BOOK 5. THE MESSAGE.
CHAPTER 5.
5.5.7. Of Joying in Jesus in that Respect.
Of Joying in Jesus in that Respect.
Let us joy in Jesus, as carrying on the great work of our salvation for us during his life. But what is there in Christ's life, or in all the passages of his life to stir up joy? I answer, All his life, and all the passages of his life, if rightly applied, are excellent matter for the stirring up of thy affection: indeed the main of the work is in the application of Christ's life: if ever we rejoice spiritually in Christ, we must bring together the object and the faculty: and this union of the object and the faculty is usually wrought by contemplation, or by confidence, or by fruition. I shall but a while insist on these, that we may come up at last to rejoice in Christ; yea, if it were possible to rejoice, and again rejoice.
1. Let us contemplate on this life of Christ. Let us think of it in our minds, there is a kind of delight in knowing some things speculatively, which we would abhor to know experimentally; and therefore the devil's first temptation was drawn from the knowledge of evil as well as good: he knew that the mind of man would receive content in the understanding of that, which in its own nature had no perfection at all. Now, if there be a delight in the contemplation of evil, how much more in the contemplation of that which is good? And is not the life of Christ, the graces, the virtues, the holy actions, the dear affections of Jesus Christ to us-ward good, and very good? Come then, stir up our memories, let us be settled men! Let us spend our frequent thoughts upon this blessed object: the reason we miss of our joys, is because we are so little in contemplations of our Christ. It is said, "That he pities us in our sorrows, but he delights in us when we delight in him." Certainly he would have us to delight in him; and to that purpose he way-lays our thoughts, that wheresoever we look, we shall still think on him: O my soul, cast thine eyes which way thou wilt, and thou shall hardly look on anything, but Christ Jesus hath taken the name of that very thing upon himself; What, is it day? And dost thou behold the sun? He is called "the Sun of righteousness," Mal. iv. 2. Or is it night? And dost thou behold the stars? He is called a star, Num. xxiv. 17, 19. "There shall come a star out of Jacob, -- Out of Jacob shall he come that shall have dominion." Or, is it morning? And dost thou behold the morning-star? He is called "the bright morning-star," Rev. xxii, 16 . Or is it noon? And dost thou behold clear light all the world over in thy hemisphere? He is called "the light, and that light, that lighteneth every man that cometh into the world," John i. 7, 8, 9. Or to come a little nearer, if thou lookest on the earth, and takest a view of the creatures about thee, seest thou the silly sheep? He is called a sheep, Isa. liii. 7. "As a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth:" Or, seest thou a lamb bleating after the harmless sheep? He is called a lamb, John i. 29. "Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sins of the world." Seest thou a shepherd watching over his flock, by day or night? He is called a shepherd, John x. 14. "I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine." Or seest thou a fountain, rivers, waters? He is called a fountain, Zech. xiii. 1. "In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness." Or seest thou a tree good for food or pleasant to the eye! He is called the tree of life, Prov. iii. 18. And as "the apple tree among the trees of the wood so is my beloved among the sons," Cant. ii. 3. Seest thou a rose, a lily, any fair flower in thy garden? He is called a rose, a lily. Cant. ii. 1. "I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys;" or to come a little nearer yet, art thou within doors? John x. 9. "I am the door, by me if any man enter in he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and shall find pasture." Art thou adorning thyself, and takest a view of thy garments? He is called a garment, Rom. xiii. 14. "Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ." Art thou eating meat, and takest a view of what is on thy table? He is called "bread, the bread of God, true bread from heaven, the bread of life, the living bread which came down from heaven," John vi. 32, 35, 51. Why thus Christ way-lays our thoughts, that wheresoever we look, we should ever think of Christ. -- Now these thoughts of contemplation of Christ are they that bring together the object and the faculty of joy; I cannot think of Christ, or the life of Christ, of Christ preaching, or of Christ preached, but I must rejoice in Christ, as sometimes the apostle said, Phil. i. 18. "Christ is preached whether in pretence or truth, I matter not, but in that he is preached, I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice."
2. Let us consider in Christ, let us upon good grounds hope our share and interest in the life of Christ; O this would strengthen our joy, yea, fill us with joy unspeakable and glorious: where true joy is, there is first, a thinking of the good in our mind; and secondly, an expecting of it in our heart. Hence it is, that whatsoever doth encourage our hope, the same doth enlarge our delight: the apostle joins both these together, Rom. xii. 12. "Rejoice in hope:" hope and joy go both together; if I have but assured hope that Christ's life is mine, I cannot but rejoice therein; on the contrary, if my hope fluctuate, if I am but uncertain, if I look on the influence and benefits of Christ's life as only possibly mine, and no farther, then is my comfort but unstable and weak; sometimes we find Christ compared to a rich storehouse; "In him (saith the apostle) are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge," Col. ii. 3. But, alas! what am I richer for all his treasures, if I have no claim thereto, or interest therein? Or what can I joy in another's riches, when I myself am wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked? Look to this, O my soul, peruse again and again thy grounds of hope as afore laid down; do not slightly run them over, thou canst not be too sure of Christ; thou readest in the gospel this and that passage of thy Jesus, canst thou lay thine hand on every line, and say, This passage is mine, this "sermon was preached, and this miracle was wrought for me, that I might believe, and that in believing I might have life through his name?" O then, how shouldst thou but rejoice? When Zaccheus in the sycamore tree heard but Christ's voice, "Zaccheus, make haste, and come down, for to-day I must abide in thy house," Luke xix. 5, 6. O what haste made Zaccheus to receive Christ? He came down hastily and received him joyfully. This offer of Christ to Zaccheus is thine as well as his, if thy hope be right, "Come down, poor soul, (saith Christ) "this day must I abide in thy house." O then what joy should there be in thy heart when Christ comes in, or when thou feelest Christ come in, John iii. 29. "The friend of the bridegroom rejoiceth greatly, because of the bridegroom's voice;" how much more may the bride herself rejoice?
3. Let us come up to more and more, and more fruition of Christ; all other things work out delight but as they look towards this: now, in this fruition of Christ are contained these things;
(a). First, A propriety unto Christ, for as a sick man doth not feel the joy of a sound man's health, so neither doth a stranger to Christ feel the joy of a believer in Christ: how should he joy in Christ that can make no claim to him in the least degree? But to that we have spoken.
(b). Secondly, A possession of Christ, this exceedingly enlargeth our joy. O how sweet was Christ to the spouse, when she could say. Cant. vi. 3. "I am my well-beloved's, and my beloved is mine, he feedeth among the lilies," q.d. We have taken possession of each other, he is mine through faith, and I am his through love; we are both so knit by an inseparable union, that nothing shall be able to separate us two; he feedeth among the lilies, he refresheth himself and his saints by his union and communion with them: many are taken up with the joy and comfort of outward possessions, but Christ is better than all; in one Christ is comprised every scattered comfort here below, "Christ is mine," (saith the soul) "and all mine."
(c). An accommodation of Christ to the soul, and this is it that completes our joy: it is not bare possession of Christ which bringeth real delight, but an applying of Christ unto that end and purpose for which he was appointed: it is not the having of Christ; but the using of Christ, which makes him beneficial. O the usefulness of Christ to all believing souls! the scriptures are full of this, as appears by all his titles in scripture; he is "our life, our light, our bread, our water, our milk, our wine; his flesh is meat indeed, and his blood is drink indeed." He is our father, our brother, our friend, our husband, our king, our priest, our prophet; he is our justification, our sanctification, our wisdom, our redemption; he is our peace, our mediation, our atonement, our reconciliation, our all in all. Alas! I look on myself, and I see I am nothing, I have nothing without Jesus Christ: here is a temptation, I cannot resist it; here is a corruption, I cannot overcome it; here is a persecution, I cannot deal with it: well, but Christ is mine, I have interest in Christ, and I have possession of Christ, and I find enough in Christ to supply all my wants, he was set up on purpose, to give me grace, and to renew my strength, so that if I make my application to Christ, "I can do all things," Phil. iv. 13. "I can suffer the loss of all things," Phil. iii. 8. I can conquer all things, nay, "in all things be more than a conqueror through him that loves me," Rom. viii. 37. Oh the joy now that this accommodation brings to my soul! I see it is nothing but Christ, and therefore I cannot but rejoice in this Christ, or I must rejoice in nothing at all. Surely "we are the circumcision, which rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh," Phil. iii. 3.
O my soul! where is thy faculty of joy? Come, bring it to this blessed object, the Lord Jesus Christ; if thou knowest not how? First, contemplate on Christ, think on those several passages in his life: those that lived with him, and stood by to see them, it is said of them. That "they all rejoiced for the glorious things that were done by him," Luke xiii. 17. Or if thy heart be so dull and heavy, that this will not raise it up, then look to thy grounds of hope, and confidence in Christ: so long as thou doubtest of him, or of thy interest in him, how shouldst thou rejoice, or be cheerful in thy spirit? The poor man could not speak it without tears, "Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief," Mark ix. 24. A believing unbelief, a wavering, staggering, trembling faith cannot be without some wounds in spirit; O be confident, and this will make thee cheerful: or if yet thou feelest not this affection to stir, aspire to fruition, yea, to more and more fruition of Christ, and union with Christ; and to that purpose, consider thy propriety to Christ, thy possession of Christ, and the accommodation or usefulness of Christ to thy condition, whatsoever it is. What! will not these things move thy spiritual delight? Canst thou not hear Christ say, "All I am is thine, and all I have done is thine, for thy use, and for thy benefit?" And doth not thine heart leap within thee at each word? O my soul, I cannot but check thee for thy deadness: it is said, That when "Christ was at the descent of the mount of Olives, that the whole multitude of disciples began to rejoice, and praise God with a loud voice, for all the mighty works that they had seen," Luke xix, 37. What? A multitude of disciples rejoicing in Christ's acts? And art thou not one amongst the multitude? If thou art a disciple, rejoice thou? surely it concerns thee as much as them, and therefore rejoice; lift up thy voice in harmony with the rest; "rejoice, and again rejoice."