The Riches of Bunyan: Selected from His WorksBunyan, John
Religion
The Riches of Bunyan: Selected from His Works
Bunyan, John
Theology, Doctrinal
4. Thy fear that Christ will not receive thee, may arise from a
sense of THE EXCEEDING MERCY OF BEING SAVED. Besides, the Holy Ghost
hath a way to greaten heavenly things to the understanding of the
coming sinner; yea, and at the same time to greaten, too, the sin
and unworthiness of that sinner. Now, the soul staggering by
wonders, saying, "What! to be made like angels, like Christ; to live
in eternal bliss, joy, and felicity! This is for angels, and for
them that can walk like angels."
Thus doth the greatness of the things desired quite dash and
overthrow the mind of the desire. "O, it is too big, it is too big,
it is too great a mercy."
But, coming sinner, let me reason with thee. Thou sayest it is too
big, too great. Well, will things that are less satisfy thy soul?
Will a less thing than heaven, than glory and eternal life, answer
thy desires? "No, nothing less. Yet I fear they are too big, and too
good for me even to obtain." Well, as big and as good as they are,
God giveth them to such as thou. They are not too big for God to
give; no, not too big to give freely. Be content; let God give like
himself; he is that eternal God, and giveth like himself. When kings
give, they do not use to give as poor men do. Now, God is a great
King; let him give like a king; nay, let him give like himself, and
do thou receive like thyself. He has all, and thou hast nothing.
5. Thy fears that Christ will not receive thee, may arise from THINE
OWN FOLLY IN INVETING, yea, in thy chalking out to God a way to
bring thee home to Jesus Christ. Some souls that are coming to Jesus
Christ are great tormentors of themselves upon this account. They
conclude that if their coming to Jesus Christ is right, they must
needs be brought home thus and thus.
Now, I say, if God brings thee to Christ, and not by the way that
thou hast appointed, then thou art at a loss; and for thy being at a
loss, thou mayest thank thyself. God hath more ways than thou
knowest of to bring a sinner to Jesus Christ; but he will not give
thee before-hand an account by which of them he will bring thee to
Christ.
Sometimes he hath his ways in the whirlwind, but sometimes the Lord
is not there.
If God will deal more gently with thee than with others of his
children, grudge not at it; refuse not the waters that go softly,
lest he bring up to thee the waters of the rivers strong and many,
even those two smoking firebrands, the devil and guilt of sin. He
saith to Peter, "Follow me;" and what thunder did Zaccheus hear or
see? "Zaccheus, come down," said Christ; and he came down, says
Luke, and received him joyfully.
But had Peter or Zaccheus made the objection that thou hast
made-looking for a heavy load of guilt, or fearful temptations of
Satan-and directed the Spirit of the Lord as thou hast done, they
might have looked long enough before they had found themselves
coming to Jesus Christ.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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