God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy, he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing." He is the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever. Whatever affliction, and trials, however distressed and dismayed, fearful, doubtful, cast down, tried and tempted, the sheep may be it says nothing to this point; this is one continual flow of love; we may not at all times enjoy it; it says nothing about the fountain head, the streams make glad the city of God, we cannot always catch the streams; the stream of love catches others in such plenteousness that their hearts are made glad. But the fountain Christ is the fountain of love, the great sun of righteousness, his love is to be displayed and is displayed in ten thousand forms. Beautiful indeed is it, the more admired the more it seems to raise itself in the estimation of the sheep. It reaches every point, it is everlasting, from everlasting to everlasting. In the passage we just read, "He rests in his love." This is then the cause of the choice of his people. "Love," what is the inference to be drawn that it was without my circumstances of sins and aggravations being taken into the account. "The Lord hath chosen Zion." Every thing he does towards his church, every thing he thinks, in all thoughts as well as all actions, towards his church and people, he consults their welfare, their best interests, nothing he does is contrary to this; though you may be brought into low circumstances, and may be so crossed and perplexed in providence, that it may seem to be contrary; but in all, the best interests of his people are consulted. Do you think it is so? Paul does, and if he had not written this it is the case, he adds, " And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." Afflictions, sorrows, bonds, temptations, 66 grievances; and more than that, you may be too delicate, but I shall not regard your delicacies, sin too, ah, say you sin too? yes, sin three; however you may startle, Erskine joins issue with us. "Sin for my good does work and win; Yet 't is not good for me to sin." What a nice turn the Poet takes, where is the christian man who is well informed in the Gospel, but must join issue with that eminent servant of God, Erskine, and say "Sin for my good shall work and win; Yet 't is not good for me to sin." God can bring therefore a good thing out of a bad thing, in reference to us; as it is, he displays his kindness, his mercy, his truth, and grace. I would say with regard to his special property or qualification in this Shepherd, that his love is the great flywheel, on which the whole ponderous would cease, all would be at an end, machinery turns; if this stopped, all but it is still in motion, still revolves and keeps every act of grace, mercy, power, wisdom, and every thing else God works, in reference to his church and people. It is God's eternal everlasting love which was set on his people in the ancient settlements. The eternal boundless love of our God, see what it has done and the effects produced, on Calvary, and in Gethsemane's garden, where the Son of God sweat as it were great drops of blood, so that such was his agony he cries out,he was constrained forsaken me," or as the Poet says: as David, “ My God, why hast thou "O Father dear, some pity take, This is the language of old Berridge. he died the death for sinners lost, Upon the accursed ignominious tree that they might go free. "This was compassion like a God, He died then on Calvary's cross but he conquered as he fell, and arose from the tomb in triumph-and as victor he returned in triumph to his Father's home, saying, "Here am I, and the children thou hast given me." Thus having taken a view of Christ in his various circumstances, his characters, names, and titles, having at last come to his triumph when he entered heaven, where he is now exalted a Prince and a Saviour at God's right hand, to give repentance to Israel; we now come to the second proposition made this morning, that was to speak of the sheep; the sheep of Christ are those God has chosen in his Son, from everlasting. You may disagree with this, if you do, it is nothing to me; they were not only chosen in Christ, but before the foundation of the world, According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love." If you say, no, you do not like that; let me tell you, it is as much as your soul is worth; and God will hold you responsible for such opposition, if you die therein. It is not only true he has chosen us in Christ, and this choice springs from something prior to the effect, what is that? the cause is God's everlasting love, being set on them from everlasting, his choice springs from that love. 66 "Loved with an everlasting love." They were not only viewed as sheep in covenant and everlasting love, but chosen in his Son. Secured by oath, promise, and blood; two if not more. "That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have strong consolation who have fled for refuge to lay hold on the hope set before us." If this is true, that it was done for the sheep, something else is true; though most men in their natural state, hate this doctrine. However that may be; God will have the last word. 66 My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure." (I have not lost myself in a fog.) Truly the Lord set his love upon them in eternity-He chose them in Christ. It is also true these people are denominated sheep not only before they are called by grace; but while in their natural state. The Gentiles were called sheep before they heard the sound of the gospel, before their natural vocation, our Saviour says to the Jews that came to him. "As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep; and other sheep I have, which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one fold and one Shepherd." These are the Gentiles, who at this present day are not all born naturally, thousands and millions, for aught we know, are not born who are to be born into the second Adam, who are yet to be born, and are called sheep. Other sheep not of this fold, them I must bring to this fold, spoken of in the text, "Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." Here we have to ask a question; this is a nice delicate point to bring things to. May we be enabled deliberately to discuss them, and God grant we may feel a happy gospel acquiescence; if we do not, the Lord pursues his own course; our unbelief will never make the promise of none effect. The glory of God is to be promoted as well as the good of his own family, by all his proceedings. Let us, then, again state they are called sheep before they are called by grace, while in an unconverted unborn state. The Lord Jesus says, "I lay down my life for my sheep," do you believe that? Yes, say you, I do. I firmly believe that, full as much as I believe Christ is the Son of God. So far so good. I now ask another question, On what is your belief grounded? On what Christ. himself says, "I lay down my life for my sheep." I believe he died for his sheep. He says so; and have not I a right to do it? By this we have got a right to do something else. I shall bring you to a nice point. You know what Paul says, "Let your conversation be as becometh the gospel." So that there is a propriety of things, and this propriety ought to be found in us who pretend to any knowledge or partiality for the gospel. According, therefore, to this rule, the rule of congruity, you must believe some things because Christ says so. Will you not believe some things are negatived because Christ has not said. I again repeat, as you believe Jesus Christ laid down his life for his sheep, because he says so, are you not bound to believe that he did not lay down his life for the goats as he has not said he did. Is not that a proper rule, a natural conclusion to be drawn; because, on the first proposition, I ground my belief on something on what Christ has said. He calls them his sheep; these sheep are to be brought, also other sheep not of this fold, them also he will bring, and I believe he will bring them. But do you believe he will bring the goats? No. Why not, according to the rule of propriety, upon much the same principle that he says he will bring the sheep but not the goats. He has not said he will, therefore I cannot believe he will. I wonder what you think about it? It is consolatory and satisfactory to my soul that the truths of God are not suspended on my belief, but on the will of God. He not only calls them vessels of mercy, but also disciples, believers, and followers of the Lamb, that they will also go to heaven by virtue of the death of Christ, according to his own eternal purpose; therefore they are his sheep, his chosen people; and in this discussion we must confine ourselves to this part of our subject; living souls, the regenerated people, those who have been adopted into the family by God's grace, these people our Saviour was speaking of; they were sheep before calling, not goats; not goats now, and never will be. Still the proper place to fix this subject is where the text places it, "Fear not, little flock.' Not those unconverted men; much less should I address myself to persons in an unborn state; therefore I must confine myself in this discussion of the second head to the sheep of Christ, the living members of the mystical body of him whose fulness filleth all in all; who are these people? I do not know them by name, or by their persons, I only know such are taken out of the rubbish of nature, raised from the horrible pit, and miry clay, from their first born state of wretchedness and misery; being amenable to the law of God, exposed to the malediction of that law, born under the law. Held in ignorance by it till they are delivered by an act of sovereign mercy; but when God delivers them he awakens them to see the state and condition they are in; he disciplines them here as the Lord sees good in his sight; and this is continued long enough, whether one day or seven years, so he promises them, wasts them, kills them, reduces them down so that they shall be made to mourn under it, make confesion of their guilt, of their ruined lost estate, feel and find their need of mercy and grace, and cry for deliverance; when this cry is put into their heart, it is not the cry of nature. I know how the Arminians may fix this "if you," they say, work yourselves up to a frame of meekness, contrition, compunction, godly sorrow, and selfloathing, be that humble soul, and then cry to Jesus Christ, he will have mercy upon you. This is a common insult offered to the gospel, never true. There never was a real, gospel, contrite soul; a wounded, crying, groaning, sensible sinner; a poor, meek, humble soul, never one upon the face of God's earth, but the Lord made him so. The Lord wounds, and he makes whole, he brings down and lifts up, he kills and makes alive. Thus he brings them into the liberty of the gospel, they are adopted into the fold of Christ, these people are attended to in the text, "Fear not, little flock." These men or people having undertaken for them, he will bring them through this ordeal. As we said this morning, according to the prophet Isaiah, "He has his fire in Zion, and his furnace in Jerusalem." And we are made to psss under the rod, before we are brought into the bond of the covenant, feel a spiritual death, before life, brought down, before we rise: this is solemnly set forth under the Old Testament, in Hannah's song, "The Lord killeth and maketh alive; he bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up." While in the New Testament after this sort, "For this, thy brother, was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found." That is the question. Through this ordeal every soul passes before he gets to glory: this we are bound to believe, from what I quoted in the morning, "I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, and they shall trust in the name of the Lord." These suffer under the blow of God's hand, as David says, "Remove thy stroke away from me, I am consumed by the blow of thine hand." What à withering influence is the soul under, when the wrath of God seems spread over our souls, our comeliness is turned into corruption, we loathe ourselves in our own eyes, when we have a glimpse of the glory of God. Do you know any thing of this? Does your religion amount to this? As Mr. Hart says, "Let us ask th' important question, Brethren be not too secure, True religion's more than notion, Something must be known and felt." When therefore your soul has been disciplined sufficiently, the time is come to bring you into gospel liberty. But we have been told by men, who know nothing about God's law, or the gospel, they tell you, give your heart up to God, to lay hold of Christ and eternal life, as though it were optional. I must say here the same as the Saviour says, "One shall be taken and the other left." What is the option, in the person taken, or the person left? One is poorer, and another richer; where is the option? This doctrine of the Arminians is damning to the soul, a common insult offered to God, and the Lord will hold such men and such doctrine responsible and blasphemous, and they will be spurned to hell, unless Almighty grace prevent. Then agreeable to the gospel system, God kills by the law, and makes alive by the gospel, he brings down by the law, and raises up in the gospel, arrested in the law, and made free in the gospel. "Loose him and let him go. Lazarus was a striking emblem of this when in his grave, in a state of putrefaction, or at least, coming to it, as it was said, "By this time he stinketh," putrefaction having taken place. Thus he was not only dead and lifeless, but it was said, "By this time he stinketh," he pourtrayed the state of a poor sinner who is in a state of spiritual death, but when the Lord said come forth!" He that was bound with the grave clothes, so that he could not run away. Came forth, pourtrays the poor sinner who is in a natural state, bound with the grave clothes, so that he cannot run away. Though the Arminians tell us to give the heart to God, and get clean-how abominable and cursed is their system-how incompatible with the gracious system What was done of the gospel? literally in the case of Lazarus in 66 done mystically in the case of every living child of God. The Lord Jesus said "Loose him and let him go." This points to the state of God delivering sinners from the bondages in which they are involved at Sinai's Mount, bringing him to Calvary's cross to gospel ground. This soul being brought into the liberty of the gospel as we some time say, into the adopted state, adopted into the family of Jesus Christ. This family of Jesus Christ is called in our text a flock. "Fear not, little flock." We have again overrun our time, and as I am a great stickler for order, otherwise I should have kept you longer in the morning; I hope again to resume the subject in the evening, and get though with it to-morrow night, may God bless the few hints dropped for his name sake. SPIRITUAL CONSOLATION. A Dialogue between Stephanus, Aristarchus, and Epaphras. (Concluded from page 78.) 66 And these children are not of the bond-woman but of the free, being brought forth into life by the supernatural operation of the Holy Ghost on the heart; besides, there were many promises made to Christ, the head of the covenant, concerning the elect, by the Father, for instance that glorious one in Isaiah xlix. 5. with innumerable others Imightquote, but that shall suffice, And now, saith the Lord, that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to ring Jacob again to him, though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my strength; and he said, it is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.' Besides, the Redeemer declares, all that the Father hath given him, shall come unto him, and such as are given to him, they were his from eternity, and prepared for him; "and that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory, even us, whom he hath called not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles." Rom. ix. 23. 24. Whereas from these promises, how is it possible for the elect to fail of salvation, seeing the promise of eternal life was given to them; and this life was in him, and still remains in him, For our life is hid with Christ in God; and when Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall we also appear with him in glory, so that all the members had, and continue to have, their life from him. Col. iii. 3, 4. All the promises are yea and amen in Christ Jesus, to the glory of God by us; they cannot fail of being fulfilled, they are exceeding great and precious, being made by the Father to the elect in Christ, who are the children of the promise, and the spirit of promise reveals the sweetness of the promises to the heart; it is true in this our day, many talk of them, and speak of them lightly, and hand them about like waste paper; but sure I am, the King's seal is to them, and the royal family cannot treat the bank notes of heaven in that way, they are better taught and guided, having an experience of the value of them, and the sweetness they contain, with the soul reviving comforts they bring, when in the day of distress and darkness, the Divine Comforter reveals them; however, I am at a point, and am confident, having the Seripture on my side, that the promises belong to none but the children of the promise, "who are born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God," and |
