The Works of John Bunyan, vol 1 by John Bunyan (books to read to improve english .TXT) 📕

There is a faith and hope of mercy that may deceive a man (though the faith of God’s elect, and the hope that purifies the heart never will), because they are alone, and not attended with those companions that accompany salvation (Heb 6:3-8). But now this godly fear carries in its bowels, not only a moving of the soul to faith and hope in God’s mercy, but an earnest provocation to the holy and reverent use of all the means that God has ordained for a man to have his conversation in, in order to his eternal salvation.

“Work out your salvation with fear.” Not that work is meritorious, or such that can purchase eternal life, for eternal life is obtained by hope in God’s mercy; but this hope, if it be right, is attended with this godly fear, which fear putteth the soul upon a diligent use of all those means that may tend to the strengthening of hope, and so to the making of us holy in all manner of conversation, that we may be meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light. For hope purifieth the heart, if fear of God shall be its companion, and so maketh a man a vessel of mercy prepared unto glory. Paul bids Timothy to fly pride, covetousness, doting about questions, and the like, and to “follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience; to fight the good fight of faith, and to lay hold on eternal life” (1 Tim 6).

So Peter bids that we “add to our faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity”; adding, “for if these things be in you and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure; for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall. For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:5-11). The sum of all which is that which was mentioned before; to wit, “to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling.”

For none of these things can be conscientiously done, but by and with the help of this blessed grace of fear.

Thirteenth. There flows from this fear, this godly fear, a great delight in the holy commands of God, that is, a delight to be conformable unto them. “Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments” (Psa 112:1). This confirmeth that which was said before, to wit, that this fear provoketh to a holy and reverent use of the means; for that cannot be, when there is not an holy, yea, a great delight in the commandments. Wherefore this fear maketh the sinner to abhor that which is sin, because that is contrary to the object of his delight. A man cannot delight himself at the same time in things directly opposite one to another, as sin and the holy commandment is; therefore Christ saith of the servant, he cannot love God and mammon—“Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” If he cleaves to the one, he must hate and despise the other; there cannot at the same time be service to both, because that themselves are at enmity one with the other. So is sin and the commandment. Therefore if a man delighteth himself in the commandment, he hateth that which is opposite, which is sin: how much more when he greatly delighteth in the commandment? Now, this holy fear of God it taketh the heart and affections from sin, and setteth them upon the holy commandment. Therefore such a man is rightly esteemed blessed. For no profession makes a man blessed but that which is accompanied with an alienation of the heart from sin, nor doth anything do that when this holy fear is wanting.

It is from this fear then, that love to, and delight in, the holy commandment floweth, and so by that the sinner is kept from those falls and dangers of miscarrying that other professors are so subject to: he greatly delights in the commandment.

Fourteenth. Lastly, There floweth from this fear of God, enlargement of heart. “Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged” (Isa 60:5). “Thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged,” enlarged to Godward, enlarged to his ways, enlarged to his holy people, enlarged in love after the salvation of others. Indeed when this fear of God is wanting, though the profession be never so famous, the heart is shut up and straitened, and nothing is done in that princely free spirit which is called “the spirit of the fear of the Lord” (Psa 51:12; Isa 11:2). But with grudging, legally, or with desire of vain-glory, this enlargedness of heart is wanting, for that flows from this fear of the Lord.

Thus have I showed you both what this fear of God is, what it flows from, and also what doth flow from it. I come now to show you some OF THE PRIVILEGES OF THEM THAT THUS DO FEAR THE LORD.

Having thus briefly handled in particular thus far this fear of God, I shall now show you certain of the excellent privileges of them that fear the Lord, not that they are not privileges that have been already mentioned; for what greater privileges than to have this fear producing in the soul such excellent things so necessary for us for good, both with reference to this world, and that which is to come? But because those fourteen above named do rather flow from this grace of fear where it is, than from a promise to the person that hath it, therefore I have chosen rather to discourse of them as the fruits and effects of fear, than otherwise. Now, besides all these, there is entailed by promise to the man that hath this fear many other blessed privileges, the which I shall now in a brief way lay open unto you.

First Privilege, then. That man that feareth the Lord, has a grant and a license “to trust in the Lord,” with an affirmation that he is their help, and their shield—“Ye that fear the Lord, trust in the Lord; he is their help and their shield” (Psa 115:11). Now what a privilege is this! an exhortation in general to sinners, as sinners, to trust in him, is a privilege great and glorious; but for a man to be singled out from his neighbours, for a man to be spoken to from heaven, as it were by name, and to be told that God hath given him a license, a special and peculiar grant to trust in him, this is abundantly more; and yet this is the grant that God hath given that man! He hath, I say, a license to do it—a license indicted by the Holy Ghost, and left upon record for those to be born that shall fear the Lord, to trust in him. And not only so, but as the text affirmeth, “he is their help and their shield.” Their help under all their weaknesses and infirmities, and a shield to defend them against all the assaults of the devil and this world.

So then, the man that feareth the Lord is licensed to make the Lord his stay and God of his salvation, the succour and deliverer of his soul. He will defend him because his fear is in his heart.

O ye servants of the Lord, ye that fear him, live in the comfort of this; boldly make use of it when you are in straits, and put your trust under the shadow of his wings, for indeed he would have you do so, because you do fear the Lord.

Second Privilege. God hath also proclaimed concerning the man that feareth the Lord, that he will also be his teacher and guide in the way that he shall choose, and hath moreover promised concerning such, that their soul shall dwell at ease—“What man is he that feareth the Lord?” says David, “him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose” (Psa 25:12). Now, to be taught of God, what like it? yea, what like to be taught in the way that thou shalt choose?

Thou hast chosen the way to life, God’s way; but perhaps thy ignorance about it is so great, and those that tempt thee to turn aside so many and so subtle, that they seem to outwit thee and confound thee with their guile. Well, but the Lord whom thou fearest will not leave thee to thy ignorance, nor yet to thine enemies’

power or subtlety, but will take it upon himself to be thy teacher and thy guide, and that in the way that thou hast chosen. Hear, then, and behold thy privilege, O thou that fearest the Lord; and whoever wanders, turns aside, and swerveth from the way of salvation, whoever is benighted, and lost in the midst of darkness, thou shalt find the way to the heaven and the glory that thou hast chosen.

Further, He doth not only say, that he will teach them the way, for that must of necessity be supplied, but he says also that he will teach such in it—“Him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose.” This argueth that, as thou shalt know, so the way shall be made, by the communion that thou shalt have with God therein, sweet and pleasant to thee. For this text promiseth unto the man that feareth the Lord, the presence, company, and discovery of the mind of God, while he is going in the way that he hath chosen. It is said of the good scribe, that he is instructed unto, as well as into, the way of the kingdom of God (Matt 13:52). Instructed unto; that is, he hath the heart and mind of God still discovered to him in the way that he hath chosen, even all the way from this world to that which is to come, even until he shall come to the very gate and door of heaven. What the disciples said was the effect of the presence of Christ, to wit, “that their hearts did burn within them while he talked to them by the way,” shall be also fulfilled in thee, he will meet with thee in the way, talk with thee in the way; he will teach thee in the way that thou shalt choose (Luke 24:32).

Third Privilege. Dost thou fear the Lord? he will open his secret unto thee, even that which he hath hid and keeps close from all the world, to wit, the secret of his covenant and of thy concern therein—“The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him, and he will shew them his covenant” (Psa 25:14). This, then, further confirmeth what was said but just above; his secret shall be with them, and his covenant shall be showed unto them. His secret, to wit, that which hath been kept hid from ages and generations; that which he manifesteth only to the saints, or holy ones; that is, his Christ, for he it is that is hid in God,