promised, he was able also to perform," Rom. iv. 21. LX. Light of those, whose dreary dwelling Dissipate the clouds beneath; Still we wait for thy appearing; Life and joy thy beams impart, Come, and manifest the favor God hath for our ransom'd race; Come, sweet Advocate and Saviour, Save us in thy great compassion, O thou mild and gracious Prince ! Give the knowledge of salvation, By thine all-sufficient merit Every burden'd soul release; By the shinings of thy Spirit Guide us into perfect peace. LXI. It is faith's work to still the disquietments of the soul; and this it doth in various ways. It persuades the soul of God's lovingkindness to the redeemed; it begets in the soul a good opinion of God, and removes hard thoughts of him, which are ready to arise under trouble. It enlightens the soul as to the true nature of God, who hath said, "I know the thoughts that I think towards you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil," Jer. xxix. 11. To this end it instructs the soul of God's power and mercy-of God's providence and careof God's truth and faithfulness. It is a sinful jealousy of God that causes distrust of him; either an ignorance of him, or hard thoughts concerning him; either not knowing what he is to the soul, or suspecting he will not be what he hath said he would be. Now 1. Then faith persuades the soul of the fulness of sufficiency, power, and mercy that is in God for his people, through Christ, either in the loss or want of some temporal blessing, as Elijah, Rachel, and Jonah were. faith teaches by the word, that "God is all-sufficient." Doth not the word of God say that, all is thine, if thou art Christ's? Mayest thou not go to that fountain of all blessings, and thus, by persuading thy soul of God's present all-sufficiency for it, quiet it ? 2. By persuading the soul of God's power. The christian is troubled for the loss of some outward thing. Faith asks, Cannot God restore these things either in actual possession, or in an equivalent for them? Remember Job's case, how the Lord made his latter end greater than his beginning. Why, therefore, art thou troubled, as one without hope? 3. By persuading the soul of God's mercy and lovingkindness. Can God do it, and will he not? He can, because he is power, and there is nothing too hard for him he will because he is love. His power is only limited by his will, and he is not more able, than willing, to be gracious. Now, can God restore thee thy earthly comfort, and can he pardon thee thy great sins, and will he not do it? Believe it-he can and will. 4. By persuading the soul of God's providence. Hath a christian lost any earthly comfort? Why, this is God's doing, saith faith; "Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And one of them shall not fall on the ground, without your Father." The Lord sees what is befallen thee-he knows thy condition. Why art thou troubled ? 5. It further persuades the soul of the wisdom of God in the dispensations of his providence. This is not only God's doing, but it is God's wise doing-no rash act, but done out of a depth of predeterminate counsel. It was decreed in wisdom, that thou shouldest lose this or that comfort, in which thou thoughtest so much of thy happiness was wrapped up. What is done, is the work of God, and in wisdom he does it all, Psalm civ. 24. 6. Faith sets forth to the soul the sovereignty of God:that God hath done no more than he might do, without asking any one's leave. Hath he broken our clay vessels? It is no more than he might do, for he is our potter, and we are but as clay in the hands of the potter, Jer. xviii. 6. Isaiah lxiv. 8. Hath he left my soul without light? May he not do it? For the wind bloweth where it listeth," and asks no one's leave; nor gives an account to any why it doth so this stills the soul.-"I was dumb, I opened not my mouth, because thou didst it," Psalm xxxix. 9. If thine-who can question it? Who shall say to the King of kings, "What doest thou?" 7. Faith doth it also by persuading the soul of the truth and faithfulness of God, and that either in his par ticular promises, relating to the present want and condition of the soul: it persuades the soul that there is not one word in his promises but shall be fulfilled, as sure as God is in heaven: heaven and earth may pass away, but not a word of these shall;-or, in persuading the soul of God's faithfulness to his general promises. God in his word hath made some general promises, that are comprehensive, as Psalm lxxxiv. 11, "The Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly;" so Psalm xci. 10, "There shall no evil befal thee." Now if there be a particular promise wanting, peculiar to the present condition of the soul, then it is the work of faith in the soul to persuade it of the truth of the general promises. Whether it fear it shall not obtain something which it conceives to be good, or be disquieted for some evil which it apprehends, either already upon it, or likely to come. Now if the promises be true, it is but thy misinterpretation of the condition thou art in; for the present things befallen thee, if thou art a child of God, are good, whatever thou fearest, and shall work for thy good. Thus faith quiets the troubled spirit. Another work of faith upon the soul to still it is, by teaching it to commit itself to God, "Casting all your care upon him, for he careth for you," 1 Peter v. 7. Reliance is the marrow of faith; faith first shows the soul what there is in God to be trusted, and relied upon, that will bring it relief in due time, and then stirs up the soul to a trusting in him. Hope thou in God, for I shall yet praise him," Psalm xlii. 11. "The Lord is my rock and my fortress, and my deliverer: my God, my strength, in whom I will trust." First, faith had then discovered to David, what there was in God, what a fulness of sufficiency and power, and then 66 it leads him to trust in his God, in whom was such a fulness; now the soul's disquietment is allayed by this; it feels its comfort lost, but faith bids it look forward "and hope in God, for it shall yet praise him." It teaches the soul to commit its cause to God; and when it has wrought up the soul to this, to neglect itself, to look out of itself and its own feelings wholly, and to commit its cause to God, this allays its restlessness and disquietments. It teaches it also to wait upon God and stay his leisure. "He that believeth shall not make haste," saith the prophet, Isaiah xxviii. 16. "Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him," Psalm xxxvii. 7. The soul maketh haste several ways; it may be too hasty in the desires of its heart, its words, or its actions. A soul makes haste when it desires a mercy before God's time, and for want of this is disquieted; because, what it would have, comes not at its expected season; but now he that believes, waits God's time; depends upon God for a desired mercy; looks for him, in a diligent attendance upon such means, as God hath appointed, to convey such a mercy in or by, and to possess his soul with patience, till God shall please to reveal himself. If he do not wait, it is a plain evidence, that the soul doth not trust God. A further work of faith upon the soul, is contentment and submission. It fills the soul with God, and gives it enough in him. "I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere, and in all things, I am instructed, both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound, and to suffer need; I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me," Phil. iv. 11. And how came the apostle to have an interest in Christ, and to draw this strength out of Christ, but by faith? It teaches the soul to be content with |