Exhortation to saints to maintain and promote peace 6/8

           (3.) Consider the sad consequences of your contentions.

           (a) You put a stop to the growth of grace.  The body may as well thrive in a fever, as the soul prosper when on a flame with strife and contention.  No, first this fire in the bones must be quenched, and brought into its natural temper, and so must this unkindly heat be slaked among Christians before either can grow.  I pray observe that place, ‘But speaking the truth in love’—or being sincere in love—‘may grow up into him in all things,’ Eph. 4:15.  The apostle is up­on a cure, showing how souls that at present are weak and their grace rather wan and withered than growing, may come to thrive and flourish; and the recipe he gives is a composi­tion of these two rare drugs, sincerity and love.  Preserve these, and all will do well; as ver. 16, where the whole body is said to ‘edify itself in love.’  There may be preaching, but no edifying, with­out love.  Our times are a sad comment upon this text.

           (b) You cut off your trade with heaven at the throne of grace.  You will be little in prayer to God, I warrant you, if much in squabbling with your brethren.  It is impossible to go from wrangling to praying with a free spirit.  And if you should be so bold as to knock at God's door, you are sure to have cold wel­come.  ‘Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift,’ Matt. 5:24.  God will not have the incense of prayer put to such strange fire; nor will he eat of our leavened bread, taste of any perform­ance soured with malice and bitterness of spirit.  First the peace was renewed, and a covenant of love and friendship struck between Laban and Jacob, Gen. 31:44, and then, ‘Jacob offered sacrifice upon the mount, and called his brethren to eat bread,’ ver. 54. The very heathens thought no serious business could be well done by quarrelling spirits.  Therefore the senators of Rome used to visit the temple dedicated Jovi depositorio, because there they did deponere inimicitias—lay down all their feuds and controversies, before they went into the senate to consult of state affairs.  Durst not they go to the senate, till friends? and dare we go up to God’s altar, bow our knees to him in prayer, while our hearts are roiled and swollen with anger, envy, and malice?  O God humble us.

           (c) As we cut off our trade with heaven, so with one another.  When two countries fall out, whose great interest lies in their mutual traffic, they must needs both pinch by the war.  Truly, the Christians’ great gains come in by their mutual commerce, and they are the richest Christians commonly who are seated with the greatest advantage for this trade.  As no nation have all their commodities of their own growth, but needs some merchandise with others; so there is no Christian that could well live without bor­rowing from his brethren.  There is ‘that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part,’ Eph. 4:16.  Paul himself is not so well laid in, but he hopes to get something more than he hath from the meanest of those he preacheth to.  He tells the Christians at Rome, Rom. 1, he longs to see them, as to impart some spiritual gift to them, ver. 11, so, saith he, ‘that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me,’ Rom. 1:12; yea, he hopes to be ‘filled with their company,’ Rom. 15:24.  As a man is filled with good cheer, so he hopes to make a feast of their com­pany.  Now contentions and divisions spoil all intercourse between believers.  They are as baneful to Christian communion, as a great pestilence or plague is to the trade of a market town.  Communication flows from communion, and communion that is founded upon union.  The church grows under per­secution.  That sheds the seed all over the field, and brings the gospel where else it had not been heard of. But divisions and contentions, like a furious storm, wash the seed out of the land, with its heart, fatness, and all.