Moses his choice with his eye fixed upon Heaven, discovering the happy condition of…

CHAP. XXXVIII. A gracious heart hath a high esteem of reproaches in the cause of Christ.

That a gracious heart hath a high esteem of ¹the reproaches of Christ, he highly esteems of every disesteem he suffers for Christ: And not only bears reproaches and sufferings patiently, but triumphingly; he is not only contented with them, but counts himself enriched by them. This is a great riddle and mystery to the world, that Sufferings, Troubles, Miseries and Reproaches should be rejoiced in, and esteemed highly of. We are to understand by reproaches is this point likewise, not only slanders, and mocks, and scorns, the sufferings of Gods people in their names formally, but materially their sufferings, they suffer for Christ, upon which they come to be contemned: So that whatsoever Gods people do suffer in the cause of God, and for Christ, they have high thoughts of it: If God should give unto them all the riches and ⟨p. 440⟩honours of the world, they could not count themselves so enriched as they do by their sufferings. For men to be enriched by the glorious things of heaven, this is no wonder; but to be enriched by their sufferings and reproaches, this is the great wonder of the world, that only those that have the Spirit of God are acquainted withal. Says St. Paul in Rom. 5. 3. We glory in tribulations: There is a patient bearing of tribulation, and a rejoicing in tribulation, and glorying in tribulation; now they did not only bear them patiently, and rejoice in them, but they did esteem them their glory. It is a notable speech in Acts 5. 41. It is said of the Apostles when they were called before the Council, and were very ill handled, They departed from the Council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name; to be worthy of shame, is a strange kind of phrase: But in the Original it is, They counted it honour