30. Mr. Pledger's Farewell Sermon

30. Mr. Pledger's Farewell Sermon
"I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty (but thou art rich;) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the Synagogue of Satan." - Revelation 2:9-10.
Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer; behold, the Devil shall cast some of you into Prison, that ye may be tried, and ye shall have tribulation ten dayes: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a Crown of life.
In the former Verse you have the Superscription and Description of this Epistle: the Superscription by the mouth and hand of John, to the Angel of the Church of Smyrna (that is) the Ministry of the Gospel, or the College of Presbyters: As the whole Tribe of Levi in Malachy is called the Angel of the Lord: so here, the whole Tribe and Office of the Ministry is called the Angel: Angel is not a term that signifies a single Person, but a name of Office. Then for the Description (These things saith the first and the Last, which was dead and is alive.) He is described by his. Eternity, by his suffering, and by his reviving. I shall not speak of this, nor of the Verses following the Text. I shall speak of the Inscription or Narration of the Epistle in these two Verses, wherein you have,
1. A Commendation.
2. An Admonition, a piece of Heavenly Counsel.
1. You have a Commendation: I know thy works, &c. I like well the pains that thou takest in my service for my Servants sake; I know how thou hast suffered: I take all well, I consider all the reproaches that are vomited out against thee.
2. Then you have the Counsel. 2. Fear none of these things. 2. The Arguments to set it on.
1. 'Tis the Devil that shall trouble you: he is the prime Agent, he that never took a good Cause: Thou hast certainly God for thee, if thou hast the Devil against thee.
2. This Devil shall be checked and restrained.
1. As to the number of them he shall deal withal: [The Devil shall cast some of you into Prison] He aims at all, but he shall come short of many.
2. In respect of the kind of the Affliction [Cast some into Prison] He aims at our Souls, to disturb the peace of them, to cast us into Hell;] but it shall be but into Prison.
3. For the design of this Affliction [Not for destruction, but to try us] It shall not be as Wood in the fire, to be consumed; but as Gold in the sire, to be tried.
4. For the term of duration; it shall not be forever: [But for ten dayes] for a time, a set time, for a short time; perhaps thou shalt lose thy life, but be thou faithful unto the death, and I will give thee a crown of life.
Before I finish, I shall endeavour to shew the whole light of this Text, in these six or seven Propositions.
Proverbs 1. First, Jesus Christ takes notice of all the works, and trouble, and losses that we endure for him. There cannot be a godly word spoken, but the Lord hears it, takes notice of it; not a day of humiliation, not a tear, not a prayer, not a sigh, not a cup of cold water, but the Lord sets it down: Item, at such a time thou didst lose such a thing, hazard such a concernment. Now this knowledge lies in two things:
1. It implies an Approbation.
2. A Recompence: I know what thou doest, what thou sufferest; so as to approve it, and so as to recompence it.
Now then if God takes notice of what we do and suffer for his Name, then either we must say, He hath not good enough, or not time enough to bestow that good upon us, or not faithfulness enough to perform his promise, before we can be moved from his service.
Proverbs 2. Secondly, I observe, Believers in their poor condition, when they have lost all, they are rich: I know thy poverty, but thou art rich. The only wise man is the only rich man, (so saith the Philosopher) but the Believer is the rich man, (so saith the wisdom of God in the Text.) And the riches of a Believer lies in five things.
1. In his interest, he hath a God for his portion: Faith doth unite and implant into the Lord Jesus Christ; so that we are become spiritually rich to the utmost degree of happiness: saith David, the lines are fallen to me in a pleasant place, I have a goodly heritage. All that rich love of God, which is stronger than death itself: a rich Covenant of Grace shines in the Promises as so many Pearls; he will not with hold anything that is good, nor suffer any thing that is evil to fall upon us, that shall not turn to good. How rich are they that are rich in God!
2. Believers must needs be rich in their relations: Our Communion is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ: They are married to Christ, and have an Interest in him, they must certainly contract very honourable Allies, the brother of Jesus Christ, a Member of Christ: she that marries a Prince or King, is a Queen: What title of Honour shall we give to her that is espoused to Jesus Christ?
3. The Believer is honourable in his possessions: To name but two, possession of Grace, possession of Peace: Grace and Peace, there is your riches; so the Lord salutes you in his Word: the least dram of Grace is more than all the World. And this is the character of one that hungers and thirsts after Christ. And then for comforts which are grounded upon grace and the work of grace: for the spring of grace is a spring of joy: In the world you shall have trouble, but in me peace: And, in the midst of my troubled thoughts (saith David) thy comforts delight my Soul.
4. A Believer is rich in regard of his expectation, that Reversion, that blessed hope that is reserved for him. A Believer his character is, to long and look for the appearance of Christ: The Believer is rich in the everlasting Kingdom of glory.
5. A Believer is rich in the things of this life: he can live above these things, he can be content without them; contentations is your riches: you shall want nothing that is good: Why then, have we not enough? And if we have enough, why do we nor see our riches? Because God doth not shake down the Acorns from the Tree of common providence, which he does to the herds of the World, but feeds us with Childrens bread, shall we therefore repine? Let us see our riches even in the things of this life. He that believes on Christ, is in such a condition as can know no want: He that is not in Christ, cannot be rich: He that is in Christ, cannot be poor. Judge not of his condition by what he appears to be outwardly. A Believer is worth as much as the Promises come to, which are his Charter; as much as the Kingdom of Heaven comes to, which is his Reversion.
Prop. 3. Christ takes notice of all the reproaches and blasphemies of his Adversaries: I know the blasphemy of them that say they are Jews and are not, but are of the Synagogue of Satan. Christ counts himself reproached when his Servants and wayes are reproached: The reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me. A Christian doth quarter Arms with Christ: Therefore, all the reproaches of the black mouths they are especially taken notice of by Jesus Christ. There is not a word they can speak, but is presently recorded among the memorandums of Jesus Christ. Repent, if it be possible, that the word in thy tongue, the thought in thy mind may be forgiven; I say, if it be possible, though a malicious Scoffer does seldom return.
Prop. 4. Whatever the Children of God suffer at any time before the Grave, they may suffer still [I know thy works and tribulation (nay, yet the wind is not yet over) in the next verse thou shalt suffer.] After great expenses of bloud and treasure, still more heavy calamities: the water of Tribulation doth rise higher and higher, till the Believer resists unto bloud, striving against sin: you must expect it, you must go with your lives in your hands, resolving upon the greatest trouble, to wade through a deep floud of calamities, not one piece of the Cross excepted.
Prop. 5. Christ usually gives notice to his people in their sufferings; he tells us beforehand. So John 16:7, Matthew 24:9, Acts 9:16. There never did besal any great trial, but the Church of God had notice of it: Abraham had notice of the ruine of Egypt: So the Antichristian trouble must come upon the Church, rise higher and higher, specially in the last days: they are set down exactly in the Book of the Revelations: And the reasons are,
1. That Gods people may not be offended when troubles come, John 16:1. I told you, that you might not be offended. Look for them that you may not be terrified by reason of the unexpectedness of them.
2. That he might convince us that there is nothing befalls us without his privity: he that foresees them, must needs see them; he that forecasts them, must needs have the ordering of them; not a hair of your head falls to the ground without his Council, without his hand.
3. That we might provide for them: know you not the coming of the Son of man? When Christ comes with notable mercies, usually he sends his Harbingers; we must therefore be as Noah: being warned of God, believing his word, he was moved with fear, and built an Ark.
Prop. 6. Whatever troubles come upon the people of God, they have no cause to fear: Fear none of these things thou shalt suffer: be careful for nothing: (it is very comprehensive) there is a fear that we cannot be without, and there is a fear we may not admit: A fear there is of dependence, this furthers our preparation, prayer, renouncing ourselves, flying to the Lord Jesus under his wings: that is a blessed fear of trouble, that makes us to come nearer to God: But then there is a fear of despondencie, Apostasie, a fear of Distraction, so as to be dismayed, discouraged. There is no ground of salvish fear as to God; no ground of a fear of man, of anything that man can do to us: And the Reason is,
1. All our sufferings are ordered by a Father: 'tis the potion that thy Father gives thee to drink: whatever bitter ingredient there is in it, still its of thy Fathers procuring: why, wilt thou suspect it to be poyson, and be afraid of it? no, be encouraged.
2. Fear not, Christ stands by thee in all thy sufferings: The Angel stood by Christ in his Agony to comfort him: but Christ stands by us in our Agony, in our contending for the Faith: Fear not (saith God) O worm Jacob, I will be with thee: He is alwayes with us, though sometimes as to sense 'tis otherwise: nay, if Christ be nearer to us at any time, 'tis when trouble is most near us. (O Lord be not far off, for trouble is near, saith the Psalmist.) That trouble is blessed that engages God to be nearer to us, that engages us to come nearer to God.
3. Fear not: Whatever 'tis that we suffer, there shall be sufficient strength given to bear it, to go through it: God will never lay more upon thee than he will enable thee to bear: and if thy strength be encreased proportionably, it is all one to lift a pound weight, and to lift an hundred pound weight.
4. Fear not any of these sufferings, because none of them shall hurt thee; God hath said, he will stave all evil from thee (no evil shall come nigh thy dwelling) and he that fears the Lord shall not be visited of any evil, Proverbs 19:23. No hurt shall come, nothing shall come to thee amiss (that is, as to thy Soul, and the Soul is the man; there shall be no impairing to thy Soul, to thy best interest; thou shalt lose nothing but that thou canst not keep, nothing that enters into the other world to make up thy happiness; thou shalt lose nothing to do thee good; no loss of communion with God, no loss of Grace, Peace, and Comfort; thy interest shall not be shaken, thy Communion shall not be diminished.
But why do I speak of no hurt? there shall come a great deal of good by these troubles. When God calls thee to suffer, and thou wilt put him off with doing, make it up that way, God loses by it, and thou dost lose that thou dost; but if you will buckle yourself to that service God calls for; active when 'tis active, passive when 'tis passive; this is that piece of godliness that is great gain. Thou wilt either live or die, and shalt gain both wayes; if thou livest, thy Graces shall be better, the Spirit of God shall be upon thee; if thou die, thy Glory, which is weighty, shall be double; the weightier the Cross, the weightier the Crown: be content to go as Christ did, from the Cross to the Crown. Let us strive against our carnal Lusts, those sew things that are ready to choak our faith, disparage God, and cut the sinews of our endeavours to any service God calls us to.
1. Consider our troubles are like to be great: here is the Symptom of Gods displeasure upon us, here is the pouring out of such a providence among us, as is usually attended with destructive Judgments. Sodoms calamity was coming; when one Lot was discharged: Germany's calamities was coming, when one Luther was taken away; Lord then what woe is this, to sweep away so many faithful, painful Labourers at once! but it is our duty to suffer patiently, and not complain.
2. As our troubles must be great, so many will fear, and in fearing faint; we see it come to pass, and you will find it more and more: There are those that run with the Foot-men, that will not keep pace with the Horse-men, that may be left behind, and be trod under foot: our troubles are likely to rise according to all we can learn from Scripture and Providence, and very many there be that will shrink.
3. Consider it is a very difficult thing to stand stedfast in a day of evil; you cannot name any of God's Children, but when they have indeed come to it, their carnal sears have been working so, as their feet have almost slipt, they have been almost gone, but that for the promise of God, that he would ••y no more upon them than he would enable them to bear.
O but you will say, what will become of the publick interest, of the name and Church of God? and what shall become of my private interest?
I answer, you have no ground of fear (according to Scripture) in either of these respects.
First, as to the publick Name of God, the interest of his Church, of his truth, of righteousness, or of a real Reformation, the interest of our prayers and hopes, be not afraid.
1. God bears a dear respect unto his People: they are represented in Scripture by all names that may import dearness and nearness unto him: the interest of his glory is bound up in his people: he calls Israel his Glory: We know the interest of men is that which moves the world: but the interest of God, of his Glory, no doubt will be the ground of safety and security unto us, even till God takes us to Heaven. For the interest of Gods Justice God made Hell; and for the interest of his mercy and grace, he gave Jesus Christ to die, to take effect here among the children of men; Do you think God will forget his interest?
2. Remember, Gods ways are in the deep: you cannot tell what God is doing; when you think thoughts of destruction and confusion, my thoughts towards you, saith God, are thoughts of peace: And truly God he does not save a Soul, nor does not promote the salvation of his Church in any eminent degree but it is in a way that is cross and contrary to the sense and expectation of flesh and blood: insomuch you know the darkness of our condition has been the entrance upon deliverance; as just before the day dawns, it is the darkest of the night; when God looked and there was none to help them, says he, My arm brought salvation.
Thus it was with you that are effectually called: you have received the sentence of death; the entrance upon your deliverance, is the darkest time of your condition.
3. God can do great things, Joel 2. Fear not, thy God, O Sion, can do great things. 'Tis a disparagement that we offer to God, we ascribe more to the Creature than we do to God, when we give way to carnal fear; fear not what man can do, because of the power of God which is his shield and buckler; Is anything too hard, too heavy for God? And when God does great things, he usually goes on to do greater; though he may seem to suffer his work to be thrown back to confusion, and his people may be ready to say, we thought he had redeemed Israel, that degree of Reformation shall not be lost. You know in Luthers time, take any special degree of Reformation in the Church, and it seemed to be opposed by the gates of Hell: when it was brought upon the stage to any hopeful degree, when it was taken as it were utterly out of sight for a while: but it was never lost: thus God is but making way for his own glory to appear in these great works.
O, but you will say, What shall become of my particular? It is enough God hath promised that we shall not want anything that is truly good, and that nothing that is evil shall fall upon us, and lye upon us: though we do not see deliverance, it shall be: whatsoever our sad thoughts and tremblings of heart may be, yet give God the glory of his Word: Take these few directions:
1. Strive to strengthen thy Faith. Faith is that which lays hold on Christ, and Christ is your strength: therefore Faith is said to do that which Christ doth: let every day drive thee to a renewed Act of Faith: Take heed, be not shaken in the Faith of the Cause, be not shaken in the Faith of Christ (fides causae, fides Christi) Be not shaken upon the Cause, which upon utmost examination we find to be according to the Word, hold that: Heaven and Earth shall pass away, but not one jot and tittle of this Cause. And then do not shake in the faith of Christ, that is, in your laying hold in your applying your selves to him, in your resting and settling upon him; beg of God to strengthen your Faith.
2. Get more Self-denial: we must forsake all, we must not accept anything. A man would part with his life, as easily as with a pin off his sleeve, if he had but some considerable growth in Self-denial.
3. Get a great deal of love towards that Christ that loved us with love stronger than death: get love of that Christ that may be stronger than life. Let nothing in the world be of any consideration with you, so as Christ be magnified in your bodies: love will breed courage, and cast out fear: slavish fear before God, carnal fear before me.
4. Get a true insight in, an account of suffering and troubles whence they are: they issue from the same love with redemption of your souls from Hell, and your glorification: God doth everything in pursuance of the purpose of his love: he doth everything according to the platform and pattern of his thoughts towards us from eternity. Consider what troubles are, and to what end, not to destroy, but to try: to wean from the world, to fit for heaven.
5. Get an insight into the vanity of the Creature: you reckon the Creature some great matter, and that is the reason of your love, and of your fear.
6. Get the fear of God, that may over-rule other fears: Fear not him that can but kill the body, but fear him that is able to cast Body and Soul into Hell-fire.
7. Keep a clear conscience void of offence towards God, and towards men: by a heart-abasing confession of what is past, and the application of the blood of Christ; and by mortification and watchfulness therein, keep your selves from evil for the time to come.
8. Get a better assurance of eternal life; a glimpse and sight of this would make a man run through the very flames of hell. How comfortable was Stephen, when a shower of stones was about his ears, to see Jesus standing at the right hand of God! I wonder how they dare to venture their life, that have no ground of a better life: but for those that have a well-grounded hope of the mercy of God, they say, we reckon these light afflictions, which are but for a moment, to work for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. Fear not any of these things which you shall suffer.
Prop. 7. Christ does limit Satan, he hath him in a string, him and all his instruments: (The Devil shall cast some of you into prison, &c.) Every word hath its weight: who shall do it? the Devil: What shall he do? cast you into prison. How far! some of you: How long? ten dayes: For what use? that you may be tryed. Christ as he hath Satan in a chain of providence, so he hath a chain of Restraint; it is Christ that sets a circle about him, he cannot cause a hair of thy head to fall: he is in the hand of Christ; they are as truly under him and his hand, as they are against him: If God let alone his Enemies, what shall they not do? If God let alone his People, what shall they do?
2. God has a special Providence about the things of his Church by way of Eminency, by way of Premission, and ordination.
3. You will not deny but there's power enough in God to destroy all that are against him, and to limit; and all shall make to the praise of God, and to his peoples good.
4. The Lord is exceeding merciful; he cannot hold when the Enemy comes to insult, to blaspheme, and revile: Now will I arise, saith God, and set him at liberty from him that puffeth at him: there is not only a judging of their Enemies hereafter, but a judging of them here: the world shall say, Verily there is a God that rewardeth righteousness, verily there is a God that judgeth the earth.
5. God hath a special design in hand: therefore just so far as he will carry on the design God hath towards his people (which is always a design of Faithfulness) just so far shall the enemy go, Isaiah 10. The Enemy means not so, he means to cut off people, not a few; but Gods end was otherwise, and he will over-rule them: this is the comfort, there is a set time, there is an end.
There is a difference between the afflicting of God's people, and judging their Enemies: in the intention, and extension: one is for ruine, the other in proportion: one is a light affliction, the other a load. And then for extension, one is forever, the other, is for a time, for ten dayes. Then our affliction shall have an end, I and a comfortable end, the end of our sins, and the end of our sorrows? God will restore comforts to his mourners; let us be mourners during the time of mourning: God will quickly cloath us with garments of praise: there shall be an end of sufferings, never an end of our joy and glory.
Prop. 8. To conclude in a word, Be faithful to the death: Be faithful in your Promises, in your vows and purposes, your covenants of obedience and reformation; persist in the doctrine of the Gospel, and the worship of the Gospel, and the Ministry of the Gospel, and Offices Christ hath fixt in his Church: be faithful by your most earnest, zealous desires before the Lord: Be faithful to the death: he will never let you see death till all your fears are conquered: he can presently take them away; he will certainly be present with you in all your troubles. And remember, God in tender mercy and faithfulness, for the present accepts thy unfeigned purpose to be constant and faithful to him to the death.