefcribed by our Saviour, to mitigate and allay our trouble, and to fup- port and quiet our minds under it, Firfl, We will confider what fort of trouble is here forbidden, and with what due and reafonable limitations we are to underftand this general prohibition of our Saviour to his Difciples, Let not your heart be troubled. And this we (hall beft find out by confidering the various obje&s of trouble, together with the feveral caufes or grounds of them. And thefe may all be ranged under thefe threeheads; evils pall, prefent, or to come. For the ground of all trouble is fome evil, ei- ther really and in it felf fo, or what is apprehended by us under that notion: and the feveral kinds of trouble, are either the refle&ion upon evils paft, or the fenfe of an evil that is prefent, or the fear and apprehenfion of fotne future evil which threatens us and hangs over us. a. For the Firfl, The trouble caufed by refle&ion upon evils paff, this muff ei- therbe the evil ofaffli&ion or fin. The former of thefe, when it is paft, is fe!- dom any cáufe of trouble, the remembrance of paft Sufferings, and the evils which we got over, being rather delightful than grievous; fo that it is only the evil of fin, the refle&ion whereof is troublefome. And this is that which we call guilt, which is an inward vexation, and difcontent, and grief of mind, ailing from the confcioufnefs that we have done amifs, and a fearful apprehenfion of fome vengeance and punifhment that will follow it ; and there is no trouble that is comparable to this, when the confcienceof a finer is throughly awakened. Now upon this account our hearts ought to be troubled, and we can hardly ex- ceed in ir, provided our trouble do not drive us to defpair, but to Repentance : but there can be no fufpicion that this comes within the compafs of our Saviour's prohibition. 'IL As for the troubles caufed by the fenfe of the prefent evils, either of lofsor fuffering, tho' this do properly enough fall within the compafs of Our Saviour's prohibition, let not your heart be troubled, yet it admits of feveral limitations ; therefore in order to the fixingof its due and proper bounds, I shall briefly fhew, what trouble for prefent evils and afliiftions which are upon us, is not forbidden, and what is. t. We are not here forbidden to have a juft and due fenfe of any Evil or Cala- mity that is upon us ; becaufe this is natural, arid we cannot help it i for there isa real difference of things in themfelves ; fome thingsare in their nature good -and convenient for us, and agreeable and delightful toour fenfes ; andother things are in themfelves evil, that is naturally difpleafing and grievous ; and we muff not only be Stoicks, but even flocks and ftones, if we have not a juft fenfe and re- fentment of this difference. Our bleffed Saviour had fo ; and as he was afflifted more thanany Man, and fuffer'd more than any of the Sons of Men, fo was he likewife very fentbie of his Sufferings, and had a natural dread and horror of thein ; infomuch that he himfelf tells us, that his Soul was exceeding forrowfül, F f f even
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