Abbildungen der Seite
PDF
EPUB

........

bounties of an indulgent providence, "yet will he not learn righteoufnefs." In this fenfe, the divine favour is our natural life, both as to its original, and its continued preservation. All men, whether they be good or bad, are dependent on God's fupporting hand; for he holdeth our foul in life. When a human artificer has conftructed a machine, and put it in motion, he leaves it to itself. But our Almighty Maker has not formed us to fubfift independent of his care. To his favour we are indebted, both for our being, and our well-being. It was the devout acknowledgment of Job, "Thou haft "granted me life and favour, and thy vifitation preferveth my fpirit." Life itself is a grant of his goodnefs, an inftance of his favour, as well as that conftant beneficence, whereby we are furnished with every needful and comfortable accommodation. The very heathens were fenfible of this. When Paul had afferted, in his addrefs to the Athenians, that God is near to every one of us, because in him we live and move and have our being, he quoted their own poct Aratus, in confirmation of what he had faid,

For we his offspring are.

The ftouteft champion on earth, the proudeft monarch in the world, is dependent on God's favour, and lies at his mercy every moment. Daniel faid

》,,་་རས་

to the impious, the ftout-hearted Belshazzar, “ The God in whofe hand thy breath is, and whofe are all thy ways, haft thou not glorified." O that men did but confider, and keep it constantly in their remembrance, that they owe all that they are, and all that they have and poffefs, to the favour of their Maker, their divine Benefactor and Sovereign! A late poet has well faid,

Our breath is forfeited by sin,
To God's revenging law;

We own thy grace, immortal King,
In every gafp we draw.*

2. By God's favour may fometimes be intended, the fignal acts of difcriminating providence. Thus the Lord fhewed kindness to his ancient people Ifrael, in driving the feven heathen nations out of Canaan, the measure of whose iniquities was full, and in planting the feed of Jacob in their room. Why did he do this? It was not done because of their deferts; it was not effected by the power of their own fwords, or their other weapons of war, but, fays the Pfalmift, in devout acknowledgment

to

The reader, it is hoped, will pardon the Editor's intrufive hints, as they are defigned merely to illuftrate the fenfe of the Author, and, in fome fort, to enliven and modernife the performance. See the advertisement at the beginning.

[ocr errors]

66

to the Author of the benefit, By thy right hand, and thy holy arm, because thou hadst a favour unto them." God's favour was their armour; it pro. duced weapons of fuccefs, both offenfive and defenfive. For thou Lord wilt blefs the righteous, with favour wilt thou compafs him, as with a shield. To this we are indebted for all that protection, that fafety, and that comfort, which constitute what may be emphatically called life." Thus," faid David to his men," fhall ye fay to him that liveth," that is, to him that is in the full poffeffion of eafe, plenty, and profperity.

It is in this fense we are to understand the term to live, as ufed by the apostle Paul; " Now we live, if ye ftand fast in the Lord." Does he mean, that they would die if it were otherwise? No; if ye ftand faft in the Lord, we shall be very happy and comfortable. Rebekah complained of being weary of her life because of the daughters of Heth, "and," added fhe, "if Jacob take a wife of the daughters of Heth, what good shall my life do me?" A life of forrow is a dying life, fcarcely worthy of the name of life, in the estimation of him who is bitter in foul. But God's favour produceth relief, deliverance, comfortable provision and accommodations, which may be termed a kind of refurrection, or returning from death to life; fo very great is the

change.

...t✪4.4"

change. We have an inftance of this in Hezekiah, when God restored him from a mortal disease, and in love to his foul, redeemed it from the pit of corruption. "Thou wilt," fays the Pfalmift, "fave the afflicted people; thou wilt light my candle; the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness." A thoufand dangers are prevented, preffing calamities are removed, and we are loaded with multitudes of benefits, whereby our lives are again rendered com. fortable unto us. The ground of all this is the divine favour. It is owing to this that our life is not a continued fcene of bitterness and woe, as our fins have deferved, but at times, through merciful deliverances, and favourable turns of providence, we taste the sweets of tranquillity, rest and joy, to that degree, that our hell is turned into a kind of paradise. O that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! We hear him saying of the man who is governed by his fear; "Because he hath fet his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will fet him on high because he hath known my name. He fhall call upon me,' and I will anfwer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honour him. With long life will I fatisfy him, and fhew him my falvation." The Lord's people acknowledge themselves to be indebted to his fa

Your

[ocr errors]

vour for the happy change of their circumstances. "Lord, thou haft been favourable to thy land: thou haft brought back the captivity of Jacob. Thou haft taken away all thy wrath: thou haft turned thyself from the fierceness of thine anger." All this may serve to confirm and illuftrate the doctrine under confideration, In his favour is life.

3. By God's favour may be meant, his special and diftinguishing grace and kindness, vouchfafed to his own children. It is in this fenfe we are to understand that ardent and pathetic request of the Pfalmift, "Remember me, O Lord, with the fa vour which thou bearest unto thy people; O visit me with thy falvation!" From this peculiar favour our spiritual life flows, as well as all the ftreams which nourish and feed that life. It is the fountain of regenerating and converting grace, whereby we are made to live unto God. It implants the feed of divine life in the heart; and they who thus live, live not unto themselves, but to him that died for them, and rofe again. It is the favour of God which makes us his people. "It hath pleased the Lord," faith Samuel," to make you his people." It is owing to this favour that the Lord takes compla cency and delight in his faints. "The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will fave, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with finging."

« ZurückWeiter »