The way of the Spirit in bringing souls to Christ set forth in X sermons on John 16:7, 8, 9, 10 and chap 7:37 / by Mr. Thomas Allen, late pastor of a church in ... Norwich.

II

I shall now proceed to the second thing pro∣pounded, which, is to give the Grounds and Rea∣sons of it, Why it is expedient for the Saints and Servants of Christ thus to be deprived sometimes of their nearest and dearest Comforts in this World; This is a hard saying, the Disciples were hard to believe it, that it could be expedient for them that Christ should go away from them. And so for a Soul to be deprived of the Light of Gods Countenance, that they cannot meet with God in

holy Duties and Ordinances, these are hard things to believe, that they can be expedient for them. Now to give you some Reasons, why it is expe∣dient sometimes for the Saints and Servants of Christ to be deprived of their nearest and dearest Comforts in this World.

1. Though they cannot think so, yet not∣withstanding, Because their Heavenly Father knows it to be expedient for them. Their heavenly Father, who is infinitely wise and infinitely loving to∣wards them, he knows that those things are expedient for them in this Life: you that are Parents, you know what is more expedient for your Children than they do themselves; Alas! if Children were left to their own judgments, they would judge those things expedient for them that are not expedient; they would judge it were bet∣ter for them, to take their own liberty, and to do their own Wills, and that it were more expedient for them to be playing, than to go to School; so they would judge it expedient for them never to be put out to Apprenticeship, to be Servants, to go from their Fathers house; they think it were bet∣ter for them to be always at home, under their Parents wing: but you that are Parents know what is more expedient for your Children than they do themselves; and when they come to grow up then they will be ready to say, That their Fathers did judge better for them than they could have judged for themselves; then they will say, If I had been left to mine own Judgment what was expedient for me then, I had not had this bringing up and Education that I have; nay then they may think that it

was expedient for them, that they were some∣times under the Rod. Truly Brethren, the Lord our Heavenly Father is infinitely wise, and lo∣ving to all his Children, he knows what is expe∣dient for them better than they do. Christ knew that his going away from his Disciples, was more expedient for them, than they themselves could judge of it: so our heavenly Father knows that sometimes it is best for us to be deprived of our nearest and dearest Relations in the World; your Heavenly Father knows that you have need of these things, and he knows that sometimes you have need to be deprived of them. That is the first.

2. It is expedient sometimes for the Saints and Servants of Christ to be deprived of their nearest and dearest Comforts; Because sometimes the Lord takes away one Comfort, and gives them that in stead of it that is far better for them. There∣fore as Christ saith in the Text, it is expedient for you that I go away: why how can that be? It is more expedient for you, for you shall have the Holy Ghost, the Holy Spirit, I will send the Com∣forter to you, and that is better for you. He would give them the presence of his Spirit in stead of his own bodily presence, and that was better for them. Sometimes the Lord takes a∣way one Comfort, and gives another instead of it, that is most expedient for us; as it is said, he removed the former Covenant, and that was done away, that so he might bring in a New Covenant in the stead of it, which was far better; the Old was done away, to make way for the New. God took away the child from David, that was begotten

in Adultery, and gave him a Solomon; so God deales sometimes with his Children, he takes a∣way sometimes their outward Estates in the World, to give them a larger, an heavenly and spiritual Estate, to give them more of the true Riches; he takes away their outward Liberty, that they may have more spiritual Enlargment: thus many times the Lord deals with his Disciples and Servants, he takes away one mercy from them, which they think to be most expedient, and gives them another, which he knows to be more ex∣pedient for them. Therefore I remember Joseph said to his Brethren, when he sent from Egypt to them to come from the Land of Canaan, saith he, Leave your Stuff behind you; you shall have that that is better for you than your Stuff, for all the good of the Land of Egypt is before you. Thus the Lord makes an exchange, if he calls us to leave one Comfort, he intends to bestow a better Com∣fort upon us; thus it was with these Disciples. But,

3. Sometimes the Lord takes away our nearest and dearest Comforts we have in the World in way of Correction and Chastisement; to correct and chastise his people for their wantonness, for their forgetfulness of him, for their sitting loose from him, and living even as it were without God in the World, when the Lord sees that his Children do make a bad use of their Comforts and Mercies; the Lord is pleased to take them a∣way from them; just as you that are Parents deal by your Children; if you see they go about to cut their fingers with the knife, you take a∣way the knife from them; if they do waste and

destroy their meat, you take away their meat from them; thus the Lord deals with his Children; he sees his Children grow wanton, and careless, and forgetfull of God, then the Lord is pleased to take his Rod and correct them, by taking away their Comforts that are nearest and dearest to them. As now again for Parents, you see Parents when their Children grow forgetful of them, and do not mind what they say to them, and do not re∣gard their Commands, then their Parents will be ready to take away from them that which they know to be nearest and dearest to them, by way of Correction. Thus the Lord is pleased to deal with his own Children, if he see they be perverse and disobedient, and careless, and rebellious, — It is just with the Lord then, in a way of cor∣rection and Chastisemnet, to take those mercies from them that he sees to be most near and dear to them: and the Lord doth it out of mercy and love to his Children, in depriving them of out∣ward mercies, to deprive them of Health, and Strength, and Estate, and sometimes of their near Relations, by way of Chastisement, lest they should be condemned with the world; they would run upon their own ruine else, if the Lord let them alone. The Apostle gives the reason, 1 Cor. 11.32. why so many were sick, and weak, and fallen asleep, saith he, When ye are judged, ye are chastened of the Lord, that ye might not be con∣demned with the World. And so the Lord is plea∣sed to deal with his own Children and Servants, he deprives them of their nearest and dearest Com∣forts in the World, by way of Chastisement and Correction; therefore sometimes he hides his face

from them, and many times takes his Ordinances from them, and if they do enjoy Ordinances, he with-holds his gracious presence from them, that they shall not see his Face in this and that Duty and Ordinance; and this the Lord doth by way of Chastisement.

4. The Lord doth sometimes deprive his Chil∣dren of their nearest and dearest Comforts in this World, Because he will bring them thereby to be pliable to his own Will, and train them up in a course of Obedience to his own Will. Look now, as Parents that they may train up their Children to be obedient to them in every thing, to be at their beck, sometimes they will take away from them that which is nearest and dearest to them; Give me that thing, and I must have such a thing, will a wise Father say sometimes to a Child, to train him up in a way of Sub∣mission to his Fathers will. So the Lord deals with his own Children, when he sees we have this or that Comfort which is near or dear to us. Now that God may train us up to his own Will, and that we may learn subjection to his Will, the Lord calls for this Comfort and that mercy, that is so dear to us, that Yoke-fellow, and that Child, or whoever it be that is near and dear to us; the Lord doth sometimes call it from us, and take it away, that we may learn to be submissive to his Will; as it is said concerning Christ, Heb. 5.8. That Christ learned Obedience by his Sufferings, and truly so when Christ came to drink the Cup that his Father put into his hand, saith he, The Cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it? He learned Obedience by his

Sufferings; and so the Lord may teach his Chil∣dren Obedience by training them up in this way, to take away their nearest and dearest Comforts from them that they may come to be at the Lords will and word in every thing. And thus the Lord trained up Abraham, saith God to Abraham, I must have you to go out of your own Country, to leave your Friends and Relations behind, to go into a strange place, and Abraham did so; And then when the Lord had given him an only and a beloved Son, saith God to him, Come I must take that Son from you, go and Sacrifice him your self to me; thus God trained up Abra∣ham to his foot (as it were) which is the ex∣pression of the Holy Ghost, Isa. 41.2. Abraham was brought to the foot of God, to the beck of God. Thus God deals with his Children, he trains them up to be submissive to his own will, to his ordering, for every thing, therefore God will sometimes take away this Comfort and that Com∣fort, though never so near and dear to us. That is the fourth Reason.

5. The Lord doth sometimes deprive his Children of their nearest and dearest Comforts, That they may learn to fear before him, that they may stand in awe of him, as it is said Psal. 55.19. Because they are in no change, therefore they fear not God, they meet with no changes, they have their wills, and they enjoy their Comforts here in the World; and because they have no changes, therefore they fear not God. And truly the Lords own people are apt to grow secure in time of Prosperity when they meet with few changes, they are apt to grow secure. It was

Davids case, Psal. 30.5, 6, I said in my prospe∣rity I shall never be moved. And so I remember Job hath such an expression, Chap. 29.18. I said I shall dye in my Nest—; His nest was feathered round about him, he was comfortably supplyed with all manner of Necessaries and comforts in this Life, and saith he, I began to grow secure, I said I should dye in my Nest; And therefore the Lord is pleased to bring Changes upon his People, to a∣wake them out of their security, to cause them more to fear God, and to acknowledge their de∣pendance upon God, to fear that God, that is able to bring great Changes upon them, to fear him that is able to take away their nearest and dearest Comforts. Thus the Lord deals with his Chil∣dren, to train and nurture them up in his fear.

6. And Lastly. The Lord does sometimes deal thus with his own Children, to deprive them of their nearest and dearest Comforts that they have in this Life, That so he may make them to look more after a Heavenly Inheritance, that shall never be taken from them; where there shall be no Changes, where they shall be past all fear of ever being deprived of any comfort they shall enjoy. Therefore 'tis said of the Patriarchs, Heb. 11.14, 16. 'Tis said in the 13th Verse, They confessed, That they were Strangers and Pilgrims on the Earth, for they that say such things, declare plainly That they seek a Country but now they desire a better Country, which is, an Heavenly — They are Strangers and Pilgrims in the World, they meet with great Changes in the World, and therefore say they, We are Stran∣gers and Pilgrims; we are going to a Country

where there shall be no change. So Heb. 10.34. The Apostle speaks of those that were exercised with changes, that they had their Estates taken a∣way, and were plundred of all that they had, they made nothing of that; because they had an eye to the recompence of reward, the inheritance of Hea∣ven, and that made them look for a heavenly Country, because then they should be past all chan∣ges, there should be no plundering there, no de∣privation of any Comfort that they there shall en∣joy, that is an Inheritance that is incorruptible and undefiled, that fadeth not away; there shall be no changes throughout all Eternity. And thus now you have seen the Reasons and Grounds of the Point, That it is expedient sometimes for the Saints and Disciples of Christ to be deprived of their nearest and dearest Comforts that they do enjoy in this World.