Chapter 34: The reproaches of God's people are the reproaches of Christ

IF you take the reproaches either materially or formally; materially, that is when all the sufferings of Gods people for which they are meanly esteemed and looked upon as contemptible, all their sufferings are the sufferings of Christ: Formally, and that is the very scorn that is cast upon them, is the scorn of Christ. I intend to handle this point in both these, materially and formally: So that the thing we have to handle, is, That all the sufferings, and contempt, and disesteem of Gods people, are the sufferings, and contempt, and disesteem of Christ. So that Gods people may turn the speech of Christ concerning his Father, The reproaches of them that have reproached you, have fallen upon me: But we may say, Lord and blessed Savior, the reproaches of them that have reproached us, are fallen upon you; and mark therefore in Heb. 13:13 the reproaches of Christs people are called the reproach of Christ, Let us go forth unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach: And the sufferings of Gods servants are called the sufferings of Christ. Colloss. 1:24 and fill up that which is behinde of the afflictions of CHIST, they are the afflictions of Christ, and every one must make account to fill them up; not the satisfactory sufferings of Christ, but the sufferings of Christ in his mystical body, in his members: And so every member is to fill up a share in his sufferings. And so Isa. 63:9 In all their afflictions he was afflicted: The sufferings and troubles of Gods people are the sufferings and troubles of Christ, he is sensible of them; and therefore in Acts 9:4 Christ cryes out, Saul, Saul, why persecutest you me? Further, compare two places together in one, Psalm 79. ver. 4, 12. at the 4. verse, says the Text, We are become a reproach to our neighbors; a scorn and derision to those that are round about us: And at the twelfth verse it is, Render unto our neighbors sevenfold into their bosom, their reproach wherewith they have reproached you, O Lord: He goes on in the same argument, and first he calls them the reproach of the Church, and then the reproach of God.

But is it said here the reproach of Christ? It may be asked, Why not the reproach of God the Father, or the reproach of the Holy Ghost?

The reproaches of Gods people are the reproaches of Christ in a special manner; because Christ is the head of the Church, and it is from the fulness of Christ, that they have that grace conveyed which is reproached; and the union they have with God, and with the Spirit, is by Christ; and therefore it is the reproach of Christ here named, according to the several workings of the Father, and Son, and Holy Ghost: so the three persons are reproached by mans sin: There is a reproach unto God as God, and unto Christ as Christ, and unto the Spirit as the Spirit.

There is a reproach unto God as he is Creator, the preserver of the world, and governor of all things: When the work of God, the first Person of the Trinity, is reproached, then he is reproached, Prov. 14:31 He that oppresseth the poor, reproacheth his maker: It is a work of the Father to order things so, as to make one poor, and one rich: And you take an advantage to mock at the poor upon this difference which God has made in the world, when as you should honor the work of God in making any difference between you and others: but in stead of honoring of it, you cast an aspersion upon his work, and despise others, because God has put them in a low condition; you reproach your Creator in this. And when the work of Redemption is despised, when that is opposed, and when the profession of the Gospel has dishonor put upon it, then Christ is reproached: Heb. 6:6 the Apostle says, Those that fall off after they have tasted of the heavenly gift, and the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, they put the Son of God to an open shame. And when enlightning, and drawing, and the quickening and comforting work of the Spirit is reproached and vilified, then the Spirit is reproached, Heb. 10:29 They do despite to the Spirit of grace: So that you see both Father, Son and Holy Ghost, all three are reproached by mans sin; not that the sin of man is able to cast the least stain upon the glory of the blessed God, or make God to be less glorious, no more then a little dust cast up into the air can darken the brightness of the Sun shining in its strength; but it keeps the glory of God from shining upon others, and upon himself, so as he and others shall not see it, and admire it, and adore it as they ought.

If you ask why the reproaches of Gods people are called the reproaches of Christ?

I answer, First, as Chrysostome, because they do suffer the same things that Christ suffers; you shall finde the reproaches of Gods people, and the reproaches of Christ are just alike one another. In Psalm 42. 6, 7, 8. there are three things upon which Christ seems to be reproached, and they are the three special things upon which Christians are reproached: As first the outward means of Christ in the world, I am a worm and no man, so the outward, mean and low condition of Gods people subjects them to reproach. Secondly, Christ bore the world in hand that he trusted in God, and depended upon God, and no outward help; and therefore they said, Let us see whether he will deliver him, being he trusted in him; so the men of the world scorn at Gods people, because they speak so much of God, and trusting in God. Thirdly, they reproached him, because he said, God delighted in him; so because the Saints of God do profess their relations to God, and do expect an especial love of God, therefore the world reproaches them.

Secondly, it is the reproach of Christ, in regard of the near relation, and close union that is between Christ and his people: As the reproach of the Wife is the reproach of the Husband, and the reproach of the Husband is the reproach of the Wife, because of their union, and therefore in 1 Cor. 11. the Apostle calls the woman, the glory of the man: Either in regard that the man may glory in her if she be godly and good, or else because the woman does honor the man, the Wife is to honor her Husband, and to give glory to him; as the people of God are called The glory of God, partly because God does glory in them, and partly because they do give glory to God: so the woman should be such a one as the man may glory in her, and such a one as may give glory to her husband: Now the Church is the glory of Christ, as the wife is the glory of the man; and therefore it is said in 2 Cor. 8:23 speaking of Titus and others which were messengers of the Church, he says, they are the glory of Christ, then certainly their reproaches must be the reproaches of Christ.

Nay, there is a nearer union then this, for this is only by convenant, but there is a union between the head and the members, that is a nearer union; the Church is not only flesh of Christs flesh, and bone of Christs bone, but it is the flesh of Christ, and the bone of Christ, it is the very fulness of the body of Christ, Eph. 1:23 it is a high expression: Yea, and besides this, the Church is called Christ, mystical Christ: 1 Cor. 12:12 For as the body is one, and has many members, & all the members of that one body being many, are one body, so also is Christ; that is, The Church having many members, ought to be joined in union as the body; yea, there is yet anearer union between Christ and his people, the in-being is mutual, Christ is in them, and they are in Christ, John 14:20 You in me, and in you: The arm is in the body, but the body is not in the arm; the branch is in the vine, but the vine is not in the branch; but here as the Saints are in Christ, so Christ is in them: and in regard of this near union between them, their reproaches may well be esteemed the reproaches of Christ.

Thirdly, because they are reproached for the sake of Christ: if a dog be abused for the sake of his master, it is the abuse of his master: much more when Gods own people are abused for the sake of Christ; and therefore we finde that this has been the plea of Gods people, for your sake have we been killed all the day long; it was for Christs sake rather then any evil in themselves. And therefore though they be reproached for their sins, it may come to be the reproach of Christ, namely thus, When as men shall take advantage the rather against them, because they are professors of Religion; and were it not for this reason, they might justly reproach them; yet when as they put in this reason, They could bear well enough with the sin, were it not they were professors of Religion, then the reproaches that they justly might suffer for their sins, do come to be the reproaches of Christ. And further, when in these they will take advantage to reproach the shows of Religion, which in others they cannot bear well enough; as when one that is a Professor expresses devotion in lifting up his eyes, or his hands to Heaven, they will reproach him for making shows of Religion, and presently they are Hypocrites: and yet there are others can make mighty shows, and they are commended.

Again, they are the reproaches of Christ, because they are reproached in the work of Christ: As when David sent messengers to the children of Ammon, to congratulate their King, and they cut off their garments half way, and cut off half of their beards, David presently counted it his reproach; and so when Gods people are in Gods work, and reproached, surely it Christs reproach. So Nehemiah was in Gods work, and he suffered a great deal of reproach; and mark how God is more provoked then Nehemiah, Nehem. 4. compare the third verse with the fifth.

Lastly, it is the Spirit of Christ that is in them that is reproached: As if so be that the skill or influence that comes from a skilful Attificer, that is put into one that has learned, that does as it were but act his spirit, if he shall see him reproached for that work which is done by vertue of that influence which he had of his spirit in him, then he counts himself reproached: so all the gracious works of Gods people are by the influence of the spirit of Christ; and therefore when they are reproached, Christ is reproached: we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit of God, says the Apōstle: this is the reason of all opposition, because of the difference of spirits; now the spirit of God and the Spirit of the world are opposite. But to come to the application of the point.

First, if the reproaches of Gods people be the reproaches of Christ, then certainly Christ is wonderfully reproached in the world; none so reproached as Christ is, because he is not only reproached himself, but all the reproaches that fall upon all his people in the world, not only since Moses time, but from the beginning of the world, they are all the reproaches of Christ, none suffers so much as he: consider we then with ourselves, how we can love this Christ, a reproached Christ? Is Christ notwithstanding all his reproaches dear and precious to us? howsoever he be to the world, yet can your souls say with the Church, He is altogether lovely, as the Apostle Peter says, 1 Pet. 2. 7, 8. He is a rock, and a stone of offense to those that do not believe, but to you precious; and so Christ, though he be a reproached Christ, yet to you he is precious; to a godly and gracious heart how precious is Jesus Christ? There is a notable place concerning the reproaches of Christ, and yet of the high esteem that Gods people have of him, notwithstanding he is reproached, Isa. 52. 14, 15. His visage was so marred more then any mans, and his form more then the sons of men: what then, is there none therefore that shall prize him? yes; at the fifteenth verse, So shall he sprinkle many Nations: the Kings shall shut their mouthes at him, for that which had not been told them shall they see, and that which they had not heard shall they consider; that is, there shall yet come a time when as the Lord shall sprinkle many nations by the work of his Spirit, and draw many Kings, so as they shall shut their mouthes; whereas they contemned him, and despised him, now they shall shut their mouthes in a way of admiration, that that had not been told them which they see: as St. Paul, he knew Christ only after the flesh, but when he came to know him after another manner, he thought otherwise of him: So when God does sprinkle any with his Spirit, that they know Christ, though his visage he marred more then any mans, and he is reproached more then any man, yet they shall prize him, and delight in him, and the more he is reproached, the more they shall delight in him: It is a notable speech of Bernard, By so much the more Christ is vile for me, by so much the more he is dearer to me.