niay fend for the fin of his people ; yet we doe not find that God chargeth this on his people, that they thall fuffer for his caufe and affliction for their fin, bur when we come to fuffer for the caufe of Chrift, God hath a further end in it then to afflict you fo as to call for mourning. Rejo;ce and leap for joy, why? for great is your reward in heaven; you thall be rewarded for your fuffering,every spot of dirt that is cat on you,shall be turned into a pearle, fhall make your reward more glorious, your happines, that happines that the Saints fhall have is called a reward, not a reward of merit, but a reward of free grace; As a father though he intends an inheritance to his child, yer to encourage him to goe to School, he promifeth him fuch and fuch a reward,but not out of merit, but out of his free love to ward the child;the Lord is pleafed to call all the glory in heaven a reward, that we fuffer for his names fake, though mine gled with fin, and this is to encourage us poore creatures, that are led now in hope of a rewardsand great is your rewand it is much, a great reward; there is furely a difference in the glory of heaven, if they that fuffer most thall have the greatest reward, they fhall have a great reward, because they fuffer so much, and this for encourageing in fuffering furely there is feule-difference in rewarding for fuffering, they fhall have a great reward. This is obfervable, that Chrift doth not tell them what reward they fhall have, he doth not inftance in particular rewards, no,because it is fo great as it is not to be limited, as not to be expreffed; as we are not able to understand it, therefore Chrift names no particular reward, but it is a great reward; furely our hearts are too narrow when we conceive any limits of Gods merey, when we thinke thus, if God be mercifull to us, thus and thus, then we fhall be happy; thou haft too narrow a fpirit to put any thus and thus on the mercy of God, the mercy of God it is a deep expreffion, there is no carnall heart in the world, but as he limits his obedience, fo he limits Gods mercy, but he doth frame fome finall contentment that he hopes to have, and if he could have but fome things he could be fatisfied; a gracious heart is fo large, that nothing particularly can fatisfie him, and this is the ground why

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a gracious heart will never limit himselfe in any duty, but he muft put it felfe into an infinite ocean of fervice for God, the expectation which fuch a foule hath from God,it is beyond all finite good whatfoever, therefore faith Chrift, great is your reward; he doth not name any particular reward.

Againe, Great is your reward in heaven; it may be you shall meet with no reward here on earth, as long as you live on the earth, you fhall be reviled and perfecuted, here will never be an end of this, it may be all your life time will be spent, and therefore look for your reward higher. If I were perfecuted by fome, and honoured by others, I did not much care, bur ic be you fhall be reviled by the wicked, and discountenan may ced by the godly, so that you fhall have no reward at all here on earth, but you are ro expect it hereafter. I confefle the Lord fometimes is pleafed to reward them here on earth,that is, by honouring of them in the confciences of thofe that did revile them, well, but if it should not be fo,if you should have nothing here, you must waite for it till you come to heaven, there to have that full reward; and the Saints are willing fo to doe, they are willing to ftay for all their reward till they come to heaven; we fee fuch a reallity and certainty and glory in the things of heaven, that we are willing to stay, and that will make amends for all when it comes; there is no carnill heart willing to ftay,but they must have fomewhat for the pres fent in han f, but for the Raying for that afterward they cannot doe it, they have not eyes to peirce the heaven to fee, beyond the vale, what is this? It is faid in the 2 Pet. 1 Chap. 9. verfe. But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cann fee afar off, and bath forgotten that he was purged from his old finnes. Wicked men are purblind, they can fee things that are just before them, but they cannot fee afar off, but they cannot fee heaven, but they look on the things of the earth as reallities; but the Saints look on the things of the earth as vaine things, and empty things, and they look on the things of hea ven as reallity; the men of the world they trade with God for fmall things as it were, they must have contentment of the flesh for the prefent for totay their carul hearts,neither doe

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they know what they are, for they trade but for little with God; but now the Saints they trade with God for enemicie, o for glory, for a Kingdome, and for a Crownes and they are willing to. flay till afterward, they care not what becomes of them here, fo they have the kingdoine of heaven hereafter gr there's difference between the lervice that God hath in the world from men, the Lord hath fome that doe him fervice,and they must have prefent pay, faith God, you shall have it, and that is your portion, when he hath given thee fome outward contentment in the world, that is all you are like to havel for ever; but the Saints of God, they do not ftand for whatthey thall have, but they doe any rvice for him, he shall have all that they can doe, they are refolved to ferve him what ever comes of it, though they have not that prefent pay that others have in the world, yet great is their reward in heaven,the re ward in heaven is great, a great reward. Pfal. 57. 2 verse, d Power from on high, that is, a glorious power, a great powermit The 25 Chap. of Jeremiah 3 verfe. Surely there is axemardaid for the righteous what ever they meete with here,furely there is a reward in heaven. 119 Pfal, the 89 verfe. For ever Q Lord, thy word is feled in heaven: there is certainly a reward Evidences of for the Saints. One evidence that there must be a great reward: Y a great reward is this, That from the beginning of the world to this day they

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have fuffered fo much on Earth, that he must have fome time. to communicate his infinire treafures, and that vifibly too; certainly the power of God will be in a kind answering to his grace and mercy to work mightily, to manifeft the infinite ri-1 ches of his grace in rewarding. Therefore there is a reward for the Saints, and above all for the fuffering Saints..

Secondly, There must needs be a great reward in heaven for them, because the Lord gives the greatest portion of the earth to the wicked,even to the dogs, There are higher things: for the Saints, if the earth be fo excellent that he gives to his enemies,what hath he for his owne Saints, thofe that are deere to him,his Children that fuffer for him! When we look on this? world, when we fee what a Canopie it hath, and befpangled with ftarres, and fee the glory of the earth, and the riches

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thereof, and confider whole portion this is, even the portion of the enemies of God a portion of thofe that God hates; The whole Turkish Empire is but a Cram,that the Mafter of the Luther. Family cafts to his Dog; Surely then what fhall the Saints have! Therefore when you fee the wicked profper, reafon after this manner, Is it fo indeed, that wicked men have fo much here, then what fhall Saints have, thofe that'uffer for himoved lof...

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Thirdly, A third Demonftration is this, The hopes of the Saints here are railed unto, and that by the holy-Ghoft, their hopes for great things muft not vanith, because they are railed by the power of the holy Ghoft. The r5 Chap. of the Romans" 13 vere. Now the God of hope, fill you with all joy and in believing, that je may abound in hope, through the power of the holy Ghost The hopes of the Saints are railed, by whom? by God, and by the power of the holy Ghoft. If God will fec himfelfe a work, to raife hopes, and the holy Ghoft will fet himfelfe to raise up their hopes, furely then they must not be Tight hopes, furely the object of their hopes is very grear, Becaufe it is the glory of God, and the glory of the holy Ghoft that raifeth up their hopes; furely they are glorious hopes. Your great men, Captaines and Princes, if they will take a ftile,a title for themfelves from any thing,they have fome high efteeme of it. The hopes of the Saints are fuch things as God takes a title from them, he is the God of their hopes; furely their reward must be a glorious reward, that they doe thus hope for

Fourthly, The fourth Demonftration is this, it must needs be a great reward, because it was that that was prepared for them before the foundation of the world was laid: God from all eternitie hath been preparing glory for his people; furely that worke of God that he hath been preparing from all eternitie will be very glorious.

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Fifthly, A fifth Demonftration is this, That it is a great reward you have, because when ever it comes, it comes unto the Saints to that end, that God may declare unto men and Angells, what his infinite power is able to raise a creature too,

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and what his infinite mercy is able to bestow upon a creature, wee are chofen to the praise of his rich and glorious grace; this be Gods end in chufing us, that he might manifeft what the power of his grace is, and what the power of his grace means, here is that reward for you,to what an height an infinite God is able to raife poore creatures to Great is your reward in heaven,

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Sixthly, It must be a great reward, because it is that likewife that is the fruit of the purchafe of the blood of Christ, that coft to deare,that must be of as great value and worth that the blood of Chrift deferved. As fin is to all eternitie crying for more and more wrath to God, bechufe fim deferves more, fo the merit of Chrift, if thou halt not to the utmost capacity that fuch a creature is capable of, the merit of Chrift will cry for thee, and is not here enough to encourage us in fuffering, it is fuch a reward as Chrift is gone before to prepare, John E Chap. It is one end of his Afcenfion into heaven, there to make all things fit for his Saints and Difciples against they come. If you will aske me what it is, what, thould I tell you of the bleiled vifion of God, the enjoyment of God, communion with Cod, communion with the Father, Sonne, and holy Ghoft. The Scripture tells but little of the glory of the foule, because it would have us to argue our felves from that which is more fenfible; for if the Scripture tells us that the body thall fhine as the Sunne in the Firmament,then what thall the foule doe? the foule is capable of communion with God, o put you in mind of this, that every time when you fuffer any thing, you act your faith on that glorious reward; Blefjed are ye when je fuffer for righteoufneffe fake, and when men rev le you; for great is your reward. In the 10 verfe; Bleffed are they which are perfecuted for righteoufneffe fake and in the 11 verfe; the perfon is changed; what is the reafon the perfon is changed Firft, Bleffed are they, and then bleffed are ye; the reafonis becaufe Chrift would feeme to direct himselfe unto thofe Difciples that he fent abroad to preach the Gofpel; As he had fpoke to all thofe that fhould profeffe the Gofpel; Bleffed are they that fuffer for rightconfneffe; fo Bleffed are ye.

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