creature; but we have the favour of God, peace with conscience, and the comforts and contents of a better life. Ah! did the men of this world know the sweets that saints enjoy in afflictions, they would rather choose Manassah's iron chain, than his golden crown; they would rather be Paul a prisoner, than Paul caught up to the third heaven. For light afflictions, they shall have a weight of glory; for a few afflictions they shall have those joys, pleasures, and comforts, that are as the stars of heaven, or as the sands of the sea, that cannot be numbered; for momentary afflictions, they shall have an eternal crown of glory. 'It is but winking, and thou shalt be in heaven presently,' said the martyr." Oh! therefore, let not afflictions nor troubles induce thee to shun the ways of God, nor to quit that service that ought to be dearer to thee than a world, yea than thy very life, &c.

Though the cross be bitter, yet it is but short; a little storm, as one said of Julian's persecution, and an eternal calm follows.

CHAPTER III.

The third Device that Satan hath to hinder souls from holy and heavenly services, and religious performances, is,

BY presenting to the soul the difficulty of performing them; saith Satan, it is a hard and difficult thing to pray spiritually, and wait on God constantly, and walk with God closely, and to be as lively, warm, and active in the communion of saints, as thou shouldest; it were better ten thousand times to neglect these duties, than to meddle with them; and doubtless by this device Satan keeps off thousands from waiting upon God, and giving him that service which is due to his name. Now the remedies against this device of Satan are these:

Remedy 1. Against this device of Satan, dwell more upon the necessity of the service, and duty, than on the difficulty that attends it; you should reason thus with your souls, oh! our souls, though these services are hard and difficult, yet are they not exceedingly necessary for the honour of God, and the keeping up his name in the world; for the subduing of sin, and the strengthening of weak graces; for the reviving languishing comforts, and for the keeping clear and bright your blessed evidences; for the scattering of your fears, and for the raising of your

hopes; for the gladdening the hearts of the righteous, and stopping the mouths of unrighteous souls, who are ready to take all advantages to blaspheme the name of God, and throw dirt and contempt on his people and ways? Oh! never leave thinking on the necessity of these duties, till your souls are lifted up far above all the difficulties that attend them.'

Rem. 2. Solemnly consider, that the Lord Jesus will make his services easy to you, by the sweet discovery of himself to your souls, whilst you are in his service. Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways,' as the Prophet Isaiah saith. If meeting with God, who is goodness itself, sweetness itself, beauty itself, strength itself, glory itself, will not sweeten his service to thy soul, nothing in heaven or earth will.

Jacob's meeting with, and enjoying of Rachel made his hard service easy and delightful to him; and will not the enjoyment of God, and meeting with God, render his service to the soul much more easy and delightful? Doubtless it will. The Lord will give that sweet assistance by his Spirit and grace, as shall make his service joyous, and not grievous; a delight, and

* Most take the word here, to meet a soul with those bowels of love and tenderness, as the father of the prodigal met the prodigal with. God is the Father of compassion,' he is all bowels; he is as swift to shew mercy, as he is slow to anger.

not a burden; a little heaven to beleving souls. The confidence of this Divine assistance raised up Nehemiah's spirit far above all those difficulties and discouragements that attended him in the work of the Lord,* as you may see in Neh. ii. 19, 20. But when Sanballat the Heronite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian, heard it, they laughed us tó scorn, and despised us, and said, What is this thing that ye do, will ye rebel against the king? Then answered I them, and said unto the f, The God of heaven he will prosper us, therefore we his servants will arise and build: but you have no right, nor portion, nor memorial in Jerusalem.' Ah souls! while you are in the very, service of the Lord, you will find by experience, that the God of heaven will prosper, encourage and strengthen you, and carry you through the hardest service, with the greatest cheerfulness that can be. Remember this, that God will suit you strength to your work, and in the hardest service you shall have the greatest assistance.

Rem. 3. Dwell upon the hard and difficult things that the Lord Jesus Christ hath past

*Luther spake excellently to Melancthon, who was apt to be discouraged with doubts and difficulties, and fear from foes, and to ease the service they had undertaken. "If the work be not good why did we ever own it? If it be good, why should we ever decline it? Why, (saith he) should we fear the conquered world, that have Christ the conqueror on our side?" Is. xl. ult.

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through for your temporal, spiritual, and eternal good. Ah! what a sea of blood, wrath, sin, sorrow, and misery, did the Lord Jesus go through, for your internal, and eternal good?* Christ did not plead, this cross is too heavy for me to bear, this wrath is too great for me to lie under, this cup, (which hath in it all the ingredients of Divine displeasure) is too bitter for me to drink, even to the very dregs of it! No, Christ pleads not the difficulty of the service, but resolutely and bravely goes through all, as the Phrophet Isaiah shews, The Lord God hath opened my ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back, I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair; I hid not my face from shame and spitting.' Christ shrinks not from his Father's wrath, the burthen of your sins, the malice of Satan, and the rage of the world; but cheerfully and triumphantly passes through all. Ah souls! if this consideration will not raise you above all the discouragements you meet with, to own Christ and his service, and to cleave to them both, I am afraid nothing will. A soul that is not lifted up by this, to be resolute and

*It is not fit, since the head was crowned with thorns, that the members should be crowned with rose buds, saith Zanch."

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† Godfrey of Bullien, first king of Jerusalem, refused to be crowned with a crown of gold, saying, It became not a Christian there to wear a crown of gold, where Christ for our salvation wore a crown of thorns."