Doctrine: God's Faithful Ministers Are Earnest to Stay His Judgments Against Barren Professors

DOCTRINE. It is the disposition of Gods faithful ministers to be very earnest with him to stay his judgments, when they are ready to break in upon and destroy barren professors.

When they see the tokens of Gods anger appearing, and are apprehensive of the great danger impending; they presently address God, and go to him with greatest importunity, entreating him that he would at least spare them a little give then a little further trial, and see what may be done with them. That God is pleased to discover his displeasure to them, and give them some signal to sense that there is wrath out against such, and really to break forth in some terrible dispensations, sometimes discovering it in its moral causes, and sometimes in the face of his providence, has been already evidenced. And what is it they now do? Do they sit still, and do nothing? Or do they rejoice in it, and seek the furtherance of it? No, but they do all they can to prevent it, and this is one thing, they apply themselves to God by humble and earnest supplication, they turn importunate beggars at the Throne of Grace in their behalf. Instances for this we have several in the word of God, in such as have been the most eminent: How observable is the example of Abraham, in his interceding for Sodom, on supposition that there might be a scattering of godly persons in it? And how does he grow upon God in his pleading (Genesis 18)? How eminent was Moses also upon this account how often are we told of the great provocations that God had taken at Israel? And as often we find Moses upon his face, begging and pleading as for his life, and not letting God alone, forty days at a time did he spend more than once upon this very score. How ready is Aaron to step in with his censer between the living and the dead, when he saw the plague was now begun? How did Joshua fall down and pray hard when Israel fled before their enemies?

How did the prophet Jeremiah pray for a degenerate people near destruction, even till God bid him to pray no more but to let him alone? And these are to characterize such as are in public place among Gods people, and to let us know what spirit they are of. Here then may we inquire,

1. From where it is that this disposition comes to be so active in godly ministers?

2. Wherein it appears acceptable to God, and advantageous to barren souls?

1. From where is it that this disposition comes to be so active in godly ministers?

A. We may come at this in a few steps;

1. There is planted in man by nature a love to mankind. Merely sensible creatures have such an instinct of nature in them, that they stand affected to their own kind. Ravening wolves, and cruel tigers do participate in this: and this had a more peculiar impression upon reasonable creatures, whose understanding has a capacity of reasoning itself into, and stirring up of these affections. And although it be one of the unhappy fruits of mans apostasy, that it has wofully depraved this principle, and made men without natural affection having at least destroyed the gracious impression which was upon this principle, yet there is the root of such an inclination abiding in the hearts of men, and a disposition in them to exert it in a natural, though not in a gracious way.

2. The grace of God, where it comes, restores this principle again to its regular activity. It is the work of sanctifying grace to restore the lapsed nature of man to a capacity of acting according to the image of God which once it had upon it. It sanctifies the understanding, by discovering to it what is the love which we owe one to another, and wherein it ought more peculiarly to exert itself, according to the state and condition of the object of it, and shows them that their souls are more deeply concerned in this than their bodies; that their eternal well-being is more to be sought than their temporal solace. And it sanctifies the will by enabling it to elect accordingly: and this influences the affections making them to desire, long after, and solicitously pursue this design: it turns that love which before was carnal into a holy love.

3. This love makes them exceeding loath that any should perish; and consequently grieved at the apprehension of the danger of it. It is an affection full of compassion; and therefore misery and danger of the object greatly moves it. How much of this was exemplarily found in the man Christ, who wept over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41), and made that bitter moan over it (Matthew 23:37)? And this made Paul to speak with tears in his eyes to his Philippians (Philippians 3:18, 19). Godly men cannot but be deeply concerned to see sinners running to ruin, and ready to drop into destruction; to think that such as are capable of glory, should fall into endless misery; to see the hand of God up, and ready to strike that blow which will cut them off for ever from all hope; fills their souls with deepest commiseration of them, and makes them wish it might be prevented.

4. This loathness and grief of theirs puts them upon studying and endeavoring all they may to prevent it. For that is the very nature and use of this affection; and it is very prevalent in the souls of Gods people. Such an one will now entertain himself with these thoughts: Is there nothing that I may do to save this soul? May I be no ways instrumental of good to him, that so he may not go down to the pit? Are there no endeavors that may be used with or for him, that may, by the blessing of God, prove beneficial to him? He is willing and desirous to do his utmost, and omit nothing that comes within his reach, that may be serviceable to this purpose. This made Paul to be so laborious, if by any means he might save men.

5. This makes them to go to God and plead with him, that he would spare them a little longer. They are not without hope that if they might have a little more time allowed them, they might at length be persuaded to mind the things of their peace? To be sure they know, that if they are once cut down by the hand of Gods vengeance, there will then be no more opportunity for them for ever, that all hopes are then gone, that then the day of grace is done: but while there is life and means, there is hope: and this makes them to pray hard for them, and follow the Throne of Grace in their behalf: and the more their danger is, the greater importunity it urges them to. This made Samuel so restlessly importunate for Saul.

6. Gods faithful ministers are usually more deeply sensible of the miserable condition that such are in, than others are. Every true believer has more or less of this sense; it flows from the grace that is in them: but those gracious souls whose peculiar business lies in the contemplation of the Scriptures, and acquainting of themselves, that so they may acquaint others with the great and awful truths therein contained, must needs have some special impressions of these things made upon their hearts, and this must needs work answerably on their affections. That was it which so engaged Paul he knew the terrors of the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:11). Yes, and God oftentimes gives them more experimental knowledge of themselves and that adds to the affection matter of incitement.

7. The special relation which these bear to such, makes them peculiarly solicitous for them. They are not only related to them as their fellow reasonable creatures, but also as God has commissioned them to bring the Gospel of peace to them, and labor with them for their saving good: they are therefore tender toward them; they are their charge and they are [illegible] them as so many children they have travailing pains for them, that they may be made partakers in saving grace and brought to Christ: thus Paul argues with his Galatians (Galatians 4:19). And who is so much grieved at the children's disaster as the mother, and therefore none will beg harder for them than she.

8. They must needs be exceeding loth that all the labor which they have laid out upon these should thus be lost. Gods servants, that have obtained the grace to be faithful, have been spending themselves in solicitous endeavors after the salvation of all those that are under their watch; they have labored with God and with them; and the joy they have looked for, has been to see them saved. In hope of this they have been cheerful under all; and must they perish at last, and so all be thrown away? This, in this life, is exceeding bitter to them; Paul speaks it with grief (Galatians 4:11), and such a thought puts a peculiar impression upon this affection, and raises them to the more earnestness in their pleadings with God.

9. And they truly design the glory of God in all this. All believers are set for God's glory; his ministers are specially advantaged for the promoting of it: now it is the glory of Gods grace which they are nextly and directly to aim at the furtherance of; for they are a Gospel ministry; and that is then most gloriously advanced, when men are made the monuments of this attribute. When therefore they see such to whom this grace has been offered, now ready to be made a sacrifice to justice for their contempt of it, they, not being hopeless but that grace may still be advanced by them, put in for a little respite to be afforded them: and though love to man excite pity in them, yet love to God, and the honor of his name regulates them, as will be afterwards made evident.

2. Wherein it appears acceptable to God, and advantageous to barren souls, that these are thus earnest with God for them?

A. This will be evident by the consideration of these things;

1. That God has by his Holy Spirit put such desires into his servants. They are the product of his grace in them; and therefore we shall find that such as have been most eminent for holiness, and most acquainted with God, have been most fervently engaged thus: Abraham Gods friend, Moses, who was in the mount with God, Paul, that had been in the third heaven, and seen glorious things there: and that which is the fruit of Gods grace in us must needs be acceptable to him; whether he intends to do the thing or no, yet it pleases him that his servants should request it of him; for that may be our duty to ask, which it is not Gods sovereign pleasure to grant; for the command, which is revealed, and not the decree, which is secret, is the rule in prayer. The prophets therefore interposed most earnestly when God threatened most sharply.

2. God has therefore in the Scripture made it their duty thus to put in and plead, when they see his judgments coming upon his people. When they apprehend that God is angry, and discover him as if he were coming to cut sinners down in his wrath, now God would have these step in: for this reason; when God had threatened a terrible calamity upon his people Israel, we find this to be urged as a precept at such a time (Joel 2:17), and Moses by Gods appointment, sends Aaron with his censer, when the plague is begun. These are some of those that are appointed to stand in the gap, and if when God comes in displeasure, and finds them not there, it fares ill with his people.

3. God has oftentimes a purpose to delay the execution of the sentence; and he honors these his servants to be the instruments in it. God sometimes intends to give peculiar instances of his long-sufferance; and therefore when sinners may be thought ripe for ruin, ready for cutting down, and the sentence is past in the threatening; he will yet give them a farther trial; now when it is so, he is wont to stir up the hearts of his servants to put in, and beg with greatest and undeniable importunity for it, whereupon he grants it to their requests; and it is for their sakes that he does it. Thus we find, that God had certainly destroyed Israel, but that Moses interposed, and stood between him and them, and turned his wrath away (Psalms 106:23), and this shows his approbation.

4. Hence it follows, that they do many times prevail with God. Though sometimes it is come to that, that though Noah, Job, Daniel should pray for them, they should only deliver their own souls; yet it is not always so; if it be possible, such prayers shall prevail, and God not seldom does thus answer them. There is many a sinner's life is saved by the earnest importunity of Gods servants with him, they had died else: God gives their lives to these prayers, to testify what an interest they have in him, and convince sinners themselves of their gracious acceptance with him. The very scope of this part of the parable, is to let us know, that God spares many after they have provoked him to denounce some severe threatenings against them, and to tell us how it comes about that he so does: it is not for any worthiness or merit of theirs, but because they have a deep share in his favor, and he will thus signalize it.

5. By this means the judgment that was ready to cut them down, is deferred. When the ax of divine vengeance was lifted up, and just falling down upon them to give them a deadly blow, these hold God's hands, and keep them from doing execution: and now the sinner is suffered to live a while longer; the mischief which he was falling into is diverted from him; and this is an advantage; every day and hour in which the condemned creature is saved out of the pit, is a rich favor to him (Lamentations 3:22). It is the Lord's mercy that we are not consumed; and the rather because,

6. Thus they have a farther opportunity given them to seek an escape from that destruction, if they have but a heart to make use of it. How many wretched sinners have great reason to say; if I had died at such a time, when I was just at brink of the pit, and had a sentence of death upon me in my own apprehension, I had then certainly perished; I had gone to everlasting burnings; but God has spared me, and given me a longer day of grace. Till the tree is cut down, all hopes concerning it are not utterly lost; but when it is destroyed, and the root is dead, then all hope is gone: and needs must it be a very great privilege for a sinner to have farther day given him, and a price continued in his hand to get wisdom; if he wants a heart to it, it is his own wickedness; that he has the opportunity, is God's indulgence.