JH
Puritan Board Sophomore
Support 3. Consider, the Lord looks more upon your graces than he doth upon your weaknesses.
Or thus: The Lord will not cast away weak saints, by reason of the weaknesses that cleaves to their persons or services.
In 2 Chron. xxx. 18-20, there came a multitude people to eat the passover, but they were not prepared according to the preparation of the sanctuary; therefore Hezekiah puts up a prayer for them, and the text saith, that the ‘Lord hearkened to Hezekiah, and healed the people.’ The Lord looked upon their uprightness, and so passed over all their other weaknesses. He did not cast off Peter for his horrid sins, but rather looks upon him with an eye of love and pity: Mark xvi. 7, ‘But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter, that he goeth before you into Galilee ; there shall ye see him, as he said unto you.’ O admirable love ! O matchless mercy! where sin abounds, grace does superabound. This is the glory of Christ, that he carries it sweetly towards his people, when they carry themselves unworthily towards him. Christ looks more upon Peter’s sorrow than upon his sin, upon his tears than upon his oaths, &c. The Lord will not cast away weak saints for their great unbelief, because there is a little faith in them. He will not throw them away for that hypocrisy that is in them, because of that little sincerity that is in them. He will not cast away weak saints for that pride that is in them, because of those rays of humility that shine in them. He will not despise his people for their passions, because of those grains of meekness that are in them. We will not throw away a little gold because of a great deal of dross that cleaves to it, nor a little wheat because mixed with much chaff, and will God ? will God ?
We will not cast away our garments because of some spots, nor our books because of some blots, nor our jewels because of some flaws, and do we think that the Lord will cast away his dearest ones, because of their spots, and blots, and flaws? Surely no. God looks more upon the bright side of the cloud than the dark: James v. 11, ‘Remember the patience of Job.’ It is not, remember the murmuring of Job, the cursing of Job, the complainings of Job, the impatience of Job ; but, ‘Remember the patience of Job.’ God looks upon the pearl, and not upon the spot that is in it. So in Heb. xi. 30, 31, there is mention made of Rahab’s faith, love, and peaceable behaviour towards the spies but no mention made of her lie. The Lord overlooks her weakness and keeps his eye upon her virtues. Where God sees but a little grace, he doth as it were hide his eyes from those circumstances that might seem to deface the glory of it. So in 1 Pet. iii. 6, ‘Even as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord.’ Mark there was but one word in Sarah’s speech to Abraham, she called her husband lord; the speech otherwise was a speech of unbelief, yet the Holy Ghost speaking of her in reference to that speech, conceals all the evil in it, and mentions only the reverent title she gave to her husband, commending her for it.
He that drew Alexander (the Great), whilst he had a scar upon his face, drew him with his finger upon the scar. So when the Lord comes to look upon a poor soul, he lays his finger upon the scar, upon the infirmity, that he may see nothing but grace, which is the beauty and the glory of the soul. Ah! but weak Christians are more apt to look upon their infirmities than on their graces, and because their little gold is mixed with a great deal of dross, they are ready to throw away all as dross. Well, remember this, the Lord Jesus hath as great and as large an interest in the weakest saints, as he hath in the strongest. He hath the interest of a friend, and the interest of a father, and the interest of a head, and the interest of a husband; and, therefore, though saints be weak, yea, though they be very weak, yet having as great and as large an interest in them as in the strongest saints, he cannot but overlook their weakness, and keep a fixed eye upon their graces.
Thomas Brooks, The Works of Thomas Brooks (Banner of Truth) — Vol 3, pp. 62-63
Or thus: The Lord will not cast away weak saints, by reason of the weaknesses that cleaves to their persons or services.
In 2 Chron. xxx. 18-20, there came a multitude people to eat the passover, but they were not prepared according to the preparation of the sanctuary; therefore Hezekiah puts up a prayer for them, and the text saith, that the ‘Lord hearkened to Hezekiah, and healed the people.’ The Lord looked upon their uprightness, and so passed over all their other weaknesses. He did not cast off Peter for his horrid sins, but rather looks upon him with an eye of love and pity: Mark xvi. 7, ‘But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter, that he goeth before you into Galilee ; there shall ye see him, as he said unto you.’ O admirable love ! O matchless mercy! where sin abounds, grace does superabound. This is the glory of Christ, that he carries it sweetly towards his people, when they carry themselves unworthily towards him. Christ looks more upon Peter’s sorrow than upon his sin, upon his tears than upon his oaths, &c. The Lord will not cast away weak saints for their great unbelief, because there is a little faith in them. He will not throw them away for that hypocrisy that is in them, because of that little sincerity that is in them. He will not cast away weak saints for that pride that is in them, because of those rays of humility that shine in them. He will not despise his people for their passions, because of those grains of meekness that are in them. We will not throw away a little gold because of a great deal of dross that cleaves to it, nor a little wheat because mixed with much chaff, and will God ? will God ?
We will not cast away our garments because of some spots, nor our books because of some blots, nor our jewels because of some flaws, and do we think that the Lord will cast away his dearest ones, because of their spots, and blots, and flaws? Surely no. God looks more upon the bright side of the cloud than the dark: James v. 11, ‘Remember the patience of Job.’ It is not, remember the murmuring of Job, the cursing of Job, the complainings of Job, the impatience of Job ; but, ‘Remember the patience of Job.’ God looks upon the pearl, and not upon the spot that is in it. So in Heb. xi. 30, 31, there is mention made of Rahab’s faith, love, and peaceable behaviour towards the spies but no mention made of her lie. The Lord overlooks her weakness and keeps his eye upon her virtues. Where God sees but a little grace, he doth as it were hide his eyes from those circumstances that might seem to deface the glory of it. So in 1 Pet. iii. 6, ‘Even as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord.’ Mark there was but one word in Sarah’s speech to Abraham, she called her husband lord; the speech otherwise was a speech of unbelief, yet the Holy Ghost speaking of her in reference to that speech, conceals all the evil in it, and mentions only the reverent title she gave to her husband, commending her for it.
He that drew Alexander (the Great), whilst he had a scar upon his face, drew him with his finger upon the scar. So when the Lord comes to look upon a poor soul, he lays his finger upon the scar, upon the infirmity, that he may see nothing but grace, which is the beauty and the glory of the soul. Ah! but weak Christians are more apt to look upon their infirmities than on their graces, and because their little gold is mixed with a great deal of dross, they are ready to throw away all as dross. Well, remember this, the Lord Jesus hath as great and as large an interest in the weakest saints, as he hath in the strongest. He hath the interest of a friend, and the interest of a father, and the interest of a head, and the interest of a husband; and, therefore, though saints be weak, yea, though they be very weak, yet having as great and as large an interest in them as in the strongest saints, he cannot but overlook their weakness, and keep a fixed eye upon their graces.
Thomas Brooks, The Works of Thomas Brooks (Banner of Truth) — Vol 3, pp. 62-63
