A lifting up for the downcast - Bridge - IX- Sermon 9

Required reading
A lifting up for the downcast by William Bridge (Available from Amazon or free here) - Read Sermon IX (A lifting up in case of desertion).

My summary
Today we read Bridges' ninth sermon on Psalm 42:11.

In this sermon Bridges teaches us that sometimes the discouragements of the saints are drawn from their desertions - spiritual desertions by God.

Yet Bridges suggests there is no need for discouragement because:
(i) God never forsakes his own people totally and will return again if he has forsaken them in regard of vision or comfortable feelings;
(ii) if Christ does forsake his people he hath a design of love and nothing but of love upon them in his forsaking;
(iii) thought it pleaseth God to hide his face from his people sometimes, insomuch, as they are in the dark and in a very dark condition, yet they are never so much in the dark but that they have light enough to work by.

Then Bridges answers some further questions on the subject and follows those with several questions of his own for the reader which are summed up together in a single paragraph: 'I appeal to your own souls, and bosoms herein, whoever you are that labour under this fear, that Christ is gone, and he will return no more ; suppose that God hath hid his face from you, seems to forget you, and to be angry with you; yet in the midst of all these darknesses, do you find an evil spirit, an envious, malicious spirit from the Lord, seizing upon you ? Do you find, that you can find in your heart to forsake God, and the good ways of God ? Yea, rather, do you not find the contrary, though you want the sense of God's love ? Have you not the sense of your own sin ; and when you want the sense of your own perfection, have you not some sense of your own imperfection ? Do you not look upon this desertion, as the greatest affliction in all the world ? Can you not mourn after God, and his presence ? Doth not Christ every foot, send in one token of his love or another to visit your souls ? And are you not willing to kiss the feet of Jesus Christ ?'

Then we are counseled to:
(i) take heed you do not measure God's eternal affection by some present dispensation;
(ii) take heed of letting fall any despairing, despondent, unbelieving speeches;
(iii) labour more and more for to live by faith.

What grabbed me
I enjoyed hearing this truth: 'Now the Lord Christ knows our nature, and therefore that he may raise our joy, our praise, our thankfulness, for his presence, face, and manifestation of his love, he doth sometimes withdraw them. So that in all his withdrawings, he hath a design of love upon our souls : have we any reason then to be much discouraged, though deserted ?'

No, we should not be discouraged.  God only withdraws because he loves us.

Next week's reading
Read Sermon X (A lifting up in case of affliction).

Now it's your turn
Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.