SERMON AT ST. ANDREWS.
BY ALEXANDER HENDERSON.[2]
"Thy people shall be willing in the day of Thy power, in the
beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning; Thou hast the
dew of thy youth."—Psalm cx. 3.
It is, beloved in the Lord, very expedient, and sometimes most necessar, that we turn away our eyes from kings and their greatness, from kirkmen and men of state, and that we turn them towards another object, and look only to Jesus Christ, who is the great king, priest, and prophet of His kirk. The godly in former times, who were kings, priests, and prophets themselves, used to do this, and that before Christ; and mickle more is it required of us now in thir days, seeing we live in troublesome times; for there is a comfort that comes to the children of God that way. The first part of this psalm expresses to us the threefold office of Christ, and the second part of it expresses the valiant acts our Lord Jesus does by these His three offices, but especially by His Princely office; whilk indeed is His worst studied office by many men in the world. We would, many of us, willingly take Him for our prophet to teach us, and for our priest to intercede for us, and be a sacrifice for our sins, but when it comes to His Princely office, to direct us what we should do, then we would be at that whilk seems best in our own eyes.
His Princely office is described unto us here three ways. 1. In relation to God Himself; "The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at My right hand." 2. In respect of His enemies; "The Lord sall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thy enemies." Were His enemies never so many, and never so despiteful against Him, yet He sall rule in the midst of them. And indeed this is a very admirable part of His kingly office, that even in the midst of His enemies He sall have a kingdom for Himself, in despite of them, and all that they can do or say against it. 3. The third, wherein the glory of His kingly office consists, is in thir words that I have read to you: and that is in relation to, and in respect of the subjects of the kingdom of Christ. And they are described here to be a people belonging to Jesus Christ; to be a people on whom God manifests His power; and they are a most willing people, a people who count holiness to be their chiefest beauty. And they are so marvellously multiplied, that it is a wonder to consider of it: there is no more drops of dew will fall, nor they will not fall any faster in a morning than the Lord will multiply them, when He is pleased to do so. And although the Lord sometimes multiply them in a secret manner, yet still the multitude stands to be true.
That the purposes may be the better tane up by you who will take heed to them, consider of these parts in the words. 1. The persons of whom the Psalmist speaks here. "Thy people." 2. The properties of these people in this day: They sall be a willing people; a holy people; a people who sall be miraculously multiplied. And so their properties is willingness, holiness, and multiplication.
Many proofs has been of the truth of this prophecy since the beginning—that the Lord's people sall be willing in the day of His power, in the beauties of holiness; from the womb of the morning thou hast the dew of thy youth. There were many evident proofs of the truth of this since the beginning of the plantation of the gospel into the world. And surely we know not a more evident and notable proof of it than this same that is presently into this land, nor think I that there be any who can show the parallel of it. The Lord has made them willingly to offer up themselves, and all that they have, for Him. And they are a people of holiness; albeit it is true, indeed, many has been brought to it from this quarter and that quarter of the land, since the beginning, to be more holy than they used to be. And if the multiplication of them be not wonderful, I cannot tell what ye will tell me of that is more wonderful; so that indeed it is a miracle to all who hear of it. In the time while Christ was upon the earth there were two sorts of miracles to be seen;—first, Christ made the dumb to speak, the blind to see, the lame to walk, &c.: this indeed was a great miracle. The second sort of miracles was of him who did see these things wrought by Christ, and yet for all that, did not believe in Him who did work them. Even so there are two sorts of wonders in this same time wherein we live;—first, how the Lord has multiplied His people, and made them to be so many, whereas, at the first, we thought them to be but very few; secondly, we cannot but wonder at these who observes not God's hand into it: and indeed we cannot but wonder that any can be so blind that they observe not the very hand and finger of God in the work. Ay, we who have been witnesses to it, for the most part, we cannot but wonder at the work of God in it. It has not been man's wit has done the work, and multiply so, but only God has done it; and we cannot tell how; but only we see that there are numbers continually multiplied.
I. "Thy people." Here is a note of property, and a note of distinction. First, it is a note of property. They are God's people—God has absolute right over a people, and there is none who has any right over them but He alone. It's true all people are under Him, but He calls not all His people after this manner. All things are for God, and subordinate to Him; the absolute power to rule and to command these people is in God's hand, and He will not give that power to any other over them: and He has good reason so to do. 1. Because He was thinking upon His people from all eternity; and there was none who did that but only He. 2. He made us and fashioned us in time; and neither any authority or magistrate did that. 3. Who is it that provides means for their sustenance daily, and makes these means effectual, but only the Lord? A man cannot make one pyle (blade) of grass, or one ear of corn, to grow for thy entertainment, but only the Lord: and when thou hast gotten these things, it is the blessing of God that makes them effectual. For when ye say the grace to your meat, say ye it to man? No, ye say it only to God. So that every way ye are God's people. And then, whilk is more, and therefore we are bound to be His people, no man can redeem the life of his brother, nor give a price sufficient for his life, let be (let alone) for his soul, and yet the Lord, He has redeemed us from hell, and from the grave; and therefore we belong to Him. Then is it not the Lord who enters in covenant with thee, and says, I will remember thy sins no more? Then albeit all the world should remember thy ill deeds, yet if the Lord remember them not, then thou art blessed. It is He who says, I will write My laws in your hearts, to lead you here: it is He who puts us in the estate of grace while we are here, and so puts us in hope of glory after this life. It is He who sall be our judge at that great day. And so ye are the Lord's people, by way of property.
And this was it that made the apostles so bold, when it was alleged that they had done that whilk was not right: they made the enemies themselves judges, and says, "Whether it be right in your sight to obey God rather than man, judge ye." As if they had said, It's true indeed we are mickle obliged to man, but we are more obliged to God than to all men; for what is it that man can do to us, either good or ill, but God can do that als (also) and more? And upon this ground, in the next chapter, they draw this conclusion,—It behoveth us rather to obey God than man. And so, first, they reason with the adversars themselves upon it; and seeing that they could not deny it, upon that they draw up their conclusion. I mark this for this end, that whenever ye are enjoined to do anything by any man, that then ye would not forget this dignity and power that God has over you, and that ye are the people of Jesus Christ; and therefore no man ought to enjoin anything to be done by you, but that for the whilk he has a warrant from God. There is a great controversy now about disobedience to superiors, and the contempt of those who are in authority; but there is not a word of that, whether God be obeyed or not, or if He be disobeyed by any. Fy, that people should sell themselves over to the slavery of man, when the Lord has only sovereign power over them! I would not have you to think that a whole country of people are appointed only to uphold the grandeur of five or six men. No, they are ordained to be magistrates for your good. And sall we think that a ministry shines into a land for the upholding of the grandeur of some few persons. No, all these things are ordained for the good of God's people; and, seeing that it is so, sall ye then make yourselves like to asses and slaves, to be subject to all that men pleases to impose upon you? No, no; try anything that they impose upon you, before ye obey it, if it is warranted by God or not; because God is the only superior over you.
2. Secondly. "Thy people." This also is a note of distinction; for every people are God's people, but there is a distinction among them. All people, it's true, are God's people by right of creation: why therefore says he, Thy people, and not all people? Because all people belong not to Christ. God has authority over all indeed, but in a special manner He enters into covenant with some. All people who are subject to Him in His providence are not His peculiar people, His royal nation, His holy priesthood, His chosen generation, but only those of them who belong to Christ; those are properly termed to be His people. And we should remember of this, that those who are the people of God, they have notable privileges; they have all things that any people should have, and, whatever we should be, they have that. Where any are the people of God, there there is blessedness indeed, for they have His truth for their security, they have His love for their comfort, His power for their defence. The Lord God, He takes His people into His bosom, and with every soul He does so, and says, "I the Lord thy God enters in covenant with thee, and renews the covenant that before I made with thee." And then He lays a necessity upon thee, by His providence, that thou must enter into covenant with Him; and then He says to thee, "I will not remember thy sins any more; I know they are heinous, great, and many, but because thou desires that they should not be remembered, therefore I will not remember them. And because when ye have renewed your covenant with Me, ye will be aye in a fear to break it again, therefore I will write My law in your hearts. And so whatever I promise to you, I will perform it freely when ye are in covenant with Me; and whatever ye promise to Me, being in covenant with Me, I sall perform it for you also, at least I sall give you strength to perform it." And therefore to the end that ye may be perfectly blessed, enter into a covenant with God; and without ye be in covenant with Him, ye sall be in nothing but perpetual misery. I would have all of you to think this to be your only health, wealth, and peace, and your only glory in the world, to be in covenant with God; and so that ye are the people of God, I would not have you to count men to be rich and glorious men by their estates in the world—that he can spend so many chalders of victual yearly, or so many thousand merks. O, a silly, beggarly glory is this! Naked thou came into the world, and naked thou must go out of it again. But see how mickle thou has of the knowledge of Jesus Christ, how far thou art forward in the work of repentance, faith, &c., and such good actions. Learn to set your affections on things that are above, and testify it by your actions.