Part 17

5. But let us take care to afflict our souls as well as our bodies. Let every season either of public or private fasting, be a season of exercising all those holy affections, which are implied in a broken and contrite heart. Let it be a season of devout mourning, of godly sorrow for sin: such a sorrow as that of the _Corinthians_, concerning which the apostle saith, _I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance. For ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing. For godly sorrow_ (ἡ κατὰ Θεὸν λύπη· the sorrow which is according to God, which is a precious gift of his Spirit, lifting the soul to God from whom it flows) _worketh repentance to salvation, not to be repented of_. Yea, and let our sorrowing after a godly sort, work in us the same inward and outward repentance; the same entire change of heart, renewed after the image of God, in righteousness and true holiness; and the same change of life, till we are holy as he is holy in all manner of conversation. Let it work in us the same _carefulness_, to be found in him, without spot and blameless; the same _clearing of ourselves_, by our lives rather than words, by our abstaining from all appearance of evil; the same _indignation_, vehement abhorrence of every sin; the same _fear_ of our own deceitful hearts; the same _desire_ to be in all things conformed to the holy and acceptable will of God; the same _zeal_ for whatever may be a means of his glory, and of our growth in the knowledge of our Lord _Jesus Christ_: and the same _revenge_ against _Satan_ and all his works, against all filthiness both of flesh and spirit, _2 Cor. vii. 9_, &c.

6. And with fasting let us always join fervent prayer, pouring out our whole souls before God, confessing our sins with all their aggravations, humbling ourselves under his mighty hand, laying open before him all our wants, all our guiltiness and helplessness. This is a season for enlarging our prayers, both in behalf of ourselves and of our brethren. Let us now bewail the sins of our people, and cry aloud for the city of our God: that the Lord may build up _Zion_, and cause his face to shine on her desolations. Thus we may observe the men of God in ancient times always joined prayer and fasting together. Thus the apostles in all the instances cited above: and thus our Lord joins them in the discourse before us.

7. It remains only, in order to our observing such a fast, as is acceptable to the Lord, that we add alms thereto; works of mercy, after our power, both to the bodies and souls of men. _With such sacrifices_ also God _is well-pleased_. Thus the angel declares to _Cornelius_, fasting and [114]praying in his house, _Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before_ God. And this God himself expresly and largely declares, [115]_Is not this the fast that I have chosen, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke? Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? When thou seest the naked, that thou cover him, and that thou hide not thyself from thy own flesh? Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee, the glory of the_ Lord _shall be thy rare-ward. Then shalt thou call, and the_ Lord _shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, here I am.――If_ (when thou fastest) _ thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul: then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noon-day. And the_ Lord _shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make thy bones fat: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring whose waters fail not_.

SERMON XXVIII.

UPON OUR LORD’S SERMON ON THE MOUNT. DISCOURSE VIII. MATT. vi. 19, 20, 21, 22, 23.

_Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:

But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:

For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.

But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is within thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!_

1. FROM those which are commonly termed _religious actions_, and which are real branches of true religion, where they spring from a pure and holy intention, and are performed in a manner suitable thereto, our Lord proceeds to the actions of _common life_, and shews that the same purity of intention, is as indispensably required in our ordinary business, as in giving alms, or fasting, or prayer.

And without question the same purity of intention, “which makes our alms and devotions acceptable, must also make our labour or employment, a proper offering to God. If a man pursues his business, that he may raise himself to a state of figure and riches in the world, he is no longer serving God in his employment, and has no more title to a reward from God, than he who gives alms that he may be _seen_, or prays that he may be _heard_ of men. For vain and earthly designs are no more allowable in our employments, than in our alms and devotions. They are not only evil when they mix with our good works,” with our religious actions, “but they have the same evil nature when they enter into the common business of our employments. If it were allowable to pursue them in our worldly employments, it would be allowable to pursue them in our devotions. But as our alms and devotions are not an acceptable service, but when they proceed from a pure intention, so our common employment cannot be reckoned a service to him, but when it is performed with the same piety of heart.”

2. This our blessed Lord declares in the liveliest manner, in those strong and comprehensive words which he explains, inforces and inlarges upon, throughout this whole chapter. _The light of the body is the eye. If therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light: but if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness._ The eye is the intention: what the eye is to the body, the intention is to the soul. As the one guides all the motions of the body, so does the other those of the soul. This eye of the soul is then said to be _single_, when it looks at one thing only; when we have no other design, but to _know_ God, _and_ Jesus Christ _whom he hath sent_: to know him with suitable affections, loving him as he hath loved us: to please God in all things: to serve God (as we love him) with all our heart and mind and soul and strength: and to enjoy God in all and above all things, in time and in eternity.

3. _If thine eye be_ thus _single_, thus fixed on God, _thy whole body shall be full of light. Thy whole body_,――All that is guided by the intention, as the body is by the eye. All thou art: all thou dost: thy desires, tempers, affections; thy thoughts and words and actions. The whole of these _shall be full of light_: full of true, divine knowledge. This is the first thing we may here understand by light. _In his light thou shalt see light. He which_ of old _commanded light to shine out of darkness, shall shine in thy heart_. He shall enlighten the eyes of thy understanding, with the knowledge of the glory of God. His Spirit shall reveal unto thee the deep things of God. The inspiration of the Holy One shall give thee understanding, and cause thee to know wisdom secretly. Yea, _the anointing_ which thou receivest of him, _shall abide in thee and teach thee of all things_.

How does experience confirm this? Even after God hath opened the eyes of our understanding, if we seek or desire any thing else than God, how soon is our foolish heart darkened? Then clouds again rest upon our souls. Doubts and fears again overwhelm us. We are tossed to and fro, and know not what to do, or which is the path wherein we should go. But when we desire and seek nothing but God, clouds and doubts vanish away. We _who were sometime darkness, are now light in the_ Lord. The night now shineth as the day; and we find, _the path of the upright is light_. God sheweth us the path wherein we should go, and _maketh plain the way before our face_.

4. The second thing which we may here understand by _light_, is holiness. While thou seeketh God in all things, thou shalt find him in all, the fountain of all holiness, continually filling thee with his own likeness, with justice, mercy and truth. While thou lookest unto _Jesus_ and him alone, thou shalt be filled with the mind that was in him. Thy soul shall be renewed day by day, after the image of him that created it. If the eye of thy mind be not removed from him, if thou endurest _seeing him that is invisible_, and seeking nothing else in heaven or earth, then as thou beholdest the glory of the Lord, _thou shalt be transformed into the same image, from glory to glory, by the Spirit of the_ Lord.

And it is also matter of daily experience, that _by grace we are_ thus _saved thro’ faith_. It is by faith that the eye of the mind is opened, to see the light of the glorious love of God. And as long as it is steadily fixed thereon, on God in _Christ_, reconciling the world unto himself, we are more and more filled with the love of God and man, with meekness, gentleness, long-suffering; with all the fruits of holiness, which are thro’ _Christ Jesus_, to the glory of God the Father.

5. This light which fills him who has a single eye, implies, thirdly, happiness as well as holiness. Surely _light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is to see the sun_. But how much more to see the Sun of Righteousness, continually shining upon the soul? And if there be any consolation in _Christ_, if any comfort of love, if any peace that passeth all understanding, if any rejoicing in hope of the glory of God, they all belong to him whose eye is single. Thus is his _whole body full of light_. He walketh in the light as God is in the light, rejoicing evermore, praying without ceasing, and in every thing giving thanks, _enjoying_ whatever is the will of God concerning him in _Christ Jesus_.

6. _But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If thine eye be evil_: We see there is no medium between a single and an evil eye. If the eye be not single, then it is evil. If the intention, in whatever we do, be not singly to God, if we seek any thing else, then our _mind and conscience are defiled_.

Our eye therefore is evil, if in any thing we do, we aim at any other end than God; if we have any view, but to know and to love God, to please and serve him in all things: if we have any other design than to enjoy God, to be happy in him both now and for ever.

7. If thine eye be not singly fixt on God, _thy whole body shall be full of darkness_. The veil shall still remain on thy heart. Thy mind shall be more and more blinded, by _the God of this world, lest the light of the glorious gospel of_ Christ _should shine upon thee_. Thou wilt be full of ignorance and error touching the things of God, not being able to receive or discern them. And even when thou hast some desire to serve God, thou wilt be full of uncertainty as to the manner of serving him; finding doubts and difficulties on every side, and not seeing any way to escape.

Yea, if thine eye be not single, if thou seek any of the things of earth, thou shalt be full of ungodliness and unrighteousness: thy desires, tempers, affections, being all out of course, being all dark, and vile, and vain. And thy conversation will be evil, as well as thy heart, not _seasoned with salt_, or _meet to minister grace unto the hearers_, but idle, unprofitable, corrupt, grievous to the Holy Spirit of God.

8. *Both _destruction and unhappiness are in thy ways_; for _the way of peace hast_ thou _not known_. There is no peace, no settled, solid peace, for them that know not God. There is no true, nor lasting content for any, who do not seek him with their whole heart. While thou aimest at any of the things that perish, _all that cometh is vanity_. Yea, not only vanity, but _vexation of spirit_, and that both in the pursuit and the enjoyment also. Thou walkest indeed in a vain shadow, and disquietest thyself in vain. Thou walkest in darkness that may be felt. _Sleep on_; but thou canst not _take thy rest_. The dreams of life can give pain, and that thou knowest: but ease they cannot give. There is no rest, in this world or the world to come, but only in God the center of spirits.

_If the light which is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!_ If the intention which ought to enlighten the whole soul, to fill it with knowledge, and love, and peace, and which, in fact, does so as long as it is single, as long as it aims at God alone: if this be darkness; if it aim at any thing beside God, and consequently cover the soul with darkness instead of light, with ignorance and error, with sin and misery: O how great is that darkness! It is the very smoke which ascends out of the bottomless pit! It is the essential night, which reigns in the lowest deep, in the land of the shadow of death.

9. Therefore _lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal_. If you do, it is plain your eye is evil: it is not singly fixed on God.

*With regard to most of the commandments of God, whether relating to the heart or life, the Heathens of _Afric_ or _America_ stand much on a level, with those that are called Christians. The Christians observe them (a few only being excepted) very near as much as the Heathens. For instance: the generality of the natives of _England_, commonly called Christians, are as sober and as temperate, as the generality of the Heathens, near the _Cape_ of _Good Hope_. And so the _Dutch_ or _French_ Christians, are as humble and as chaste, as the _Choctaw_ or _Cherokee-Indians_. It is not easy to say, when we compare the bulk of the nations in _Europe_ with those in _America_, whether the superiority lies on the one side or the other. At least, the _American_ has not much the advantage. But we cannot affirm this, with regard to the command now before us. Here the Heathen has far the pre-eminence. He desires and seeks nothing more than plain food to eat, and plain raiment to put on. And he seeks this only from day to day. He reserves, he lays up nothing; unless it be, as much corn at one season of the year, as he will need before that season returns. This command, therefore, the Heathens, though they know it not, do constantly and punctually observe. They _lay up for themselves no treasures upon earth_: no stores of purple or fine linen, of gold or silver, which either _moth or rust may corrupt_, or _thieves break through and steal_. But how do the Christians observe, what they profess to receive as a command of the most high God? Not at all; not in any degree; no more than if no such command had ever been given to man. Even the _good Christians_, as they are accounted by others as well as themselves, pay no manner of regard thereto. It might as well be still hid in its original _Greek_, for any notice they take of it. In what Christian city do you find one man of five hundred, who makes the least scruple, of laying up just as much treasure as he can? Of increasing his goods just as far as he is able? There are indeed those who would not do this unjustly: there are many who will neither rob nor steal; and some, who will not defraud their neighbour; nay, who will not gain, either by his ignorance or necessity. But this is quite another point. Even these do not scruple the thing, but the manner of it. They do not scruple the _laying up treasures upon earth_; but the laying them up by dishonesty. They do not start at disobeying _Christ_, but at a breach of Heathen morality. So that even these honest men do no more obey this command, than a highwayman or a house-breaker. Nay, they never designed to obey it. From their youth up, it never entered into their thoughts. They were bred up by their Christian parents, masters and friends, without any instruction at all concerning it: unless it were this, to break it as soon, and as much as they could, and to continue breaking it to their live’s end.

10. *There is no one instance of spiritual infatuation in the world, which is more amazing than this. Most of these very men read, or hear the bible read, many of them every Lord’s day. They have read or heard these words an hundred times, and yet never suspect that they are themselves condemned thereby, any more than by those which forbid parents to offer up their sons or daughters unto _Moloch_.

O that God would speak to these miserable self-deceivers, with his own voice, his mighty voice! That they may at last awake out of the snare of the devil, and the scales may fall from their eyes!

11. Do you ask, what it is to lay _up treasures on earth_? It will be needful to examine this thoroughly. And let us, first, observe, what is not forbidden in this command, that we may then clearly discern, what is.

We are not forbidden in this command, first, to _provide things honest in the sight of all men_, to provide wherewith we may _render unto all their due_, whatsoever they can justly demand of us. So far from it, that we are taught of God, to _owe no man any thing_. We ought therefore to use all diligence in our calling, in order to owe no man any thing: this being no other than a plain law of common justice, which our Lord came _not to destroy but to fulfil_.

Neither, secondly, does he here forbid the providing for ourselves, such things as are needful for the body: a sufficiency of plain, wholesome food to eat, and clean raiment to put on. Yea, it is our duty, so far as God puts it into our power, to provide these things also; to the end we may _eat our own bread_, and be _burdensome to no man_.

Nor yet are we forbidden, thirdly, to provide for our children, and for those of our own household. This also it is our duty to do, even upon principles of Heathen morality. Every man ought to provide the plain necessaries of life, for his own wife and children: and to put them into a capacity of providing these for themselves, when he is gone hence and is no more seen. I say, of providing _these_, the plain necessaries of life, not delicacies, not superfluities: and that by their _diligent labour_; for it is no man’s duty to furnish them any more than himself, with the means either of luxury or idleness. But if any man provide not thus far for his own children, (as well as for _the widows of his own house_; of whom primarily St. _Paul_ is speaking, in those well known words to _Timothy_): _he hath_ practically _denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel_, or Heathen.

Lastly, We are not forbidden in these words, to lay up from time to time, what is needful for the carrying on our worldly business, in such a measure and degree, as is sufficient to answer the foregoing purposes: in such a measure, as first, to owe no man any thing; secondly, to procure for ourselves the necessaries of life; and thirdly, to furnish those of our own house with them while we live, and with the means of procuring them when we are gone to God.

12. *We may now clearly discern (unless we are unwilling to discern it) what that is which is forbidden here. It is, the designedly procuring more of this world’s goods, than will answer the foregoing purposes: the labouring after a larger measure of worldly substance, a larger increase of gold and silver; the laying up any more than these ends require, is what is here expresly and absolutely forbidden. If the words have any meaning at all, it must be this: for they are capable of no other. Consequently, whoever he is, that owing no man any thing, and having food and raiment for himself and his houshold, together with a sufficiency to carry on his worldly business, so far as answers these reasonable purposes: whosoever, I say, being already in these circumstances, seeks a still larger portion on earth, he lives in an open, habitual denial of the Lord that bought him. He hath practically _denied the faith, and is worse than an_ African _or_ American _infidel_.

13. *Hear ye this all ye that dwell in the world, and love the world wherein ye dwell. Ye may be _highly esteemed of men_; but ye are _an abomination in the sight of God_. How long shall your souls cleave to the dust? How long will ye load yourselves with thick clay? When will ye awake and see, that the open, speculative Heathens, are nearer the kingdom of heaven than you? When will ye be persuaded to chuse the better part; that which cannot be taken away from you? When will ye seek only to _lay up treasures in heaven_, renouncing, dreading, abhorring all other? If you aim at _laying up treasures on earth_, you are not _barely_ losing your time, and spending your strength for that which is not bread: for what is the fruit, if you succeed? You have murdered your own soul. You have extinguished the last spark of spiritual life therein. Now indeed, in the midst of life you are in death. You are a living man, but a dead Christian. _For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also._ Your heart is sunk into the dust: your soul cleaveth to the ground. Your affections are set, not on things above, but on things of the earth; on poor husks that may poison, but cannot satisfy an everlasting spirit, made for God. Your love, your joy, your desire are all placed on the things which perish in the using. You have thrown away the treasure in heaven: God and _Christ_ are lost. You have gained riches and hell-fire.

14. O _how hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God_! When our Lord’s disciples were astonished at his speaking thus, he was so far from retracting it, that he repeated the same important truth, in stronger terms than before. _It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God._ *How hard is it for them whose every word is applauded, not to be wise in their own eyes! How hard, for them not to think themselves better than the poor, base, uneducated herd of men! How hard, not to seek happiness in their riches, or in things dependent upon them; in gratifying the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eye, or the pride of life! O ye rich, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?――Only with God all things are possible.

15. *And even if you do not succeed, what is the fruit of your _endeavouring_ to lay up treasures on earth? _They that will be rich_ (αἱ βουλόμενοι πλουτεῖν, they that desire, that endeavour after it, whether they succeed or no) _fall into a temptation and a snare_, a gin, a trap of the devil, _and into many foolish and hurtful lusts_; ἐπὶ θυμίας ἀνοήτους, desires with which reason hath nothing to do; such as properly belong, not to rational and immortal beings, but only to the brute-beasts, which have no understanding: _which drown men in destruction and perdition_, in present and eternal misery. Let us but open our eyes, and we may daily see the melancholy proofs of this: men, who desiring, resolving to be rich, _coveting after money, the root of all evil, have_ already _pierced themselves through with many sorrows_, and anticipated the hell to which they are going.