God to be the treasure house of all fulness, to be
communicated to us, ye would certainly ask of him the water of life. Ye
would surely seek this kingdom of God and his righteousness. He doth not
value other things. God only hath these things offered in the gospel, in
choice of many, therefore are they laid up for some few, whom he makes his
peculiar treasure and jewels, Mal. iii. 17, Exod. xix. 5, 6. If ye knew a
monarch that was a possessor of all this habitable world, and was about to
express his singular affection towards some persons, if his kingdom or the
half or whole of it was not sufficient, to be a token of it, but he had
found out some other thing, and laid it up for them, and distributed the
kingdom, the lands and cities among others, certainly ye would think that
behoved to be some strange thing of great price. If the Lord was pleased
to give you abundance of all things here, make you all great, rich, and
honourable persons, then many would seek no other expression of his love.
They would think he did well enough to them. But alas! what is it all? He
esteems it so little that he often casts it to swine, the profane and
wicked world. He fills their belly with his hid treasure, Psal. xvii. 14.
He makes his sun to shine, and his rain to fall on the evil and the good,
Matt. v. 45. It is a demonstration that it is but a base thing, when it is
so common, I mean, in comparison of the portion of his saints. For though
these worldly things are good in themselves, yet they are not precious,
they are not pearls. Would he cast pearls before dogs and swine? The
honourable man's brutishness and ignorance of God may demonstrate to you
he cares not for it. "The Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and
giveth it to whomsoever he will," and sometimes "setteth up over it the
basest of men," Dan iv. 13-18. If God loved riches well, do ye think he
would give them so liberally, and heap them up upon some base covetous
wretches? Surely no. But here is the precious thing that is laid up and
treasured. The world and its gain seems great, and big in your eyes, ye
cannot imagine more, nor wish for more. But alas! how low and base spirits
have ye! It is but as the dunghill that the swine feed on, or the husks
which the prodigal desired to feed his belly with, when he began to be in
want, Luke xv. 13-17. So are all men's worldly pleasures, preferments, and
profits. But here are some particular things, that only deserve to be
called