A cabinet of choice jevvels, or, A box of precious ointment being a plain discovery of, or, what men are worth for eternity, and how 'tis like to go with them in another world ... / by Thomas Brooks ...

The Twelfth Maxim or Consideration.

TWelfthly, Consider that tis a Christians greatest Wis∣dom [ 12] and highest concernment, to take the most com∣modious time for the casting up of his spiritual accounts: If I would know what I am worth for another World, and what I have to shew for the inheritance of the Saints in light, then I am to take my heart when tis at best, and when I am most divinely prepared and fitted for this great service, then to enter upon it: Tis no wisdom for a man to go to see his face in troubled waters, or to look for a Pearl in a puddle.

There are some particular times and seasons in which tis no way safe nor convenient for a Christian to enter upon the tryal of his Spiritual estate. As first, when the body is great∣ly distempered. 2. When the Soul is greatly tempted by Satan, or sadly deserted by God. 3. When the Conscience is so deeply wounded by some great falls, as that the Soul is filled with exceeding great fear, terror and horror; it is with many poor Christians in this case, as it hath been with some who have been so struck with the fear and horror of death before the Judg, that though they were good Schollars and able to read any thing, yet fear and horror hath so sur∣prised them, that when their lives have been at stake, and the Book hath been given them to read, they have not been able to read one line, one word. So many of the precious ser∣vants of Christ, when they have been under wounds of Con∣science, and when they have been filled with fears, terrors and horrors, they have not been able to look up to Heaven, nor read their evidences, nor turn to the breasts of the Pro∣mises, nor call to mind their former experiences, nor be∣hold the least glimpse of Heavens glories. No man in his wits, if he were to weigh gold, would weigh it in the midst of high winds, great storms and horrible tempests, which would so hurry the ballance up and down, this way and that, that it would be impossible for him to weigh his gold exactly. Now the tryal of our spiritual estates is like the weighing of gold, for we are all to weigh our selves by the ballance of the Sanctuary. God himself will one day weigh us by that ballance, and if we hold weight when he comes to weigh us, we are safe and happy for ever: But when he comes to weigh us in the ballance of the Sanctuary, if we shall then be found too light, it had been good for us we had never been born; when Belshazzar saw the hand-writing upon the wall, his countenance was changed, and his thoughts troubled, and the joynts of his loyns were loosed, and his knees smote one against another; but what was all this to an everlasting se∣paration from God, and to those endless, easless, and reme∣diless torments that such must endure, who when they are weighed in the ballance, shall be found too light? A man

that would weigh gold to a grain, must weigh it in a quiet still place: And so a man that would make an exact tryal of his spiritual estate, he must take his Soul when tis most seri∣ous, quiet, still, and composed; he must take his heart when it is in the best frame, and most disposed to solemn and weighty work. There are some times which are very unapt for a gracious person to sit as Judg upon his Spiritual estate, and to pass sentence upon his own Soul. The best Christi∣ans under Heaven do meet with divers inward and outward changes, sometimes the light shines so clear that they can see things as they are, but at other times all is dark and clou∣dy, and tempestuous, and then they are apt to judg them∣selves by feeling and new representations, and not accor∣ding to the truth. O Sirs, remember this once for all, that times of inward or outward distresses are best for Praying, and worst for judging. If a man will at such times pass sen∣tence on himself, or his estate as a Judg, he will certainly judg unrighteous judgment, for then the Soul is not it self, and is very apt and prone to take Satans work for his own, and to side with him against it self, yea, and then usually it will see nothing, it will think of nothing, it will dwell upon nothing but what makes against it self. 4. When God exercises a man with some exceeding severe and unusual Providences, when God steps out of his ordinary way of Dispensations in his dealings with a man: When God sets a man up before all the world as a mark to shoot at, as he did Job. Now a poor Christian is ready to doubt and conclude, Surely the Lord has no regard of me, he has no entire love for me, his heart is not certainly towards me, seeing all these sore tryals make so much against me; but here the poor Christian is mistaken, as Jacob once was, Gen 42.36. And Jacob their Father said unto them, Me have ye bereaved of my children, Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin away, all these things are against me. But Jacob was out, for all those things made for him, and for the preserva∣tion of the visible Church of God in the World. Certain∣ly all the afflictions that befall the people of God, are but his love-tokens. As many as I love I rebuke and chasten, and there∣fore

those Christians are miserably mistaken that take them for testimonies of his wrath, and effects of his disfavour. O Sirs! what can be more absurd, displeasing, and provoking, than for a Christian to make that an Argument of Gods ha∣tred, that he intends for an instance of his love? and ye•• Christians are apt thus to act. It is observable the Apostle reckons affliction amongst Gods honoraries and tokens of respect, For to you tis given (saith he) not only to believe, but al∣so to suffer. Which (saith Father Latymer) is the greatest promotion that God gives in this world. Job (when he was himself) could not but admire at it, that God should make such an account of man, and that he should so magnify him, and dignify him, as to think him worthy of a rod, a whiping; as to think him worth a melting, and trying every morning, yea, every moment. Tis certain that great prosperity and worldly glory are no sure tokens of Gods love, and tis as certain that great troubles and afflictions are no sure marks of Gods hatred, and yet many poor Christians, when the wa∣ters of affliction rise high, and are ready to overflow them, O how apt are they to conclude that God hates them, and will revenge himself upon them, and that they have nothing of God or Christ, or the Spirit, or Grace in them? Or, 5. When the Spirit the Comforter stands afar off, and witholds those special influences, without which, in a com∣mon ordinary way, a Christian cannot divinely, candidly, clearly and impartially transact with God in order to his own peace, comfort and settlement. Or, 6. When either a Christians evidences are not at hand, or else they are so soiled, darkned, blotted and obscured, as that he is not able to read them. Or, 7. When a Christian is extreamly op∣prest with melancholy. Melancholy is a dark and dusky hu∣mor, which disturbs both Soul and body, and the cure of it belongs rather to the Physitian than to the Divine. It is a most pestilent humor where it abounds, one calls it Balneum Diaboli, the Devils Bath; tis a humor that unfits a man for all sorts of services, but especially those that concern his soul, his spiritual estate, his everlasting condition. The Melan∣choly person tyres the Physitian, grieves the Minister, wounds

Relations, and makes sport for the Devil. There are 5 sorts of persons that the Devil makes his Ass to ride in triumph upon, viz. the ignorant person, the unbelieving person, the proud person, the hypocritical person, and the Melancholy person. Melancholy is a disease that works strange passions, strange imaginations, and strange conclusions. It unmans a man, it makes a man call good evil, and evil good, sweet bitter, and bitter sweet, light darkness, and darkness light. The distemper of the body oftentimes causeth distemper of soul, for the Soul followeth the temper of the body. A Melan∣choly spirit is a dumb spirit, you can get nothing out of him, and a deaf spirit, you can get nothing into him. Now of all the evil spirits we read of in the Gospel, the dumb and the deaf were the worst; darkness, sadness, solitariness, heavi∣ness, mourning, &c. are the only sweet desirable and de∣lightful companions of melancholy persons. Melancholy makes every sweet bitter, and every bitter seven times more bitter: the melancholy person is marvellously prone to bid sleep farewel, and joy farewel, and meat farewel, and friends farewel, and Ordinances farewel, and duties farewel, and Promises farewel, and Ministers farewel, and his Calling farewel, and tis well if he be not even ready to bid God farewel too. Melancholy persons are like Idols that have eyes but see not, and tongues but speak not, and ears but hear not. Melancholy turns truths into Fables, and fables into truths; it turns fancies into realities, and realities into fan∣cies. Melancholy is a fire that burns inwards, and is hard to quench. Now if a Christian be under the power of natu∣ral or accidental Melancholy, his work is not now to be a trying his estate, or a casting up of his accounts to see what he is worth for another world, but to use all such wayes and means as God hath prepared in a natural way for the cure of Melancholy; for as the Soul is not cured by natural causes, so the body is not cured by spiritual Remedies. Now in the seven cases last mentioned, a Christians work lyes rather in mourning, self-judging, self-loathing, self-abhorring, and in repenting and reforming, and in fresh and frequent ex∣ercises of Faith on the Lord Jesus, on his Blood, on his Pro∣mises,

and on his free rich sovereign and glorious Grace, ••hat is displayed and offered in the Gospel, and in a patient waiting upon the Lord in the use of all holy and heavenly helps for deliverance out of his present straits, t••yals and exercises, then in falling upon that great work of casting up his spiritual accounts, and of searching into the Records of glory, to see whether his name be Registred in the Book of Life or no. O Sirs, when poor Christians are bewildered, their proper work is to cast themselves upon the Promises, to trust in the name of the Lord, and to stay themselves up∣on their God. Job in a cloudy stormy day, resolves to trust ••n the Lord, though he should slay him; and so must you: And O that this rule were more seriously minded, and effe∣ctually observed by all doubting, trembling, and staggering Christians. But,

Notes

• Times of deserti∣on and temptati∣on, are rather times and seasons for mourning, watching, restling and seeking of God, than for jud∣ging and deter∣mining of our conditions.
• Psal. 40.12. Psal. 77. Psal. 88. Job 23.8, 9.
• Job 31.6. Dan. 5.27.
• Verses 5, 6.
• 2 Thess. 1.7, 8, 9, 10.
• The candle will never burn clear whilst there is a thief in it, sin in∣dulged in the con∣science, is like Jo∣nah in the ship, which causeth such a tempest, that the Consci∣ence is like a troubled Sea, whose waters cannot rest, or it is like a more in the eye, which causeth a perpe∣tual trouble while it is there.
• Job 7.20. c. 16.12
• Gen. 45.5, 6, 7, 8, 9.
• Rev. 3.19. Heb. 12.5, 6.
• Judg. 6.12, 13. Exod. 17.7. Phil. 1.29.
• Job 7.17, 18.
• Prov. 1.32. Psal. 73.5. Eccles. 9.1, 2.
• Lam. 1.16.
• Psal. 88. Job 33.10. It is an old saying that Melancholia est vehiculum Daemonum. In the German proverb, Luther sayes it goes for currant, Caput Melancho∣licum diaboli Bal∣neum, The melan∣choly head is the Devils bathing place.
• Mat. 9.28, 29. It is no more wonder to see a Melancholy man doubt and questi∣on his spiritual condition, than it is to see a child cry when he is beaten, or to hear a sick man groan, or to hear a drowning man call out for a boat. You may silence a Melancholy man, when you are not able to comfort him. Whilest Nebuchadnezzar was under the power of a deep Melancholy, he could not tell whether he was a man or a Beast. Melancholy is the mother of fears, doubts, disputes, and discomforts.
• Isa. 50.10. Job 13.15.