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2. Consider that he doth not, indeed cannot, bid thee deny so much for him as he hath done for thee.Is reproach for Christ so intolerable, that thy proud spirit cannot brook it?  Why, who art thou? what great house comest thou from?  See One that had more honour to lay at stake than I hope thou darest pretend to—Jesus Christ—who ‘thought it not rob­bery to be equal with God: but made himself of no reputation,’ Php. 2:6, 7.  Is it pain and torment thou art afraid of?  O look up to the cross where the Lord of life hung for thy sins! and thou wilt take up thy own cross more willingly, and thank God too, that he hath made thine so light and easy, when he provided one so heavy and tormenting for his beloved Son.
3. Consider, whatever God calls thee to deny for his truth, it is not more than he can recompense.Moses saw this, and that made him leap out of his honours and riches into the reproach of Christ, ‘for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward,’ Heb. 11:26.  It is much that a man will deny himself in for something his heart strongly desires in this life.  If a man be greedy of gain, he will deny himself half of a night’s sleep to plot in his bed, or rise early from it to be at his work; he will eat homely fare, go in vile raiment, dwell in a smoky hole, as we see in London, for the conveniency of a shop.  How men of quality will crowd themselves up into a little corner, though to the prejudice of their healths, and hazard sometimes of their lives! yet, hope of gain recompenseth all.  And now, put their gains into the scale with thine Christian, that are sure to come in by denying thyself for Christ, which theirs are not, and ask thy soul whether it blush not to see them so freely deny themselves of the comfort of their lives for an imaginary, uncertain, at best a short advantage, while thou hucklest so with Christ for a few outward enjoyments, which shall be paid thee over a hundred-fold here, and beyond what thou canst now conceive when thou comest to heaven's glory!

           Sixth Direction. Labour to carry on the work of mortification every day to further degrees than other. It is the sap in the wood that makes it hard to burn, and corruption unmortified that makes the Christian loath to suffer.  Dried wood will not kindle sooner, than a heart dried and mortified to the lusts of the world will endure anything for Christ.  The apostle speaks of some that were ‘tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrec­tion,’ Heb. 11:35.  They did not like the world so well, as being so far on their journey to heaven—though in hard way —to be willing to come back to live in it any longer.  Take heed, Christian, of leaving any worldly lust unmortified in thy soul.  This will never consent thou shouldest endure much for Christ.  Few ships sink at sea; they are the rocks and shelves that split them.  Couldst thou get off the rocks of pride and unbelief, and escape knocking on the sands of fear of man, love of the world, thou wouldst do well enough in the greatest storm that can overtake thee in the sea of this world.  ‘If a man purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for his Master's use, and prepared unto every good work,’ II Tim. 2:21.  O that we knew the heaven that is in a mortified soul! one that is crucified to the world and lusts of it.  He hath the advantage of any other in doing or suffering for Christ, and enjoying Christ in both.  A mortified soul lives out of all noise and disturbance from those carnal passions, which put all out of quiet where they come.  When the mortified soul goes to duty there are not those rude and unmannerly intrusions of impertinent, carnal, yea sinful thoughts, between him and his God.  Is he to go to prison?  Here is not such weeping and taking on; no lust to hang about his legs, and break his heart with its insinuations; no self-love to entreat him that he would pity himself.  His heart is free, got out of the acquaintance of these troublers of his peace; and a prison to him, if he may go upon so honourable an errand as testifying to the truth, O how welcome to him!  Whereas a unmortified heart is wedged in with so great acquaintance and kindred, as I may so say, which his heart hath in the world, that it is impossible to get out of their embraces into any willingness to suffer.  A man that comes into an inn in a strange place, he may rise at what time he pleaseth, and be gone as early as he pleaseth in the morning.  There are none {to} entreat him to stay.  But it is hard to get out of a friend's house; these, like the Levite’s father‑in‑law, will be desiring him to stay one day, and then one more, and another after that.  The mortified soul is the stranger.  He meets with no dis­turbance—I mean comparatively—in his journey to heaven; while the unmortified one is linked in fast enough for getting on his journey in haste, especially so long as the flesh hath so fair an excuse as the foul­ness of the way or weather, any hardship likely to be endured for his profession.  I have read of one of the Catos, that, in his old age, he withdrew himself from Rome to his country-house, that he might spend his elder years free from care and trouble.  And all the Romans, as they ride by his house, used to say, iste solus scit vivere—this man alone knows how to live.  I know not what art Cato had to dis­burden himself, by his retiring, of the world’s cares.  I am sure, a man may go into the country and yet not leave the city be­hind him.  His mind may be in a crowd while his body is in the solitude of a wilderness.  Alas! poor man, he was a stranger to the gospel.  Had he been but acquainted with this, it could have shown him a way out of the world’s crowd in the midst of Rome itself, and that is, by mortifying his heart to the world, both in the pleasures and troubles of it; and then that high commendation might have been given him with­out any hyperbole.  For, to speak truth, he only knows aright how to live in the world that hath learned to die to the world.  And so much for the first point; which, we may remind you, was, that the Chris­tian is to stand ready for all trials and troubles that may befall him.  The second follows.

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 Third Direction. Be much in the meditation of a suffering state.  He will say his lesson best, when his master calls him forth, that is oftenest conning it over beforehand to himself.  Do by the troubles thou mayest meet with, as porters used to do with their burdens—they will lift them again and again, before they take them on their back.  Thus do thou.  Be often lifting up in thy meditations those evils that may befall thee for Christ and his truth; and try how thou couldst fadge [agree] with them, if called to en­dure them.  Set poverty, prison, banishment, fire, and fagot, before thee, on the one hand; and the precious truths of Christ on the other, with the sweet promises made to those that shall hold fast the word of patience held forth in such an hour of temptation. Suppose it were now thy very case, and thou wert put to thy choice which hand thou wouldst take, study the question seriously, till thou determinest it clearly in thy conscience.  And do this often, so that the arguments which flesh and blood will then be sure to use for thy pitying thyself, may not be new and unanswered, nor the encouragements and strong consolations which the word affords be strange and under any suspicion in thy thoughts, when thou art to ven­ture thy life upon their credit and truth.  That of Augustine we shall find most true, non facile inven­iuntur præsidia in adversitate, quæ non fuerint in pace quæsita—the garrisons are not easily found in adversity which were not sought for and known dur­ing peace.  The promises are our garrison and fastness at such a time; and we shall not find it easy to run to them in a strait, except we were acquainted with them in a time of peace.  A stranger that flies to a house for refuge in the dark night, he fumbles about the door, and knows not how to find the latch—his enemy, if nigh, may kill him before he can open the door.  But one that lives in the house, or is well ac­quainted with it, is not long a getting in.  ‘Come, my people,’ saith God, ‘enter thou into thy chambers,’ Isa. 26:20.  He is showing them their lodgings in his at­tributes and promises, before it is night and their suf­ferings be come, that they may readily find the way to them in the dark.

           Fourth Direction. Make a daily resignation of thyself up to the will of God.  Indeed this should be, as it were, the lock of the night and the key of the morning.  We should open and shut our eyes with this recommending of ourselves into the hands of God.  This, if daily performed—not for­mally, as all duties frequently repeated, without the more care, are like to be; but solemnly—would sweetly dispose the soul for a welcoming of any trial that can befall him. The awkness of our hearts to suffer comes much from distrust.  An unbelieving soul treads upon the promise as a man upon ice—at the first going upon it, it is full of fears and tumultuous thoughts lest it should crack.  Now this daily resignation of thy heart, as it will give thee an occasion of conversing more with the thoughts of God's power, faithfulness, and other of his attributes—for want of familiarity with which, jealousies arise in our hearts when put to any great plunge—so also it will furnish thee with many experi­ences of the reality both of his attributes and promises; which, though they need not any testimony from sense to gain them any credit with us, yet, so much are we made of sense, so childish and weak is our faith, that we find our hearts much helped by those experiences we have had, to rely on him for the fu­ture.  Look therefore carefully to this; every morning leave thyself and ways in God’s hand, as the phrase is, Ps 10:14.  And at night, look again, how well God hath looked to his trust, and sleep not till thou hast affected thy heart with his faithfulness, and laid a stronger charge on thy heart to trust itself again in God’s keeping in the night.  And when any breach is made, and seeming loss befall thee in any enjoyment, which thou hast by faith insured of thy God, observe how God fills up that breach, and makes up that loss to thee; and rest not till thou hast fully vindicated the good name of God to thy own heart.  Be sure thou lettest no discontent or dissatisfaction lie upon thy spirit at God's dealings; but chide thy heart for it, as David did his, Ps. 42.  And thus doing, with God’s blessing, thou shalt keep thy faith in breath for a longer race, when called to run it.

           Fifth Direction. Make self-denial appear as ra­tional and reasonable as thou canst to thy soul.  The stronger the understanding is able to reason for the equity and rationality of any work or duty, the more readily and cheerfully it is done, if the heart is honest and sincere.  Suppose, Chris­tian, thy God should call for thy estate, liberty, yea, life and all; can it seem un­reasonable to thee? especially,

1. If thou considerest that he bids thee deliver his own, not thy own.He lent thee these, but he nev­er gave away the propriety of them from himself. Dost thou wrong thy neighbour to call for that money thou lentest him a year or two past?  No sure, thou think­est he hath reason to thank thee for lending it to him, but none to complain for calling it from him.

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The great question I expect now to fall from thy mouth, Christian, is not how mayest thou escape these troubles and trials which, as the evil genius of the gospel, do always attend it? but rather, how thou mayest get this shoe on, thy heart ready for a march to go and meet them when they come, and cheerfully wade through them, whatever they be, or how long so­ever they stay with thee?  This is a question well be­coming a Christian soldier, to ask for armour wherewith he may fight; whereas the coward throws away his armour, and asks whether he may flee.  I shall therefore give the best counsel I can, in these few particulars.

           First Direction.  Look carefully to the ground of thy active obedience, that it be sound and sincere. The same right principles whereby the sincere soul acts for Christ, will carry him to suffer for Christ, when a call from God comes with such an errand, ‘The children of Ephraim, being armed, and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle,’ Ps. 78:9.  Why? what is the matter? so well armed, and yet so cowardly?  This seems strange.  Read the precedent verse, and you will cease wondering.  They are called there ‘a generation that set not their heart aright, and whose spirit was not stedfast with God.’  Let the ar­mour be what it will, yea, if soldiers were in a castle whose foundation were a rock, and its walls brass, yet, if their hearts be not right to their prince an easy storm will drive them from the walls, and a little scare open their gate, which hath not this bolt of sincerity on it to hold it fast.  In our late wars we have seen that honest hearts within thin and weak works have held the town, when no walls would defend treachery from betraying trust.  O labour for sincerity in the engaging at first for God and his gospel!  Be oft asking thy own soul for whom thou prayest, hearest, reform­est this practice and that.  If thou canst get a satisfactory answer from thy soul here, thou mayest hope well.  If faith’s working hand be sincere, then its fighting hand will be valiant.  That place is observable, Heb. 11:33 ‘Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire,’ and with other great things, that faith enabled them to endure, as you may read in vv. 34-36.  There note, I pray, how the power of faith enabling the Christian to ‘work righteousness’—that is, live holily and righteously—is reckoned among the wonders of sufferings which it strengthened them to endure.  In­deed had it not done this, it would never have endured these.

           Second Direction. Pray for a suffering spirit.  This is not a common gift, which every carnal gospel­ler and slighty professor hath.  No; it is a peculiar gift, and bestowed on a few sincere souls.  ‘Unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake,’ Php. 1:29.  All the parts and common gifts that a man hath will never enable him to drink deep of this cup for Christ.  Such is the pride of man's heart.  He had rather suffer any way than this; rather from himself, and for himself, than from Christ or for Christ.  You would wonder to see sometimes, how much a child will endure at his play, and never cry for it—this fall, and that knock, and no great matter is made of it, because got in a way that is pleasing to him.  But, let his father whip him, though it puts him not to half the smart, yet he roars and takes on, that there is no quieting of him. Thus, men can bring trouble on themselves, and bite in their complaints.  They can, one play away his es­tate at cards and dice, and another whore away his health, or cut off many years from his life by beastly drunkenness; and all is endured patiently.  Yea, if they had their money and strength again, they should go the same way.  They do not repent of what their lusts have cost them, but mourn they have no more to bestow upon them.  Their lusts shall have all they have, to a morsel of bread in their cupboard and drop of blood in their veins; yea, they are not afraid of burning in hell, as their sins' martyrs.  But come, and ask these that are so free of their purse, flesh, soul, and all, in lust's service, to lay their estate or life for a few moments at stake in Christ's cause and his truth’s, and you shall see that God is not so much beholden them.  And therefore pray and pray again for a suffering spirit in Christ's cause.  Yea, saints themselves need earnestly to plead with God for this. Alas! they do not find suffering work follow their hand so easily.  The flesh loves to be cockered, not crucified.  Many a groan it costs the Christian before he can learn to love this work.  Now prayer, if any means, will be helpful to thee in this particular.  He that can wrestle with God, need not fear the face of death and danger.  Prayer engageth God’s strength and wisdom for our help.  And what is there too hard for the creature, that hath God at his back for his help, to do or suffer?  We are bid to ‘count it all joy, when we fall into divers temptations,’ James 1:2—not temptations to sin, but for righteousness.  He means troubles for Christ and his gospel.  Ah! but might the poor Christian say, it were cause of more joy to be able to stand under these temptations, than to fall into them.  Little joy would it be to have the tempta­tion, and not the grace to endure temptation.  True indeed; but, for thy comfort, Christian, he that leads thee into this temptation stands ready to help thee through it.  Therefore, ver. 5, there is a gracious si quis —if any one—set up; ‘If any of you’—i.e. you suffers chiefly—‘lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.’  This, methinks, should not much strain our faith to believe.  There are not many mas­ters so disingenuous to be found, that would twit and upbraid their servant for asking humbly their counsel in a work of peril and difficulty, which they cheerfully undertake out of love to their persons and obedience to their command.  How much less then needest thou fear such dealing from thy God?  If thou hast so much faith and love as to venture at his command upon the sea of suffering, he will, without doubt, find so much mercy as to keep thee from drowning, if, feeling thyself begin to sink, thou criest earnestly as Peter did to him, ‘Lord, save me.’  Wert thou even under water, prayer would buoy thee up again.  The proverb indeed is, ‘He that would learn to pray, let him go to sea.’  But I think it were better thus, ‘He that would go to sea—this I mean of suffering—let him learn to pray before he comes there.’  But, if thou beest not a man of prayer before suffering work come, thou wilt be able to do little at that weapon then.