The Lesson: "in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content", and the Proposition: A gracious spirit is a contented spirit
V THE RESOLVING OF SOME QUESTIONS
May not a Christian feel his condition, and yet be contented?
May not a Christian tell God his trouble, and yet be contented?
What is properly that contentment doth exclude?
VI SHEWING THE NATURE OF CONTENTMENT
It is a divine thing
It is an intrinsical thing
It is an habitual thing
VII REASONS PRESSING TO HOLY CONTENTMENT
God's precept
God's promise
VIII USE I. SHEWING HOW A CHRISTIAN MAY MAKE HIS LIFE COMFORTABLE
IX USE II. A CHECK TO THE DISCONTENTED CHRISTIAN
X USE III. A SUASIVE TO CONTENTMENT
Replies to apologies which discontent makes for itself:
I have lost a child:
It was my only child
I have a great part of my estate melted away
It is sad with me in my relations:
My child is in rebellion
My husband takes ill courses
My friends have dealt very unkindly with me
I am under great reproaches
I have not esteem from men
I meet with great sufferings for the sake of the truth
The wicked prosper
The evils of the times:
The times are full of heresy
The impiety of the times
The lowness of my parts and gifts
The troubles of the church
My sins disquiet and discontent me
XI DIVINE MOTIVES TO CONTENTMENT
The excellency of contentment
A Christian hath that which may make him content
Be content lest we confute our own prayers
God hath his end, and Satan misseth of his end
The Christian gains a victory over himself
All God's providences shall do a believer good
The evil of discontent
The competency a man hath
The shortness of life
The nature of a prosperous condition
The example of those eminent for contentment
Trouble here is all the trouble a believer shall have
Competency without contentment is a great judgement
XII THREE THINGS INSERTED BY WAY OF CAUTION
Be not content in a state of sin
Be not content in a condition wherein God is dishonoured
Be not content with a little grace
XIII USE IV. SHOWING HOW A CHRISTIAN MAY KNOW IF HE HATH LEARNED THIS DIVINE ART
XIV USE V. CONTAINING A CHRISTIAN DIRECTORY, OR RULES ABOUT CONTENTMENT
Advance faith
Labour for assurance
Get an humble spirit
Keep a clear conscience
Learn to deny yourselves
Get much of heaven into your heart
Look not so much on the dark side, as on the light
Consider in what posture we stand here in the world
Let not your hope depend upon these outward things
Let us often compare our condition
Bring your mind to your condition
Study the vanity of the creature
Get fancy regulated
Consider how little will satisfy nature
Believe the present condition is best for us
Do not too much indulge the flesh
Meditate much on the glory which shall be revealed
Be much in prayer
XV USE VI. OF CONSOLATION TO THE CONTENTED CHRISTIAN
CHAPTER I
The Introduction to the Text.
These words are brought in by way of prolepsis to anticipate and
prevent an objection. The apostle had, in the former verse, laid down
many grave and heavenly exhortations: among the rest, "to be careful
for nothing." Not to exclude, 1. A prudential care; for, he that
provideth not for his own house, "hath denied the faith, and is worse
than an infidel." (1 Ti. 5. 8) Nor, 2. a religious care; for we must
give all "diligence to make our calling and election sure." (2 Pe. 1.
10) But, 3. to exclude all anxious care about the issues and events of
things; "take no thought for your life, what you shall eat." (Mat. 6.
25) And in this sense it should be a Christian's care not to be
careful. The word careful in the Greek comes from the primitive, that
signifies "to cut the heart in pieces," a soul-dividing care; take heed
of this. We are bid to "commit our way unto the Lord;" (Ps. 37. 5) the
Hebrew word is, "roll thy way upon the Lord." It is our work to cast
away care; (1 Pe 5. 7) and it is God's work to take care.
By our immoderacy we take his work out of his hand. Care, when it is eccentric, either distrustful or distracting, is very dishonourable to God; it takes away his providence, as if he sat in heaven and minded not what became of things here below; like a man that makes a clock, and then leaves it to go for itself. Immoderate care takes the heart off from better things; and usually while we are thinking how we shall do to live, we forget how to die. Care is a spiritual canker that doth waste and dispirit; we may sooner by our care add a furlong to our grief than a cubit to our comfort. God doth threaten it as a curse, "they shall eat their bread with carefulness." (Ez. 12. 1) Better fast than eat of that bread. "Be careful for nothing."
Now, lest any one should say, yea, Paul thou preachest that to us which thou hast scarce learned thyself; hast thou learned not to be careful? the apostle seemed tacitly to answer that, in the words of the text; "I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content:" a speech worthy to be engraven upon our hearts, and to be written in letters of gold upon the crowns and diadems of princes.
The text doth branch itself into these two general parts. I. The scholar, Paul; "I have learned." II. The lesson; "in every state to be content."
CHAPTER II
The First Branch of the Text, the Scholar, with the First Proposition.
I begin with the first: The scholar, and his proficiency; "I have learned." Out of which I shall by the bye, observe two things by way of paraphrase. 1. The apostle doth not say, I have heard, that in every estate I should be content: but, I have learned. Whence our first doctrine, that it is not enough for Christians to hear their duty, but they must learn their duty. It is one thing to hear and another thing to learn; as it is one thing to eat and another thing to concoct. St Paul was a practitioner. Christians hear much, but it is to be feared, learn little. There were four sorts of grounds in the parable, (Lu. 8. 5) and but one good ground: an emblem of this truth, many hearers, but few learners.
There are two things which keep us from learning. 1. Slighting what we hear. Christ is the pearl of price; when we disesteem this pearl, we shall never learn either its value, or its virtue. The gospel is a rare mystery; in one place, (Ac. 20. 24) it is called "the gospel of grace;" in another, (1 Cor. 4. 4) "the gospel of glory;" because in it, as in a transparent glass, the glory of God is resplendent. But he that hath learned to contemn this mystery, will hardly ever learn to obey it; he that looks upon the things of heaven as things by the bye, and perhaps the driving of a trade, or carrying on some politic design to be of greater importance, this man is in the high road to damnation, and will hardly ever learn the things of his peace. Who will learn that which he thinks is scarce worth learning? 2. Forgetting what we hear. If a scholar have his rules laid before him, and he forgets them as fast as he reads them, he will never learn. (Ja. 1. 25) Aristotle calls the memory the scribe of the soul; and Bernard calls it the stomach of the soul, because it hath a retentive faculty, and turns heavenly food into blood and spirits; we have great memories in other things, we remember that which is vain. Cyrus could remember the name of every soldier in his huge army. We remember injuries: this is to fill a precious cabinet with dung; but as Hierom saith, how soon do we forget the sacred truths of God? We are apt to forget three things: our faults, our friends, our instructions. Many Christians are like sieves; put a sieve into the water, and it is full; but take it forth of the water, and all runs out: so, while they are hearing a sermon, they remember something: but like the sieve out of the water, as soon as they are gone out of the church, all is forgotten. "Let these sayings, (saith Christ) sink down into your ears;" (Lu. 9. 44) in the original it is, "put these sayings into your ears," as a man that would hide the jewel from being stolen, locks it up safe in his chest. Let them sink: the word must not fall only as dew that wets the leaf, but as rain which soaks to the root of the tree, and makes it fructify. O, how often doth Satan, that fowl of the air, pick up the good seed that is sown!
USE. Let me put you upon a serious trial. Some of you have heard much, — you have lived forty, fifty, sixty years under the blessed trumpet of the gospel, — what have you learned? You may have heard a thousand sermons, and yet not learned one. Search your consciences.
1. You have heard much against sin: are you hearers; or are you scholars? How many sermons have you heard against covetousness, that it is the root, on which pride, idolatry, treason do grow? One calls it a metropolitan sin; it is a complex evil, it doth twist a great many sins in with it. There is hardly any sin, but covetousness is a main ingredient of it; and yet are you like the two daughters of the horse-leech, that cry, "give! give!" How much have you heard against rash anger, that is a short frenzy, a dry drunkenness; that it rests in the bosom of fools; and upon the least occasion do your spirits begin to take fire? How much have you heard against swearing: It is Christ's express mandate, "swear not at all." (Mat. 5. 34) This sin of all others may be termed the unfruitful work of darkness. It is neither sweetened with pleasure, nor enriched with profit, the usual vermillion wherewith Satan doth paint sin. Swearing is forbidden with a subpaena. While the swearer shoots his oaths, like flying arrows at God to pierce his glory, God shoots "a flying roll" of curses against him. And do you make your tongue a racket by which you toss oaths as tennisballs? do you sport yourselves with oaths, as the Philistines did with Samson, which will at last pull the house about your ears? Alas! how have they learned what sin is, that have not learned to leave sin! Doth he know what a viper is, that will play with it?
2. You have heard much of Christ: have you learned Christ? The Jews, as
Jerom saith, carried Christ in their Bibles, but not in their heart;
their sound "went into all the earth; (Ro. 10. 18) the prophets and
apostles were as trumpets, whose sound went abroad into the world: yet
many thousands who heard the noise of these trumpets, had not learned
Christ, "they have not all obeyed." (Ro. 10. 16) (1.) A man may know
much of Christ, and yet not learn Christ: the devils knew Christ. (Mat.
1. 24) (2.) A man may preach Christ, and yet not learn Christ, as Judas
and the pseudo-apostles. (Ph. 5. 15) (3.) A man may profess Christ, and
yet not learn Christ: there are many professors in the world that
Christ will profess against. (Mat. 7. 22, 23)
Q. What it is then to learn Christ?
1. To learn Christ is to be made like Christ, to have the divine characters of his holiness engraven upon our hearts: "we all with open face, beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image." (2 Cor. 3. 18) There is a metamorphosis made; a sinner, viewing Christ's image in the glass of the gospel, is transformed into that image. Never did any man look upon Christ with a spiritual eye, but he went away quite changed. A true saint is a divine landscape picture, where all the rare beauties of Christ are lively portrayed and drawn forth; he hath the same spirit, the same judgment, the same will, with Jesus Christ.
2. To learn Christ, is to believe in him; "my Lord, and my God," (Jno.
20. 28) when we do not only believe God, but in God, which is the
actual application of Christ to ourselves, and as it were the spreading
of the sacred medicine of his blood upon our souls. You have heard much
of Christ, and yet cannot with an humble adherence say, "my Jesus;" be
not offended if I tell you, the devil can say his creed as well as you.
3. To learn Christ, is to love Christ. When we have Bible-conversations, our lives like rich diamonds cast a sparkling lustre in the church of God, and are, in some sense, parallel with the life of Christ, as the transcript with the original. So much for the first notion of the word.
CHAPTER III
Concerning the Second Proposition.
This word, "I have learned," is a word that imports difficulty; it shows how hardly the apostle came by contentment of mind; it was not bred in nature. St Paul did not come naturally by it, but he had learned it. It cost him many a prayer and tear, it was taught him by the Spirit. Whence our second doctrine: good things are hard to come by. The business of religion is not so facile as most do imagine. "I have learned," saith St Paul. Indeed you need not learn a man to sin; this is natural, (Ps. 58. 3) and therefore facile, it comes as water out of a spring, It is an easy thing to be wicked; hell will be taken without storm; but matters of religion must be learned. To cut the flesh is easy, but to prick a vein, and not to cut an artery is hard. The trade of sin needs not to be learned, but the art of divine contentment is not achieved without holy industry: "I have learned."
There are two pregnant reasons, why there must be so much study and exercitation: 1. Because spiritual things are against nature. Everything in religion is antipodes to nature. There are in religion two things, and both are against nature. (1.) Matters of faith: as, for men to be justified by the righteousness of another, to become a fool that he may be wise, to save all by losing all; this is against nature. (2.) Matters of practice: as, Self-denial; for a man to deny his own wisdom, and see himself blind; his own will, and have it melted into the will of God; plucking out the right eye, beheading and crucifying that sin which is the favourite, and lies nearest to the heart; for a man to be dead to the world, and in the midst of want to abound; for him to take up the cross, and follow Christ, not only in golden, but in bloody paths, to embrace religion, when it is dressed in night-clothes, all the jewels of honour and preferment being pulled of; this is against nature, and therefore must be learned. Self-examination; for a man to take his heart, as a watch, all in pieces; to set up a spiritual inquisition, or court of conscience, and traverse things in his own soul; to take David's candle and lantern, (Ps. 119. 105) and search for sin; nay, as judge, to pass the sentence upon himself. (2 Sa. 34. 17) this is against nature, and will not easily be attained to without learning. Self-reformation; to see a man, as Caleb, or another spirit, walking antipodes to himself, the current of his life altered, and running into the channel of religion: this is wholly against nature. When a stone ascends, it is not a natural motion, but a violent; the motion of the soul heaven-ward is a violent motion, it must be learned; flesh and blood is not skilled in these things; nature can no more cast out nature, than Satan can cast out Satan. 2. Because spiritual things are above nature. There are some things in nature that are hard to find out, as the cause of things, which are not learned without study. Aristotle, a great philosopher, whom some have called an eagle fallen from the clouds, yet could not find out the motion of the river Euripus, and therefore threw himself into it; what then are divine things, which are in sphere above nature, and beyond all human disquisition; as the Trinity, the hypostatical union, the mystery of faith to believe against hope? Only God's Spirit can light our candle here. The apostle calls these "the deep things of God." The gospel is full of jewels, but they are locked up from sense and reason. The angels in heaven are searching into these sacred depths. (1 Pe. 22)
USE. Let us beg the Spirit of God to teach us; we must be "divinely
taught;" the eunuch could read, but he could not understand, till
Philip joined himself to his chariot. (Ac. 8. 29) God's Spirit must
join himself to our chariot; he must teach, or we cannot learn: "all
thy children shall be taught of the Lord". (Is. 54. 13) A man may read
the figure on the dial, but he cannot tell how the day goes, unless the
sun shines upon the dial: we may read the Bible over, but we can not
learn the purpose, till the Spirit of God shines into our hearts. (2
Cor. 4. 6) O implore this blessed Spirit! It is God's prerogative-royal
to teach: "I am the Lord thy God, which teacheth thee to profit." (Is.
48. 17) Ministers may tell us our lesson, God only can teach us; we
have lost both our hearing and eye-sight, therefore are very unfit to
learn. Ever since Eve listened to the serpent, we have been deaf; and
since she looked on the tree of knowledge we have been blind; but when
God comes to teach, he removes these impediments. (Is. 35. 5) We are
naturally dead; (Ep. 2. 1) who will go about to teach a dead man? yet,
behold, God undertakes to make dead men to understand mysteries! God is
the grand teacher. This is the reason the word preached works so
differently upon men; two in a pew, the one is wrought upon
effectually, the other lies at the ordinances as a dead child at the
breast, and gets no nourishment. What is the reason? Because the
heavenly gale of the Spirit blows upon one, and not upon the other; one
hath the anointing of God, which teacheth him all things,! (1 Jno. 2.
27) the other hath it not. God's Spirit speaks sweetly, but
irresistably. In that heavenly doxology, none could sing the new song,
but those who were sealed in their foreheads, (Re. 14. 2) reprobates
could not sing it. Those that are skilful in the mysteries of
salvation, must have the seal of the Spirit upon them. Let us make this
our prayer: Lord, breathe thy Spirit into thy word; and we have a
promise, which may add wings to prayer; "if ye then being evil know how
to give good gifts unto your children; how much more shall your
heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?" (Lu. 11.
13) And thus much of the first part of the text, the scholar, which I
intended only as a short gloss or paraphrase.
CHAPTER IV
The Second Branch of the Text, the Lesson itself, with the Proposition.
I come to the second, which is the main thing, the lesson itself, "in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content." Here was a rare piece of learning indeed, and is certainly more to be wondered at in St Paul, that he knew how to turn himself to every condition, than all the learning in the world besides, which hath been so applauded in former ages, by Julius Caesar, Ptolemy, Xenophon, the great admirers of learning. The text hath but few words in it; "in every state content:" but if that be true, which once Fulgentius said, that the most golden sentence is ever measured by brevity and suavity, then, this is a most accomplished speech; the text is like a precious jewel, little in quantity, but great in worth and value.
The main proposition I shall insist upon, is this, that a gracious spirit is a contented spirit. The doctrine of contentment is very superlative, and till we have learned this, we have not learned to be Christians.
1. It is a hard lesson. The angels in heaven had not learned it; they were not contented. Though their estate was very glorious, yet they were still soaring aloft, and aimed at something higher; "the angels which kept not their first estate." They kept not their estate, because they were not contented with their estate. Our first parents, clothed with the white robe of innocency in paradise, had not learned to be content; they had aspiring hearts, and thinking their human nature too low and home-spun, would be crowned with the Deity, and "be as gods." Though they had the choice of all the trees of the garden, yet none would content them but the tree of knowledge which they supposed would have been as eye-salve to have made them omniscient. O then, if this lesson was so hard to learn in innocency, how hard shall we find it, who are clogged with corruption!
2. It is of universal extent, it concerns all. 1st. It concerns rich
men. One would think it needless to press those to contentment whom God
hath blessed with great estates, but rather persuade them to be humble
and thankful; nay, but I say, be content. Rich men have their
discontents as well as others! When they have a great estate, yet they
are discontented that they have no more; they would make the hundred
talents a thousand. A man in wine, the more he drinks, the more he
thirsts; covetousness is a dry dropsy; an earthly heart is like the
grave, that is "never satisfied;" therefore I say to you, rich men, be
content. Rich men, if we may suppose them to be content with their
estates, which is seldom; yet, though they have estate enough, they
have not honour enough: if their barns are full enough, yet their
turrets are not high enough. They would be somebody in the world, as
Theudas, "who boasted himself to be somebody." (Ac. 5. 36) They never
go so cheerfully as when the wind of honour and applause fills their
sails; if this wind be down they are discontented. One would think
Haman had as much as his proud heart could desire; he was set above all
the princes, advanced upon the pinnacle of honour, to be the second man
in the kingdom; (Es. 3. 1) yet in the midst of all his pomp, because
Mordecai would not uncover and kneel, he is discontented, and full of
wrath, and there was no way to assuage this pleurisy of revenge, but by
letting all the Jews' blood, and offering them up in sacrifice. The
itch of honour is seldom allayed without blood; therefore I say to you
rich men, be content. Rich men, if we may suppose them to be content
with their honour and magnificent titles, yet they have not always
contentment in their relations. She that lies in the bosom, may
sometimes blow the coals; as Job's wife, who in a pet would have him
fall out with God himself; "curse God, and die." Sometimes children
cause discontent. How often is it seen that the mother's milk doth
nourish a viper? and that he that once sucked her breast, goes about to
suck her blood? Parents do often of grapes gather thorns, and of figs
thistles. Children are sweet-briar; like the rose, which is a fragrant
flower, but hath its prickles. Our relative comforts are not all pure
wine, but mixed; they have in them more dregs than spirits, and are
like that river Plutarch speaks of, where the waters in the morning run
sweet, but in the evening run bitter. We have no charter of exemption
granted us in this life; therefore rich men had need be called upon to
be content. 2dly. The doctrine of contentment concerns poor men. You
that do suck so liberally from the breasts of providence, be content;
it is an hard lesson, therefore it had need be set upon the sooner. How
hard is it when the livelihood is even gone, a great estate boiled away
almost to nothing, then to be contented. The means of subsistence is in
Scripture called our life, because it is the very sinews of life. The
woman in the gospel spent "all her living upon the physicians;" (Lu. 8.
43) in the Greek it is, she spent her whole life upon the physicians,
because she spent her means by which she should live. It is much when
poverty hath clipped our wings then to be content; but, though hard, it
is excellent; and the apostle here had "learned in every state to be
content". God had brought St Paul into as great variety of conditions
as ever we read of any man, and yet he was content; else sure he could
never have gone through it with so much cheerfulness. See into what
vicissitudes this blessed apostle was cast: "we are troubled on every
side," (2 Cor 4. 8) there was the sadness of his condition; "but not
distressed," there was his content in that condition: "we are
perplexed," there is his affliction; "but not in despair," there is his
contentation. And, if we read a little further, "in afflictions, in
necessities, in distresses, in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults,"
(2 Cor 6. 4,5) &c. there is his trouble: and behold his content, "as
having nothing, yet possessing all things." When the apostle was driven
out of all, yet in regard of that sweet contentment of mind which was
like music in his soul, he possessed all. We read a short map or
history of his sufferings; "in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft,"
(2 Cor. 11. 23, 24, 25) &c. yet behold the blessed frame and temper of
his spirit, "I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be
content." Which way soever providence did blow, he had such heavenly
skill and dexterity, that he knew how to steer his course. For his
outward estate he was indifferent; he could be either on the top of
Jacob's ladder, or the bottom; he could sing either the dirge or the
anthem; he could be anything that God would have him: "I know how to
want, and how to abound." Here is a rare pattern for us to imitate.
Paul, in regard of his faith and courage, was like a cedar, he could
not be stirred; but for his outward condition, he was like a reed
bending every way with the wind of providence. When a prosperous gale
did blow upon him, he could bend with that, "I know how to be full;"
and when a boisterous gust of affliction did blow, he could bend in
humility with that, "I know how to be hungry." St Paul was, as
Aristotle speaks, like a die that hath four squares; throw it which way
you will, it falls upon a bottom: let God throw the apostle which way
he would, he fell upon this bottom of contentment. A contented spirit
is like a watch: though you carry it up and down with you yet the
spring of it is not shaken, nor the wheels out of order, but the watch
keeps its perfect motion: so it was with St Paul, though God carried
him into various conditions, yet he was not lift up with the one, nor
cast down with the other; the spring of his heart was not broken, the
wheels of his affections were not disordered, but kept their constant
motion towards heaven; still content. The ship that lies at anchor may
sometimes be a little shaken, but never sinks; flesh and blood may have
its fears and disquiets, but grace doth check them: a Christian, having
cast anchor in heaven, his heart never sinks; a gracious spirit is a
contented spirit. This is a rare art. Paul did not learn it at the feet
of Gamaliel: "I am instructed," (Ph. 4. 11) I am initiated into this
holy mystery; as if he had said, I have gotten the divine art, I have
the knack of it; God must make us right artists. If we should put some
men to an art that they are not skilled in, how unfit would they be for
it? put an husbandman to limning or drawing pictures, what strange work
would he make? This is out of his sphere. Take a limner that is exact
in laying of colours, and put him to plough, or set him to planting, or
grafting of trees, this is not his art, he is not skilled in it: bid a
natural man live by faith, and when all things go cross, be contented,
you bid him do what he hath no skill in, you may as well bid a child
guide the stern of a ship; to live contented upon God in the deficiency
of outward comforts, is an art which "flesh and blood hath not
learned;" nay, many of God's own children, who excel in some duties of
religion, when they come to this of contentment, how do they bungle?
They have scarce commenced masters of this art.