A77996:173
The rare jewel of Christian contentment Wherein is showedThe rare jewel of Christian contentment Wherein is shewed
The rare jewel of Christian contentment Wherein is showed; 1. What contentment is. 2. The holy art or mystery of it. 3. Several lessons that Christ teacheth, to work the heart to contentment. 4. The excellencies of it. 5. The evils of murmuring. 6. The aggravations of the sin of murmuring. By Jeremiah Burroughs. The first of the eleven volumes that are published by Thomas Goodwin, William Greenhil, Sydrach Simpson, Philip Nigh, William Bridge, John Yates, William Adderly.The rare jewel of Christian contentment Wherein is shewed; 1. What contentment is. 2. The holy art or mystery of it. 3. Several lessons that Christ teacheth, to work the heart to contentment. 4. The excellencies of it. 5. The evils of murmuring. 6. The aggravations of the sin of murmuring. By Jeremiah Burroughs. The first of the eleven volumes that are published by Thomas Goodwin, William Greenhil, Sydrach Sympson, Philip Nye, William Bridge, John Yates, William Adderly.
London: printed for Ben. Billingsley, 1666
THE RARE JEWEL OF CHRISTIAN CONTENTMENT. › Sermon 4: SERMON, IV. at Stepney. Aug. 17. 1645.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Fourthly, So vile I am, that I can receive no good neither of my self; I am not only an empty vessel, but a corrupt and unclean vessel that would spoil any thing that comes into it: So are all our hearts, every one of our hearts is not only empty of good, but are like a musty vessel, that if any good liquor be poured into it, it spoils it.
Fourthly, So vile I am, that I can receive no good neither of my self; I am not only an empty vessel, but a corrupt and unclean vessel that would spoil any thing that comes into it: So are all our hearts, every one of our hearts is not onely empty of good, but are like a musty vessel, that if any good liquor be poured into it, it spoils it.
Fifthly, If God doth cleanse us in some measure, and doth put into us some good liquor, some Grace of his spirit, yet, We can make use of nothing, neither can we have it, if God doth but withdraw himself: If God doth but leave us one moment, after he hath bestowed upon us the greatest gifts, and whatsoever abilities we can desire, If God should say, I will give you them, now go and trade, now I have given you these and these abilities, we cannot stir one foot further neither if God doth but leave us. Doth God give us gifts and parts? Then let us fear and tremble lest God should leave us to our selves, for then how foully should we abuse those gifts and parts? You think other men and women have memory, and gifts, and parts, and you would fain ⟨p. 71⟩have them. But suppose God should give you these, and there leave you, you would utterly spoil them.
Sixthly, We are worse than nothing, For by sin we come to be a great deal worse than nothing; sin makes us more vile than nothing, sin makes us contrary to all good: now it is a great deal worse to have a contrariety to all that is good, than merely to have an emptiness of all that is good; we are not empty pitchers in respect of good, but we are like pitchers filled with poison, and is it much for such as we are to be cut short of outward comforts?