Sermon 8

Exodus 3:13-15. 13 And Moses said to God; behold, when I come to the children of Israel, and shall say to them; The God of your Fathers has sent me to you, and they shall say to me, What is his Name? what shall I say to them? 14 And God said to Moses, I AM THAT I AM. And he said, Thus you shall say to the children of Israel; I AM has sent me to you. 15 And God said moreover to Moses, Thus you shall say to the children of Israel; The LORD God of your Fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob has sent me to you: this is my Name forever, and this is my memorial to all generations.

Consider, whether your minds gather a holy magnanimity even from this, that you have the Lord for your God: for, if he be most perfect, if he has the fullness of all things in him; then if you have him, the mind is ready to grow to a holy kind of greatness; for it is the greatness of the object, that makes the mind great: and the greatness of the mind appears in this, that it does not esteem small things. Animo magno nihil est magnum; When a man can, out of this consideration, that the LORD is my Sun, and shield, and exceeding great reward, contemn and reckon all things else as matters of small moment; it is an argument that he has, in truth, apprehended God, as he ought to apprehend him. I say, this is true holy magnanimity: there is a false magnanimity; whereas men's minds are great, because they grow great with men, because of their great hopes, and riches, and great learning; this is a false greatness, because it draws men from God; it is such a greatness as the arm has, when it is swelled, which rises not from the strength and true greatness of it, but from the weakness of it. This is of an ill kind; but there is another kind of greatness, when the mind grows therefore to a holy magnanimity, because it is set upon the great God: as David, he had such a magnanimity (Psalm 27:1, 3). The LORD is my light, and my salvation, whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life, of whom shall I be afraid? Though a host of men should encamp against me, my heart should not fear, &c.

If there be anything in this world to be regarded, it is a host of men; because it is the most powerful thing among men; but I will not regard it. Why? not because he was stronger than they, but because God was his life and strength; when his mind raised up itself to such a greatness, upon this consideration, then he was able to contemn these things, that were to be contemned. Such was the greatness of mind, which was found in Moses (Hebrews 11): he cared not for the favor, or disfavor of the King, because he saw, enjoyed, and bore himself upon him, which was invisible.

Consider, whether you exalt him as God, you shall know it by this, by seeking to him to fill up all those defects and imperfections, that we meet with in our lives, from day to day. Beloved, there are many things that we want; as if we lose a friend, we complain of a want; if we lose father or mother, it is a want; indeed, if we lose nothing, yet we find many defects which we would have made up: now, what is the way to do it? If you think to make them up by the creature, you will find it to be but a small bush that will not stop the gap; but if you go to him that is all in all (Colossians 3), if you seek to make it up in him, when anything is lost: when the bucket is broken, if you go to the fountain; if a beam be cut off that was given and shined through the creature, if you go to the Sun, that can give the like beam through another creature; if you seek to have communion with him, then it is an argument that you esteem him as you ought to do.

Object. Every man will say; I seek to the Lord, I look for all my comfort from him.

Answer. Yes, but how do you bestow your labor? (Isaiah 55:2). Therefore do you spend money for that, which is not bread? and your labor for that, which satisfies not? hearken diligently to me, and eat that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. Let a man consider in this case, how he bestows his pains: if he thinks to have all in God, he will save his pains, and not lay it out upon vanity, but he will bestow it to some purpose; that is, he will take much pains to seek his favor in all things, and look to him for a supply of all, and not to the creatures, because they can do but little, they have no power, no strength to do anything, they are of no moment; but if God be pleased to make up the defect, then if he has but little wealth, he will make it to serve his turn; if he has but one friend, it shall be to him, as if he had many; if he has but a little credit, it shall be to him, as if he had a great name, &c. all things else are but of a little bulk without him.

Object. But the creatures are of great moment, experience shows them to be something: for, who lives without them? Again, are we not commanded to pray for outward blessings? and we are not to pray for that which is nothing. Again, does not the Scripture reckon them so? they are things for which we must be thankful, and the want of them does afflict us, and we must esteem it as a chastisement. Now, no man will be thankful, or afflict himself for that which is nothing; and therefore there is something in the creature, they are not altogether nothing or vanity.

To this we will give a threefold answer:

Answ. 1 Though they be something; yet their efficacy is not from themselves, but from the Lord. A horse is able to do something, but to save a man, it is a vain thing; the builder builds, but it is nothing, and the watchmen watch in vain without the Lord; the efficacy that they have to do us hurt or good, is from him, and not from themselves. If God will say to the creature; Go, and do such a man good, it will do it, because there goes a concourse of efficacy from him to do it. So, if he say to a creature, Go to such a man, and afflict him, it will do it, though it be never so small and mean a creature; therefore of themselves they neither do good nor hurt, the efficacy that they have is from him, and not from themselves: they are mere instruments; and if God withdraw his blessing and cursing, they can do us neither good nor hurt.

Answ. 2 We say that they are nothing, because they are at his command; if he would do us good, he never wants one to send of his errand; if he will make a man rich, he wants not wealth, it is at his command; if he will give a man friends, he can fetch them again; if all your friends be present, yet they do not stir, unless he command. The rich and the poor, they meet together, but the LORD makes them both. And in this regard, riches are said to be nothing, (Proverbs 23) Riches take to themselves wings, and fly away; And, why do you set your heart upon that which is nothing? That is, they go and come at his command; and therefore they are to be accounted as nothing. If a man see a flock of the best fowl on his land, yet he looks upon them as nothing to him, because they have wings and will fly away; and you should think so of all things else; that they have wings, that they go and come at his command, that they are nothing, because they are nothing to you.

Answ. 3 They are nothing, because they can do but little good; and that which they do, is of no continuance; and therefore they are said to be vanity. So that put the case that they have some efficacy in them, (when yet they are acted by the Lord;) indeed, put the case that they were at their own command (as they are not) yet they can do but little good, and that is of so short continuance, that therefore they are vanity, they are nothing; because they are little more than nothing; as Solomon calls them; all things under the Sun are vanity; they are empty things; and that which is under the Sun cannot reach above the Sun; and therefore they are said to be vanity.

Object. But if you say that they are great things, and therefore you see how the Prophets did magnify them, and did set forth the greatness of afflictions in the want of them.

Answ. I answer, that they are of use indeed, in regard of the weakness of the creature, and the continuance of this life; but if they be compared to eternity, they are nothing; and again, if the Lord be with us in the want of them, they are nothing; if the Lord send us afflictions, and give us his favor and the light of his countenance, it is nothing; if he send us into prison, if he be with us, it will be nothing. As, on the contrary, if a man had a brave Palace, and God was not with him, if he did withdraw his favor from him, all were nothing.