Romaine's additional letters to his friends
Letter 1
June 15, 1782
My dear Friend,
Our Lord has been showing you some tokens of His singular regard for you. All whom He loves, He chastens. He has been trying you with His rod. The trial on His part was altogether love, and graciously intended for your improvement: "I will feed them," says the Good Shepherd, "with the rod." This is strange food to reason and sense—but rendered truly nourishing to faith. It learns to feel what sin, exceedingly sinful sin, is.
The pain says, "Sin deserves ten thousand times more than this!"
The pain continues: "Jesus, Lord, may Your will be done—only let faith and patience have their perfect work, that I may love You for mortifying the life of sense."
The disorder abates: "Oh, dear Savior, keep me humble and thankful, that I may so cleave to You with full purpose of heart, as to be dying daily to other objects, and be more alive to You. As the pain drove me to You—so may the removing it keep me nearer to You, so that I may practically learn to set the Lord always before me."
These and many other improvements, I hope, followed your recent painful visitation. It was sent to yield you the peaceable fruits of righteousness; yes, a harvest of blessings. May they be rich and ripe to the glory of the Giver!
William Romaine
Letter 2
Blackfriars, December 23, 1783
Dear Sir,
I send my hearty wishes for your meeting the birth of Christ with the spirit of the angels. It was the triumph of their joy that Christ the Lord was born; and yet He was not so nearly related to them, as to you and me. But they thought according to God's thoughts; and, as far as they understood them—they admired and adored His inestimable love in taking our nature into union with Himself. What a miracle of philanthropy!
"Will God in very deed dwell with men on the earth?" Oh, yes! Though it puzzled Solomon, yet God's counsels of old are now faithfulness and truth.
The Word is incarnate. Glory be to God in the highest; the Peacemaker has come to the earth and has demonstrated the delight of His Father toward men. Blessed be His witness—that you believe it. Blessed be His grace—that you enjoy it. Thanks be to His holy name—that you preach it. May your meditations upon it and your present preaching of it, warm your heart with more than angels' joy. Try to get a note above them. I am aiming at it this Christmas, but have not yet attained. And this makes up some of my best praise: what He is to me—and what I am to Him. I see, and am under such infinite obligations, that I am willing to be in His debt forever and ever. Even then I shall pay Him nothing; or if it be worth anything, it will be all His own. All my fresh springs of glory, as well as grace, shall be in Him.
William Romaine
Letter 3
November 26, 1785
My very dear Friend,
I think I heard a voice saying, "Weep not for me, but weep for yourselves." However, I could not help weeping for our loss, although we are certain she is entered into rest. The church has a great loss, and none more than yourself. For she really was a mother to you in love, in every good office, and in continual prayer for your person and for your labors. The poor will feel their loss. Her long experience made her wise in the things of God, by which she could teach the ignorant with a meekness quite her own. Her natural temper, sanctified by grace, enabled her frequently to check the spreading of furious zeal and wild speculations—both which have had their day, but I thank God seem to be dying away.
Though we know not the effect of her prayers, yet her Lord is our Lord. He still reigns, and to Him I will make my supplication. He will hear me often before His throne on the same errand.
For many years His interest at St. G____'s has been upon my heart. Still I feel it warm, and I hope it will be warmer. When you speak in public upon the occasion of her death, I will be praying Him to make it the means of giving life to many dead sinners. May the Lord Jesus bless your preaching that day to all who hear it.
My feelings are such, that I am sure I could not be able to speak on the subject. My eyes are running down with tears while I am writing. I do not resist His will; oh, no, I kiss the rod, but I do feel the sting, and shall for some time. May God sanctify it. May the Comforter take of the things of Jesus, and with them help us to improve this painful visitation.
May your wife profit much; and all of us learn that there is no blessing upon earth, but living in the Lord, and then great will be our blessedness when we come to die in the Lord. My wife very heartily joins and begs to be remembered to yours,
William Romaine
Letter 4
To Sir R. H. Bart
November 18, 1791
Honored Sir,
I do not know if you have returned to England, but if you have, I am sure you have seen enough abroad to endear your native country to you more than ever. It is at present the favorite of Heaven. Our privileges as free men and as Christians set us far above the nations of the earth. It is my office to plead with the Lord and Governor of church and state, that He may not allow us to sin away our distinguishing blessings.
I have some interest with a very great Prince, and I am often mentioning you to Him, and recommending your case. For He delights in mercy. May you know Him more than I do, and love Him and delight in Him—and every day find Him a more, still more precious Jesus. Oh, how marvelous should He be in your eyes. Yours are not common favors—that He should grant to call one of your fortune and rank, and should admit you into His friendship, which I am sure is Heaven upon earth.
Oh, bless Him for what He has done—and pray for greater things yet. Holding the truth in love, may you grow up into Him in all things. May your sister and brother partake of the same blessings, is the daily request of your friend and servant in the Lord Christ,
William Romaine
Letter 5
December 3, 1791
My very dear Friend,
I have a long letter from H____ full of complaints concerning his sinful corruptions. I know One whose very soul is delighted with hearing such complaints; for they are the breathings of His own Spirit in the heart of His redeemed, and therefore sent that Christ may be more necessary and more precious.
But indeed, my friend, you legalize them and make those things distressing, which were only intended to be humbling. The cause of every possible complaint is in you, whether you feel it or not. You have an abyss of corruption; so have I, and perhaps felt it deeper than ever you have or will feel it. But I have a Teacher who makes this whole body of sin profitable, and to the increase of my faith, and to the magnifying the grace of my almighty Savior.
My daily lesson is to carry my burden to Him, and He carries both me and it. And while we thus go on lovingly together, He often lets me look into the Hell within me, but He keeps my conscience sprinkled with His atoning blood. And then I do feel its sovereign virtue to cleanse me from all my sins, even if they were ten million times more and greater than they are.
Thus believing, yet groaning under my dreadful load, I hear the Father's testimony, "Your sins and iniquities I will remember no more!"
Carrying with me a body of sin and death, I groan under it, being burdened; it is my continual plague night and day. It makes me loathe myself and repent in dust and ashes. Hereby I am kept sensible of my needs, my unworthiness, my helplessness, my vileness. And through grace these things are made useful to bind me closer to my Beloved. They render Him absolutely necessary to my desperate case, and manifest that self-abhorrence which makes Christ very precious.
This should be the happy improvement of all the bitter things you write against yourself: in my judgment and experience they are a blessing in disguise. Under the law, they speak guilt and misery; under the gospel, they magnify the grace and salvation of our God!
I observe also, that you attend too much, by far, to what others (perhaps professors) say of you. And it brings distress upon you and hurts your spirits. But they are not your judges; neither are they competent. Thus I read: "Brethren, let every man, wherein he is called, therein abide with God." God can be with you. God can help you to glorify Him, by your abiding in your present calling. In a cottage in Wales you would be out of your place and duty—yet you would carry yourself there. Retirement would make you feel more the plague of your own heart, and your cottage would be a very Hell upon earth because you had left the station wherein God and His help and His comforts were to be found.
Indeed, you have no justifiable ground of distress, either from God or man. You know the truth of what I say, but still the effect remains. Your heart is not perfectly settled in the gospel rest. He who settled me—He alone can settle you.
There comes in another part of Christian friendship, which I do exercise and am diligent in. The prayer of faith avails much—to keep you, as you are, still full of complaints, but improving them to the glory of the Savior.
As a child of Adam, I am deserving of Hell!
As a believer in Jesus, I am an heir of Heaven!
May He keep you by His mighty power until He brings you safely to His promised Heaven.
William Romaine
Letter 6
Tiverton, September 5, 1794
My dear Friend,
May the will of the Lord be done. He does all things for the best—and He is teaching you not only to say it, but also to feel it. I know it, for His compassions fail not. And He will make you sensible that all His dealings with you are in loving-kindness and great tenderness.
Look back; see and admire in what a gracious way He has led thus far all your steps. Oh, what distinguishing mercies: to call you by His grace, to make you obedient to His call, to teach you His gospel in a manner granted to very few, to keep you by His own power for so many years, that you have not fallen nor disgraced your profession of our most holy faith. And that to this hour He preserves you waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus unto eternal life! Indeed, my dear Sir, these are sovereign blessings, and I truly believe that you are well taught how to apply them on the present occasion.
Furthermore, thanks be to Him, I have it from your own hand that He has enabled you to submit to His will. He has taken away your sister—but she is with Him. You have lost a dear friend, but He has found her. She is dead, but she lives. Oh, most blessed change! She is gone from sin and suffering, to live with God and Savior forever! Though she will be so much missed in your family, from my very heart I praise and worship Him, that He has taken her into His Heaven and glory. He did it too in a way which was singularly kind to her surviving relations—I mean those hidings of the Lord's loving countenance, and those desertions and darkness of which she complained. After this season of darkness, she was enabled to rejoice in God our Savior, and departed in full assurance of faith. You cannot think what a great refreshment this was to my spirits, and what a testimony it was of the soundness of her faith and of her experience.
On all these accounts, let your sorrow be turned into joy. Survey your personal mercies: Look at your family—where can you show me so many chosen and called ones? Let B. speak. Let Mrs. T. speak. Let all who love H. speak—and say He is good to them indeed, for His mercy to them endures forever. Blessings on Him! God is good in what He gives. He is good, yes, blessed of all—in what He takes away! Strew her hearse with praises; and if a tear is shed, let sorrow be turned into joy; for what we deposit of her, we commit into His care and keeping, who will make it one day shine like His own most glorious body.
I thank Him, therefore, for the good news which you sent me, and with my thanks I join my prayers for your profiting from this providence. It warns you to be ready. You are in the last stage of your journey. He can make it the best. He has promised it, and He cannot break His Word. He has a marvelous skill and an equally marvelous love, in making the infirmities of old age so many motives to trust Him more. Less of sense, more of faith. Less of self, more of Christ. An infirm body, a sound mind. Nature failing, grace reigning, and that unto eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord! May you find every day, and for everything, that He is with you—keeping . . .
your conscience in His peace,
your heart in His love,
your life in His hands,
and your hope in His glory.I trust He will make my prayer of faith, which is fervent for you, effectual also.
William Romaine
Letter 7
To A. S., Esq., May 5, 1777
My very dear Friend,
The great breadth of the Atlantic Ocean, nor long distance, nor my not hearing from you—can keep you and me asunder.
What a wonderful attraction is there in Christian love! I have fellowship with you in spirit, though far absent in body; and in such a bond as no nearness of flesh can be. Your concerns are mine. I feel them. I rejoice with you. I mourn with you. I pray with you. I meet you at one throne. Our mutual requests are poured into the same tender and omnipotent bosom. His eyes, His heart are upon us both. He sends my prayers for you, back with increasing love to you, and to Him for it. Such a Friend is our Jesus! Who is like Him? By His magnetic virtue, two people distant thousands of miles can have a fellow-feeling. And by means of their common interest in Him, they can do one another the very best of services.
His Spirit actuates all His members, who, by their oneness with the Head, are sensible of their mutual pains and pleasures, as our members in the body are. The nerves all over are in contact; and if one member is affected with pain or pleasure, all the members feel with it.
I reckoned this my privilege. Among the number (and I trust it is not small) who are wishing you all blessings, I have the honor to be among the foremost and will yield only to One.
My thoughts often turn upon your present situation: distant from your wife and children, far from your friends, separate from your worldly connections. These do not excite pleasing sensations. But I am chiefly affected for your distance from the ark and ordinances. Does this grieve you? There was one in the wilderness of Judah, in your case. Happy would I be, if his sentiments should be yours. Excuse my jealousy over you, for indeed it is a godly jealousy. Turn to the 63rd Psalm, and may the breathing of your heart be like his.
I meet with many people who say they never saw such a need of this petition as at present: "Grant us peace in our land, oh Lord." I keep on praying, but the cloud does not disperse. It is still thick, black, and lowering. The storm gathers and threatens a wide-spread ruin. This makes me pray more earnestly.
I would be found among the holy mourners, deeply concerned not only for my own sins, but for theirs also, which have brought down the just wrath of Heaven. Sin is ever the cause of every present suffering. Judgment has gone forth—and if there is no turning from sin, then judgment will continue.
Yes, if there be hardness in sin under judgment, it is not only the forerunner of greater misery, but is also a part of the sentence executed.
William Romaine
Letter 8
December 22, 1779
My dear Friend,
I need not tell you that I have you always upon my heart. At this time I am praying for you, that you may be kept very hungry and thirsty after Christ—among those whom He pronounces blessed, and whom He will make blessed. It is a sign of health to have a good appetite. There is no better evidence of our having tasted that the Lord is gracious, than still to be waiting on Him for the bread of life and for the water of life. And He does truly nourish us, when we taste the manna sweet and the Spirit refreshes our hearts with it. Then that food is not light bread, but a delightful feast; and the cup of salvation is full, yes, runs over with blessings. May these be the choicest of your Christmas fare.
And to make you more willing than ever to sit down with the Lord at His royal table, remember: The food is from Heaven, and feeds the heavenly life. The drink sobers. The more you take of it, the more it will deaden your senses to earthly joys. And it will render spiritual joys more spiritual, for it comes from Heaven and tastes of Heaven; and it is indeed a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.
In His name I invite you this Christmas, and out of some of His love I wish you to share with us in those blessings. If not present in person, I hope you will be with us in spirit at our banquet—and so to live upon Christ with His redeemed, as to say with them, "He is a feast of fat things—all delights in one. Blessed be our matchless Emmanuel, the God of Israel, who alone does wondrous things. And blessed is His glorious name, not only at Christmas, but forever; the whole earth shall be filled with His glory. Amen and amen."
William Romaine
Letter 9
March 18, 1780
My very dear Friend,
I do not follow impulses, as you very well know; but I cannot resist the present. Night and day it is on my mind; my heart runs upon it, and when I would have other thoughts, this will intrude and come uppermost. It will be some relief to me to give it vent, and perhaps answer all my wishes in communicating it to you. For I must inform you that you are the person concerned, and it is in your power to grant me my heart's desire. Ought you not to write up over your door, "God has given us these days of blessing"; and should it not engage your most serious attention? How shall I employ my time best to the glory of my God, and as far as He pleases to enable me, to promote the interest of His dear people?
I think you were not sent to M____ for nothing. Outward causes we look beyond. His hand has certainly done it. Well then, come forward. When you know your call, be ready. "Here I am, send me." What is the will of my Lord? He has given me time. My capacity, be what it may, is His sovereign gift. And the right use of it is also of His sovereign grace. What would my Lord have me to do in order to show forth His praise?
Will you give me permission to point out what appears to me a most profitable and a most seasonable improvement of this gracious opportunity? I suppose you are now and then thanking that great and good Savior, who had led you to glorify His name and His offices, and had enabled you to bear a noble testimony for His Godhead in this day of blasphemy. In such seasons of gratitude, does it not sometimes occur to you that you were assisted in this work by Him who leads into all truth? Indeed, Sir, you are under marvelous obligations, the greatest which can possibly be to the Lord God the Holy Spirit. You owe Him more than you can ever repay—more than you can ever count up. Your returns, the most grateful, are but acknowledgments; and these are also His gifts.
What if you were to sit down and try to estimate your debt to His sovereign grace? Consider who He is, what He does in the spiritual world, what He has done for you and in you—will do as long as you have your being. Resolve all this in your mind, pray Him to impress it deeply upon your heart. The consequence I truly believe will be that the blessings derived from Him are infinite, and your obligations such as demand everlasting praise.
With a heart warmed with these views, you could not be able to resist the dictates of gratitude.
William Romaine
Letter 10
Blackfriars, January 31, 1781
Dear Sir,
I have seen the outside of Mr. H's publication, but have no desire to take one view within.
In books I converse with men; in the Bible I converse with God—the more I read, the more I long to read. The Scripture is always new, always instructing, always delightful.
That most blessed Spirit, of whom you are writing, speaks with the Word to my heart; and then I look up and entreat Him to get Himself glory from you and your labors. In this sweet communion, I am often present. I pay you frequent visits in your study and rejoice in beholding the advancement of the work. When I see you hard and industrious in your writing, I cannot help praying the Holy Spirit to inspire your thoughts and to give you the pen of a ready writer. What if you are laid aside for a little while, and kept out of your duties of life? May it not be of mercy, that you may have leisure to improve in self-knowledge? Oh, blessed retirement, if it proves the means of leading you to devote your time and talents to the service of that God who has conferred such favors upon you!
He has given you life—spiritual life from spiritual death. What is that mercy? Who can tell? It surpasses knowledge. He has given you the Spirit of life, who has been teaching you to live upon the fullness of Emmanuel. He has been testifying of that fullness to you, and I hope enabling you to glorify it in word and in deed. His gracious office herein is one of the most interesting views which we can take of His and of the Savior's love, as represented in John 16:14-15, "He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you." This is one of my favorite texts, on which I have preached many times.
The word preached clearly, begets faith; and the word believed, nourishes faith. And as faith increases, it glorifies still more that fullness of Jesus, out of which comes every grace and blessing.
The Spirit will so manifest the things of Christ, that they shall become the object of faith and hope and love. I could write a volume on this most gracious office of the Spirit. May you see it in my light; or rather, in His own light, and let it shine before men.
William Romaine
Letter 11
Southampton, October 14, 1783
My dear Friend,
I have good news to tell you from a far country, as refreshing as cold water to a thirsty soul. God has spared me to read through His Word once more. Oh, what a treasure—what unsearchable riches are there in this golden mine! I never dug deeper, nor found more precious jewels than upon this last perusal.
You know it is my constant custom, as soon as St. Dunstan's lectures are over, to begin the Bible, and without stopping or interruption, to go on from Genesis to the end of the Revelation. This exercise is always begun with prayer, and carried on with a settled dependence on the Spirit of prayer; and I am always wishing to ascribe all the profit (and it has been very, very great) to the praise of the glory of His grace.
At present, I am not reading my Bible in order to find out some new truth, but to be established in what I do know, and to attain more confirmation of it. This I would chiefly seek for, that I may get growing experience of the wisdom of God and of the power of God in His Word, and may thereby enjoy the blessings of His love promised in it.
With this view, I send you some of my observations on the reading of the Bible in the year 1783. I am happy in believing that your heart harmonizes with me in them.
One of the first things to be noticed and expected is the actual fulfilling of the promises to this day, namely that the Holy Spirit is still in the Word. He works in it, and by it. He makes it at present, as much as He ever did, the great ordinance of God unto salvation, as you may observe in Isaiah 59:20-21. Hence it is called the ministration of the Spirit because in it He holds forth Jesus Christ to be the Almighty Savior; and whomever He calls by it to come to the Savior, He makes His call to them effectual. They receive the Spirit by the hearing of the Word, as Galatians 3:2.
This, my good friend, is what you and I should above all things seek. We should be always praying for the Spirit to accompany His own Word. It is our duty to read and meditate on the Word; but we should always do it with the fixed dependence of our hearts upon His divine teaching; without which the Word itself will profit us nothing, as we read in Hebrews 4:2: "The Word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them who heard it." May the Spirit keep us in the use of means, but entirely dependent upon Him in the use of them. Thanks be to Him, that in this frame of mind I have once more gone through His Word, settled and grounded more steadfastly than ever before; that the Word of God can be made useful to me, only by the enlightening of the Spirit of God. "Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of Your law." Psalm 119:18
The next thing that engaged my attention was the divine and infallible truth of the holy Scriptures, with all the riches of the full assurance of understanding. Our Lord said in His last prayer, "Father, Your Word is truth." And I say the same. I have set my seal to it on this last reading: every line, every word is according to the mind of the infinitely wise God. It is His revealed will, and it reveals to us objects in God's light, as He sees them; whereby the Holy Spirit renews us in true knowledge, after the image of Him who created us. He brings our understanding to submit to be informed by His unerring Word. Whatever it reveals of Jehovah, of the three Persons in Jehovah, of the God-man, of His salvation, of the way of receiving the benefit of it in time and in eternity—He has made me willing to live in entire subjection to its teaching.
My constant inquiry is what it reveals. Not why. I study to know it, not as a metaphysician, but as a Christian. I seek not so much to comprehend it, as to believe it. Nothing appears to me more reasonable, than that my reason should submit to God's reason in His Word. Therefore I am kept praying for divine grace to make His Word, like the light of the sun, clear in my head and fruitful in my heart.
My dear friend, let me recommend to you this method of reading your Bible. Ever take it up as the oracles of God, the infallible standard of truth. The abiding persuasion of this will save you a great deal of trouble and will bring you in vast profit. You will not have much occasion to consult authors or to spend your time in perusing many books. If you take up your Bible with a settled conviction that it is the truth of God, and that it has the stamp of divine authority, this will be the means of your understanding more of the Scriptures, than all the commentaries in the world could give you; because your mind, having received the impression of divine truth, is now disposed to receive the impression of divine power; which is another matchless excellence of the Word of God. The Spirit of God still works in it and by it. As in the first creation, so in the new creation—He does all by His Almighty fiat. He speaks, and it is done; He commands and is obeyed. His is a creating word—He calls, and the dead hear! It is a life-giving word—He follows the call, and the quickened sinner believes. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God; and this faith is as great a demonstration of divine power as raising Christ from the dead was, as you may see (Ephesians 1:19-20, etc.). Then He puts His Word into the inward parts, and the believer is enabled to feed upon it and to be nourished thereby, even up unto life everlasting—so that he often says to his Lord, "Jesus, to whom should I go? You alone have the words of eternal life."
This divine efficacy of the Scriptures is the principal thing by which God magnifies His Word above all His name. He has made it His ordinance, like the fixed laws of nature by which He still keeps up fellowship and communion between Himself and His people, and grants them to see and to enjoy His perfections. His Spirit makes it effectual to begin, and to carry on fellowship with the Father and the Son. And thus He is daily magnifying it, by realizing the promises and putting believers into possession of the graces and blessings promised in it. So that the Scripture is to this hour the mighty power of God, as truly as when He spoke the world into being; as effectual as when He said, "Lazarus, come forth!"
My dear friend, may you and I feel it more, and still more. May we live as happy partakers of its gracious influence. And whenever we hear it, read it, or meditate upon it, may we get fresh experience of the power of God in His Word. This will bring us another blessing peculiar to the Scriptures: by acknowledging them to be the truth of God and finding them to be the power of God, we shall come to experience their divine sweetness. It is by continual dependence on the teaching of the Spirit, in and by the Word, and by mixing faith with it—that we come to find its value and to taste its pleasures.
For it then opens a new world to us, a spiritual and eternal world. It reveals to us the God of that world—our Father loving us in His Son. It makes known the Son's wonderful person and His heavenly work in salvation, with all the blessings of it, which faith brings into present enjoyment. The believer is made alive to them, and then has his spiritual senses exercised upon them; and each sense has its proper object and its peculiar delight, as we read. Oh come, taste and see how gracious the Lord is. Hear His voice, for it is sweet. Smell the pleasant fragrance of His perfume, for His name is as ointment poured forth. Come and handle the Word of God. What a paradise is here, as real, but more blessed, than Adam's.
In my last reading, God has thus blessed me; what the Word reports, the Spirit has realized. In the way of believing the promises, I have found the fulfilling of them. I speak for God and His glorious Word. Away with self! The Holy Spirit, the Comforter, does by it, at this day, make good His name and His office: "He shall take of Mine," says Jesus, "and shall show it (manifest it) unto you." The spiritual world, all the graces, all the glories of it—He will not only manifest them to you clearly, but He will also enable you to believe them, and to enjoy them with many a sweet foretaste of the glory that is to be revealed.
There is a very delightful account of this in the 19th Psalm. What if I should set my seal to it and say that I know what is spoken in the first part concerning the light of this physical world to be matter of fact, as well as what is spoken in the second part concerning the light of the spiritual world? Would you not allow me, Sir, to be a competent judge of both?
And when the same prophet adds "O, how I love Your law! I rejoice in it as one that finds great spoil! Yes, it is dearer to me than thousands of gold and silver." Blessed be God, I find it so. Indeed, upon every reading of the Bible, it grows more precious to me, as it did to David because it is not only the revelation, but it has become also the conveyance of the unsearchable riches of Christ. These are revealed in the Word, and applied by the Word.
Faith is the only key which opens the infinite treasury of Scripture, and hears the proclamation of grace: "Oh, you who are seeking durable riches—these, all these are yours. Come, take all you want—use all you wish—you cannot do the free Giver a greater favor than to enrich yourselves daily out of His boundless stores! Read His promises, how exceedingly great, how exceedingly precious they are. Read His faithfulness to them. Only trust them, take them, use them. All that is in the promises shall be yours in due time; yes, yours for all eternity." This proclamation of grace I have heard. I believe it. Blessed be a promise-keeping God, I enjoy it.
I can assure you, Sir, there is more to be had out of Christ's fullness, than anyone upon earth has yet enjoyed. For He not only gives fresh grace, but also more grace. I have never been more thoroughly convinced of this, than upon my last reading. God has humbled me and has made me feel more of my own poverty, and has thereby led me to live more upon Christ's everlasting treasury.
You do not suspect me of boasting; oh, no. I would glorify the Word and work of the Almighty. A beggar would not be reckoned proud for saying, "When I was just at the point of starving, I met with a charitable person, who not only fed me, but also feasted me; and then he most generously provided for me all the rest of my days." Should not such a one acknowledge his benefactor and bless him? So do I. Thanks be to Him who revealed His Word to me—who opened my eyes to see wondrous things out of His law—who often made me look up and say, "Oh, how sweet are Your words to my taste; yes, sweeter than honey to my mouth!"
Blessed be God for His good Word! It is really manna; it is angels' food; it comes from Heaven; it tastes of Heaven.
When I sat down to write, I little thought my pen would run so fast or that it would hold out so long. Will you excuse this long scribble? I know you will. I am writing to a friend who knows that I have still much more to say of my last reading.
I request your candor while I am mentioning one thing more; and that is the great end and design of the Scripture, which is to conform us to it. This is the completing work of God, the Spirit by His Word; all the rest were to lead to this. When the Word is understood and believed and lived upon, then He makes it the means of conforming the whole man to it. The believer is cast into the mold of it; he takes the impression—every feature. It is so assimilating; every tint is to be seen upon him. He lives the Word; it is to be read in his looks, visible in his walk, manifest in his tempers. See him; study him; he is the lively picture of a Bible-Christian.
Let your conduct be such as befits the gospel of Christ. By this rule he orders it: he seeks to be a pattern of the truth as it is in Jesus, and does not seek in vain. The Spirit by faith makes Jesus very precious. The heart loves Him, and loves to be like Him. Much fellowship with Him endears Him more to the heart, and it becomes true liberty. It is real happiness to have constant communion with Him, especially to feel the influence of His cross and the power of His resurrection.
My much beloved, may this be your experience. Outstrip me as far as you can; may your sentiments, your affections, your life and conduct, all of them be conformed to the rule of God's Word. I shall pray for it, for you and for yours—that you may live by gospel motives and do all to gospel ends.
I stop, but not because my subject is exhausted. I have daily fresh matter of praise. Still I am reading and admiring. New beauties spring up continually. Daily I have praises to give for this most blessed book; and if I live to walk with you on Heckfield Heath, I may continue the subject. May your Lord and mine open our understandings, that we may understand the Scriptures.
William Romaine
Letter 12
November 21, 1785
Enclosed you will receive a present of my own Hebrew Bible; not a bribe, but a token of Christian love, that, remembering me as often as you see it, you may pray for me while I live, and bless God for me when I die. It is truly a precious book. Every day it grows more precious—not only from it fresh light and life and comfort, but also more.
Many years' studies, with God's blessings upon them, have favored me with an insight into the meaning of Colossians 2:2-3, "My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge!"
Eternal thanks be to a divine Teacher for opening all the riches of the full assurance of understanding! Oh, what, what a happiness is it to be quite satisfied that objects in the spiritual world are exactly as they are described in the Bible! For by being thus taught, one gets ready hold of the spiritual parts of Scripture instruction, and fastens at once upon the enjoyment of them by faith. This is truly a present Heaven.
I wish you more than I have of it, though I have my share in its chartered graces and blessings—which I have now entered upon by holding the truth in love, and am thereby growing up into Him in all things, who is the Head, even Christ.
In this view the value of the Bible is inestimable. It is not only a perfect map of the spiritual world; but the believer, surveying its riches and beauties and pleasures, has a good warrant to say, "All these are mine, for God Himself is mine!" I cannot tell you how great the happiness is, when the eternal Spirit opens and applies and puts the believer into the present enjoyment of the graces here promised, as so many pledges of the glory that is to be revealed. You know enough to make you join me in blessing and adoring our Sovereign Lord and God, who has given us in it and by it, to taste how gracious He is.
I have no words to describe the value of these wondrous mercies. My thoughts are quite lost in the survey of them. Why me? What was I, what am I, that this great charter of grace, with all its privileges and honors, should be by infinite mercy granted to me? I daily sit down in admiration, content with my Lord's own meditation upon the subject, Matthew 11:25-27.
William Romaine
Letter 13
March 4, 1786
My dear Friend,
I am often with you at Heckfield, in the spirit of that good man who found himself happy in the happiness of others: "For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit and delight to see how orderly you are and how firm your faith in Christ is." Colossians 2:5
I greet you, brother, and the church in your house. I have fellowship with you in our common Head. I feel the same Spirit breathe through us, even the Spirit of our glorified Jesus, very remarkably giving us the same judgment—forming our hearts to the same affections and influencing us to walk in the same way. Blessings on Him for this great grace.
As I see it, it is great indeed; for yet a little, very little while, it will grow to full perfection. And we shall have the same Spirit uniting us sensibly to the same Head and giving us to receive out of His infinite fullness glory for glory. And this is the charity, love to the Head, and thereby love to the members, which never fails.
It is waxing cold on the earth, as it was foretold; but those who live near to the Sun still receive some of those enlivening beams which make the everlasting day. I have felt their influence, as you have done in your solitary hours, and I rejoice in hope that they will abound yet more and more in knowledge and sensible experience.
I sat down to thank you for your love and for its fruits. But I cannot help it—at once I am led by the streams to the fountainhead. And I look upon it to be no injury to the streams to say they flow from such a fountain as covenant love.
Truly, Sir, there is something divine in the spiritual enjoyment of our creature-comforts. Put Christ into them, and they are marvelously refined and exalted.
William Romaine
Letter 14
December 22, 1788
My dear Friend,
I find that the review of every passing year always humbles me, and always exalts God's mercies; and as to the present time, it is certainly good to try to fasten something to the flying moments, which may hinder them from running to waste, especially when they have almost done their flight, as they have with me. What would I do now without Christ? Much time to redeem—every earthly help failing—and these few days are in all respects evil: private, public, church, state. Happy for us, He is on the throne and rules right. Our motto verse for 1789 is to be "The Lord reigns!" Jehovah Jesus reigns over all worlds and over all creatures; and to Him every knee shall willingly or unwillingly bow.
My dear friend, remember me in a special manner on New Year's Day, that when I preach on the character of our royal Sovereign, the King of kings, of the nature of His government, and of the peculiar happiness of His subjects—I may be enabled to speak, in some measure, suitable to His fame and high renown.
You know of one who saw a great deal more of Him than any one of us do, and who spoke with admiration, "Who can utter the mighty acts of the Lord? Who can show forth all His praise?" Because he could not, he did not give up praising. Oh, no! He never stopped; he is at it still; through the ages of eternity he will be blessing God and the Lamb! I am living in hopes it will not be long before I shall join him; and his subject of praise, which is mine now, will be mine then. The prospect is big with blessings.
William Romaine
Letter 15
April 12, 1790
My very dear Friend,
I was thinking this morning what excuse I could make for not acknowledging a very acceptable present, and for not answering a friendly note with it, long ago. Like most of us, very glad to receive favors, but tardy in giving of thanks—I was for laying it aside until I was equal to it, having very nearly attained that late period of life in which Moses says (and I feel it), "The length of our days is seventy years—or eighty, if we have the strength; yet their span is but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away." Psalm 90:10. My utmost efforts are pain and weariness, both of mind and body. My strength is really to sit still. And a blessed lesson it is, when human efforts ceasing, we are led to make the works of Jesus all our salvation, and to find by happy experience that it has become all our desire. Oh, what a good age has he lived to, whether he be young or old, who is dying in this faith!
But when I had written this excuse down and read it, I was quite ashamed of it because it confuted itself. It savored a good deal of Adam and Eve (Genesis 3) who sought to lay the blame upon anything rather than themselves; for indeed most excuses are lies. An indolent temper, when what must be done of necessary preparation for public preaching was over, unwilling to set about other things; wanting to relax; and too often easing the mind by that spirit, by which many trespass upon God's goodness, delaying from day to day—I will write tomorrow. Or, what good will it do, when I do write I shall say nothing that will be worth postage.
All my former excuses failed me this morning, April 12th, and I have got to the true cause; forgive me this wrong. I am to thank you for a Christian Remembrancer of this last edition, finely bound, for Mrs. Romaine. Better late than never to repent and amend.
In these troublesome times I find it good to follow Habakkuk's example, which is all the politics I wish to know: he prayed, he got into his watch-tower and waited for an answer, and he received it and praised God for it. I am doing the same for the public—at prayers for the church, groaning under an oppression harder than the Chaldean bondage. I pray on, but am still in my watch-tower—I can get no answer.
One can see no end of the present national troubles. The cause (our nation's sinfulness) is not removed; therefore our troubles continue and increase, as if so many fiends of Hell were let loose, and allowed to do all the mischief which Satan himself could wish. We know where to lay the blame: unbelief is the provoking sin; it has brought ruin upon many great kingdoms, so that we can trace the vengeance of Heaven against it from age to age, down to the present miseries of England.
Infidelity led the way, "Who is the LORD, that I should obey Him?" "We will not have this Man reign over us." Then He left them to themselves, upon which Apollyon, the Destroyer, brought out his legions and armies to destroy, and they have destroyed—all law, order, property, religion, insomuch that the earth is made by them like another Hell.
I tremble, for who takes warning? Oh, my country, my country! I fear for England. We are not much unlike the kingdom of France, very near her in her sin, and may not be far from her in her punishment!
Therefore I keep in my watch-tower, praying and pleading for mercy, begging our Lord to spare us for His own name's sake. This is my only plea. May these move Him to pour upon us a spirit of prayer and supplication, that as a nation, we may with national repentance keep the national fast, humbled under His mighty hand. This is such a fast as He has chosen; and for His own glory may He work a general reformation, that iniquity may not be our ruin.
Are we any better than others? It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not.
I hope you will keep me company in my watch-tower; then especially, but at all times there to plead for you and yours,
William Romaine
Letter 16
Reading, January 19, 1792
My very dear Friend,
I sit down only to tell you that I feel for you. I remember Mrs. H., a friend of ours, had a room full of the pictures of infants. Mrs. R. asked her one day, as they had all been her children and all dead, why she let them hang there. She answered, "It is the same thing between our Savior and me, whether He has them, or I have them." This is a great saying; yet it is, in fact, no more than we are daily praying for: "May Your will be done!"
It is soon said; but when the will of the flesh is opposed, it is not so soon practiced. Indeed, submission to God's will is an almighty work, which you know as well as I do, and perhaps feel more of it at this time. But, through the Spirit of Jesus, when we feel this rebellion, we are commanded to look to "our Father who are in Heaven." In Christ, He is ours. His fatherly love is ours, and He can do nothing but what is for our good. And His opportunity of manifesting it is chiefly when His will goes one way, and our will goes another way. Then we are forced to look up for His promised strength, and we generally find He appears most for us.
He tries our faith, purifies it in the furnace, continues it in the fire—that patience may bring fresh experience; and experience improves that hope which never makes the believer ashamed.
See these truths most beautifully illustrated in the case of David. I never read it without getting some good from it, for there one sees before one's eyes, that faith and patience may have their perfect work.
William Romaine
Letter 17
Letters to J. I., Esq., with several to Mrs. I.
December 14, 1782
My good Friend,
I never was more obliged to you than for your Christian sympathy with us in this time of need. It is a great trial, but it is the Lord who has a right to do what He will with His own. It is my Lord, my old Friend, who never alters His love to me. He has acted for His own glory, and has done the best—what more would I wish? Nothing, but only His grace to make me submit to His sovereign will; and that, blessings on Him, He does now freely grant; for I feel a will of my own quite opposite to His.
I could wish He would have spared my son—my soul delighted in him. He was a sweet youth. The remembrance of his person and manners and behavior, his dutifulness (for he never offended me but once in his life), his conduct since he was in the army—these draw tears from my eyes while I am writing. I do feel as a parent; I am no stoic. But thanks be to my good God, His grace conquers nature. The struggle is hard, but God is with me, and through Him, I conquer myself. He forces me to go to Him every moment for His support and His comforts. I have no stock of resignation. It is outside of myself, laid up in the fullness of Jesus; and while I live upon Him for it, He helps me to kiss His chastening rod. He keeps under my rebel will, and teaches me to say from my heart, "Not my will, Lord, but may Your will be done." Such is the kindness of my Jesus, for which I adore and worship Him.
My poor wife has exquisite feelings on this occasion. It is her constant prayer not to be allowed to displease our Lord by her murmurings. However willing the spirit may be to kiss the rod, yet the flesh is weak. The tender heart of the mother rises and struggles, but the power of grace prevails. In the midst of her greatest floods of tears, she would cry out, "Lord, keep me, Lord, save me from thinking or speaking anything contrary to Your holy will." And He was very good to her; her faith was supported.
William Romaine
Letter 18
February 1, 1783
My very dear Friend,
I take the first opportunity of answering your friendly letter. You have full credit for all your professions of mourning with those who mourn; we believe your sympathy, and we bless God for it. The prayers of our friends for us have been heard and answered. My wife, considering her feelings, has been very graciously dealt with; she is kept at the worst from murmuring, and generally is calm and composed. We had friends many, and from them prayers many.
You know that when two strings of an instrument strike a unison, they are in concord; just so was it with Mrs. I.'s letter; it was then and is still, in unison with my wife's spirit. It sounded a concord; it met the very sentiments of her heart, and became not a prescription, but an effectual medicine to her wound. It was not a letter about the balm of Gilead, but it brought and administered the healing virtue. It does not at all lessen Mrs. I.'s real friendship, but more endears it, that God gave to her words so great a blessing. They came from love; they have increased love, and to this moment my wife never speaks of them without great thankfulness. I am commissioned from her to bless Mrs. I. for her kindness.
You are very obliging in wishing us to come to Brislington, but my circumstances are such, and my helps in preaching so very few, that I cannot think of so long a journey. My work is great, and the night will soon come when it will be over. I wish to be faithful and successful for these few hours of the evening which are left. If I see you not face to face, I am still your constant orator at the throne of grace. My Lord will hear much of you, and I will please myself with the persuasion that I shall often meet you at His throne. I invite you to give me a meeting there; the oftener the better.
Our motto verse for this year was Judges 6:24: "Jehovah Shalom," Jehovah is our peace. It was something remarkable, that it should so soon have a literal accomplishment.
Peace being broken between God and man, the breach was made up by our great Peace-maker. The gospel is the open proclamation of it, inviting sinners to be reconciled to God and to enjoy the benefits of a free communion between Heaven and earth. Those who are justified by faith are reconciled and find this peace with God. And as far as they believe, they enjoy the benefits of an open communion with God in Christ; which benefits are all the graces of time and all the glories of eternity.
I have only to wish that the outward peace may promote the inward; and the Peace-maker Himself may get the glory of this, and of all His goodness to His redeemed children.
My blessing on your dear children; may they be kept for you, and you for them. Mrs. I.'s great attention to them is her duty, and being paid in the Lord is her privilege. Prayer for success is the chief thing. He alone, yes, He alone can bless parental instruction. May the parents and their friends plead much and prevail.
William Romaine
Letter 19
June 28, 1783, Saturday morning
I am writing at 6 o'clock—and will go no farther until the doctor comes.
He has come and says he hopes there is no danger, but symptoms are not so good as he could wish. Our Master is the Lord of life and death—in His hands we trust our all; He commands us also to trust Him at all times. I am learning this lesson and recommending it much. What I know of it practically puts one into a real paradise, because it puts one and keeps one in God's will.
He graciously appointed faith to be a sovereign antidote against all evil, and to be His ordinance for conveying all blessings; for which reason I write and preach so much about it. The fullness is in Christ, but there is no hand that can receive anything from Him but faith. And faith should go as far as the promise—it should trust for life: the life that now is and whatever belongs to it, as well as for the next life.
Oh, my dear friend, let me entreat you to read this attentively, and as the subject requires. I wish you always happy, in all things happy. Christ is the only way to this, and you can get nothing from Him without faith, and faith is not doing what it should do if it does not save you from guilty fears and from natural fears.
Mind the promise: "I will save you from all your sins"—no fear from this quarter. So again: "Lest any hurt you (person or thing) I will keep you night and day." No fear from this quarter. Almighty love has promised, come what may, it shall not hurt.
I harp so much upon this string because I know you have fears; and they do give you uneasiness, which I earnestly wish to cure. My friendship wants you to be so happy, as to be always rejoicing in the Lord. And yet mine is but a ray of His friendship. Surely then, you may trust Him and not be afraid of anything. Yes, you may and you ought to sing, "God is our hope and strength; we have found Him a very present help in times of trouble."
William Romaine
Letter 20
Tiverton, August 20, 1783
My very dear Friend,
We arrived here through the good hand of my God in safety, by which means I have learned something more of my first lesson: that is, to trust and not be afraid. What has he to fear, who has cast all his care upon an Almighty Friend and has done it at His bidding, and on the warrant of His promise? Every step of our journey spoke aloud: "Now you see, He is faithful. He said, 'I will keep your going out and your coming in,'" and blessings on Him, He has kept us from all evil.
Sir, no one has a better title than you have to trust God at all times, to trust Him for all things. May you live up to your estate and find your faith working such a love to God on your heart, as will cast out all fear that has torment.
In my journey I have also met with nothing but what has increased thankfulness. The fine weather, the fruits of the earth, very rich and ripe and abundant, and the harvest very nearly over—these are special mercies, calling aloud for praise. The poor and the rich should alike join, for both are benefitted by the present plenty. Wheat, lately nine shillings at this market, was yesterday the best, sold at five shillings and six-pence. Glory be to God.
I have a magnifying glass through which I view these mercies, and they appear great indeed. Looking upon them in a spiritual light—oh, what an improvement! He who has kept my body in safety, has the care of my soul. He has undertaken it—His love, His power, and His wisdom are all engaged for the eternal good of His redeemed children. And He says to me what David did to Abiathar, "Stay with me; don't be afraid; the man who is seeking your life is seeking mine also. You will be safe with me." 1 Samuel 22:23
Corruptions, temptations, dangers, pains may attack and threaten; but faith says, "Fear not; His word is certain—it cannot be broken—I will preserve you from all evil—yes, I will preserve your soul; I will perfect that which concerns you." When this is believed as it ought to be, what a subject of praise!
Many, many blessings I have in hand, but they increase by use, and they are but pledges of greater blessings to come. God says, "Take these blessings and expect greater—the greatest: all my love in Christ, all my Heaven. This is but the first fruits; the harvest shall follow!"
When present mercies are viewed in this light, oh, how they increase; how they magnify! May every day, as it adds to their number, add also to their value; that in all things you and I may be giving thanks; of which heavenly employment, nothing can hinder us but unbelief. Take heed of that bitter root of unbelief, and bring it to Christ. Mind, He must pardon it and subdue it, or else it will shoot up and flourish.
William Romaine
Letter 21
Blackfriars, September 14, 1784
My very dear Friend,
I received your kind remembrance of us just before we set out for the north, but my yearly engagement would not allow me leisure to respond until this day.
I have made it a long time my practice, as soon as my St. Dunstan's lecture is over, to begin reading my Bible, and I let nothing take me off until I have read it through. Yesterday I finished my delightful task; and having blessed my God for His precious Word, I take up my pen to write first to you.
The impressions left upon my heart in this last perusal are so warm and lively that I cannot help communicating them to you and wishing that you and your wife may feel the same. My admiration has been increasing of the uniformity of the Scripture plan. It is the great charter of grace, and all the parts perfectly harmonize; and when one compares them together, each illustrates and beautifies the whole.
The reading of 1784 has also given me a fresh confirmation of the truth of Scripture. I am not more certain of anything, than that it is the Word of God and the revelation of the Most High Jehovah. And of this I am convinced, by finding the power of God accompany it.
As in the first, so in the new creation—He speaks, and it is done. His Word is almighty. I know of no power beyond that which He has put forth in your heart and mine. "In the exercise of His will He gave us a new birth by the word of truth." James 1:18. Our new birth is a new creation; and blessings on Him, I feel the effects of this every time I take up my Bible.
I find it to be more than the word of man. It is in truth the Word of God because it effectually works to this day in those who believe. Its influence in the heart and life is beyond all created power, and the experience of God's presence in and by His Word has made it to me very precious.
On this last reading, my love for it has grown much in taste and value—in taste, it is sweeter than honey; in value, it is more precious than gold, yes, than much fine gold! As I dig deeper, the mine becomes richer, and the treasures of grace are greatly enhanced by their being the pledges of glory. Oh, what a book is this! What is in any way like it? I cannot get enough of it.
You know it is a good sign of health when people long for their meals—so it is with the health of the soul. I have but just done reading, and yet I want to begin again; my appetite is keener. Feeding upon the Word is not like the common food and drink of this world—there is nothing distasteful in it. And when mixed with faith, it refines the faculties and exhilarates the spirits. The man says, "Oh, what love I have for Your law! All the day long it is my study and my delight."
All these considerations have received great confirmation in my last searching of the Scriptures, because I have got one year nearer to the full accomplishment of all God's promises. This vastly enhances their value. Yet in a very, very little while, I will have their fulfillment in perfection and eternity. The Word will be completed—perfectly in all its promises—eternally in all its glories. Oh, what a day will that be!
All things in this world, when near, look large. As you go away from them they appear less. Just so, it is the property of true faith to bring the promises near; as faith grows by hearing and reading, the promises appear nearer and greater, presenting them to our view with fresh beauties. The eye affects the heart, and all its affections taste and enjoy the good things of Emmanuel's Land; which, though they are at present in promise and hope—yet the promises of them, exceedingly great and exceedingly precious, mixed with suitable faith, excite a hope full of glory! This view of the Bible is inexpressibly glorious. It reveals. It realizes. It brings into present enjoyment eternal things.
It is my constant prayer for our friends, that they may be Bible-Christians. All besides is vanity.
William Romaine
Letter 22
November 30, 1784
My dear Friend,
I am to thank you for your constant kind remembrance of us; for which, giving you perfect credit, you will not be offended that I look higher in my thanks. We ought not to live upon the streams, but they should lead us up to the fountainhead from whence they flow. The bountiful Giver should be acknowledged in all His gifts, whether they come immediately from Himself or from His creatures. And this is His way, both to sanctify friendship and to secure it.
Most friendships are ropes of sand; they love today—and hate tomorrow, because they leave God out. But bringing Him into all our connections with one another, He renders them holy, and thereby lasting. Indeed, this is the life I am wishing and trying to make some daily progress in, and truly nothing else is worth living for. You may safely write vanity on all worldly comforts, if we do not hold them as gifts from God. But God in them exalts, ennobles them, and turns their cold water into rich wine. To His praise be it spoken.
I have supped with Mrs. N. on bread and cheese and cider, and it was fulfilled, "So man did eat angels' food." Your grounds are quite pleasant; walking alone to converse with God, they have been turned into a paradise. How many, many times has it been with me as with Isaac! He went out to pray in the field at the eventide, and while he prayed, he lifted up his eyes and saw Rebekah. He asked, and had; how infinitely gracious His promise! How infallibly faithful His performance! "Before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear."
My dear friend, this is really something of Heaven; a blessedness that I wish God may add to all your other enjoyments. It will multiply them; you will have two in one—and what no estate, no relations, no comforts can give. This will do you good at your latter end, when they all must fail.
One from whom I wish to learn this lesson, reduces it to this point: "I have set the Lord always before me!" Always at home or abroad, in company or alone, writing letters or reading them, eating or drinking, sleeping or waking, sick or well, sick unto death; yes, dying—I would still be looking to Jesus!
It is my safety, my privilege, my happiness, to do all in His presence. So His example teaches. So His Spirit will enable you and me to follow His steps. As believers we shall be aiming at it and trying daily to do it better; for when we are reconciled to the Father, and at friendship with Him in His Son—we ought then to exercise our faith and hope in Him on all occasions.
What do we trust our souls for in His hands—if we do not trust our bodies? How do we cast all our care upon Him, if we do not live in total dependence on Him for our children and families? He has the government of church and state upon His heart and upon His shoulders. Oh, why then do we doubt of His managing both for the best? He has undertaken the care of seed-time and harvest. How injurious is it to Him to burden ourselves with His own proper business, especially when He says, "Cast your burden on the Lord!"
But it is bad weather. Yes, but He appoints cloudy days as well as sunshine. I quiet myself in His will, be it wet or fair, and thereby enjoy a sweet calm when the face of the sky is tempestuous and the wind stormy. Although of late He has been so gracious in His providence, as to give us such fine weather as no man living remembers in October and November; saying, as it were, "Trust, and be not afraid; if you have a wet, cold summer—I will give you summer weather in winter." I reckon twenty-four fine days in October and twenty-two in November. What a God!
I admire His goodness to a set of people who are at every turn murmuring at, and insulting Him for His management of the weather. This present autumn should silence all such complaints. And when the winter comes in earnest, cold and frost and snow and northeast winds—they all fulfill His Word. Thereby we exercise faith and improve thankfulness. Lord, only lift up the light of Your countenance, and it is midsummer to us!
I can assure you, Sir, that these are not only realities, but also blessings to be enjoyed, and I wish you to partake richly of them. The Lord's presence will brighten your fair days and will enlighten your darkness. Troubles come—and He will make them big with mercies. Death comes—and He will be with you. And dying, by His grace, shall only be the entrance, safe, pleasant entrance into life everlasting.
Oh, may Jesus teach you this blessed lesson! Lead them from faith to faith, that every day and in everything—they may have a growing dependence on their God and their Savior. There is something so blessed in this view, that I know not where to stop or how to end.
Having many things to say, I must leave some to the next opportunity. I shall forget my right hand when I forget you and yours.
William Romaine
Letter 23
January 1786
My dear Friend,
I am often with you at Montpellier. In imagination, I behold your clear sky and bright sun, and I can feel some of your bracing air and your constant fine weather. I do rejoice in them because you do; but truly, Sir, I do not wish myself in your place! Although I am happy in your happiness, yet there is something even here at Blackfriars, for we are not without our enjoyments. I live in a spiritual element, and when my sky is clear and my sun shines bright and I feel some of its warm beams and I breathe its pure ether—these are real blessings; they come down from the Father of lights—gifts of His grace.
He gives His Spirit to enlighten and to enliven our spirits, that being one with His Son—we may live upon His fullness in earth and Heaven. And when this spiritual life is enjoyed, there is a failing somewhere, if its influence does not extend to the body and make the whole man better. My Physician prescribes for both: He speaks a peace and a calm to the inward man, which reaches the springs of physical life and makes them move with delight. The nerves feel it; they are brisk and active. He puts joy into the heart, which does good like a medicine.
There is no Physician like mine! You have made use of Him for your soul, but I would recommend Him to you for the perishing physical life as well. Oh that we might live more by faith for the present life. I could infallibly insure the success. There is a something not to be described that He gives, which operates according to promise, and by a divine power—witness Romans 15:13, "Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you believe ?in Him? so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."
Our motto verse for this year is Revelation 1:8, "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "the One who is, who was, and who is to come, the Almighty." Alpha is the first; Omega is the last letter of the Greek alphabet. So Christ is the Beginning and Ending, and all between from first to last. He is all in all.
This verse says the Lord Himself, the God of truth, who is and who was and who is to come, the great I AM, from everlasting to everlasting, the Almighty—is Jesus the God of nature, the God of grace, the God of providence, the God of glory. He is the first author of all the divine works in creation and in providence, and the first cause of all the divine works in grace and in glory. He is the beginning and the ending; all things are made by Him and for Him. Blessed are those who have begun the new year looking unto Jesus. They will find in Him everything they can wish to save them from sin and misery, and to make them truly holy and eternally happy; for blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.
We have come together this morning to devote ourselves afresh to His service and to begin the year as we hope to end it—in the faith of the Son of God. He is our saving Alpha and Omega.
I will give the heads of our subject; the rest your own meditation will supply:
1. Jesus is the Alpha, the God of nature, who created all things in Heaven and in earth. See Colossians 1:16-19, Psalm 1-2:25, etc. Everything that exists (except sin) owes its being to Jehovah Jesus; for He is of the same essence, and has the same attributes and perfections with the Father. This truth stands upon a rock and is the foundation of our faith: namely, that Emmanuel, the God-man Christ Jesus, is the Alpha and Omega of our salvation!
2. Jesus is the God of grace; for as He is the Lord God Almighty, what could be lacking in His life to make His obedience for us an infinite righteousness; or in His death, to render it a full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice for sin? And the benefit of His life and death can come to us in no other way, than as an act of the freest grace; and we cannot receive it by any other means than by believing the Father's testimony concerning His Son. Are we wise unto salvation? It is the teaching of our great Prophet
Jesus! He is the Author and also the Finisher of that faith, by which we reap the fruit of His atonement and of His righteousness, and by which also we enjoy all the graces of the Spirit in earth and in Heaven, as John 1:16, "From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another!" And among the rest, a life of sweet dependence on Him for all temporal things; for He is
3. Jesus is the God of providence. When He has taught us the safety and happiness of trusting our souls in His hands, He calls for the exercise of this by leaving our bodies and all their concerns, with Him. He calls for it: "Cast all your care upon Me for food and drink and clothing; I will provide. Trust and be not afraid; I will manage your health and comforts. Yes, I will make sickness and troubles to be real blessings."
Oh, this is paradise! It is the believer's present Heaven. He lives by faith at all times and for all things—bad and good, sick and well, poor as well as rich. In all, he has fellowship with Jesus, who satisfies his heart, that He loves him too well to try him with anything but what is for his good. This is a sovereign antidote against all temporal distresses, and really turns them into spiritual blessings. It is our magic stone, which turns everything into good. I pray God that you may find it and thereby enrich yourself with all you want, as well as all you have; yeas with the unsearchable riches of Christ. For He is,
4. Jesus is the God of glory, lengthening His grace into eternity. For this He gave Himself unto death—it was to purchase eternal life for us, as you may see in John 17:20-25. In this prayer I wish you and the family an interest. Pray for me, in our dear Lord,
William Romaine
Letter 24
July 5, 1787
My dear Friend,
My sisters have pressed me sorely to pay them another visit, to which we have complied. I cannot determine when we will return—perhaps in time enough to meet you hurrying away out of our blessed country. However, be assured of this, that I shall be much with you, very much, under my favorite elm, sitting and surveying the house and premises, and praying for the blessing of the God of Heaven upon your and yours.
Indeed, Sir, you have a most bountiful Benefactor, who has loaded you with benefits; and He is never weary of giving. The greatest of His gifts He bestows liberally—even faith, rich faith, that you may take His Christ, and live closer and nearer still to Him, and may be safer by Him and happier in Him. This prosperity is much upon my heart; I wish it truly to you; I ask it fervently. All other things prosper about you; may your soul prosper.
How often have you heard me say, "Make sure of Christ"? He is the one thing needful—all besides is worth nothing. Pursue what you will of this world, attain to ever so much—and you only get a great estate; vanity at its best in the enjoyment, vexation of spirit, and in its duration, passing so fast away as not to be worth
one farthing—when compared with Christ and the eternity of His Heaven.
You should be often reading your warrant in Scripture, and your encouragements from thence to take Him, and make sure of Him for your own. The Father's revealed will and command, 1 John 3:23; the Son's express declaration of His willingness and power to save all that come to Him, John 10:27-30; and the testimony of the Spirit runs thus: Hebrews 10:15-24. This is a wonderful passage, full of strong arguments to silence all your guilty fears and to encourage you to live and die in peace with God, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Then comes the security of this evidence: Christ is mine! I have taken Him at God's bidding; I depend on God's warrant; I make use of Him, as I am commanded.
The Father has given Him to be a teacher.
When I read the Word, I look up for His Spirit, that He may make me wise unto salvation.
When I feel guilt, I quiet my conscience with the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus.
When temptations meet with corruptions, He gives me courage to oppose and strength to overcome them.
When the miseries of sin are present—the love of God in Christ turns them into blessings.
In my walk, in my warfare, in my duties, in my friendships, in everything—I live by the faith of the Son of God; whereby a man may be as certain that he is alive to God in Christ, as that he is alive to this world.
Sir, there is no promise like this, both for the certainty of its evidence, and also for the blessedness which it brings with it. Make sure of Christ—and all spiritual blessings are yours! Faith in Him pleads a lawful discharge from all sins and from all miseries. Here is the warrant; see the Judge's own hand: "I will remember your sins no more!" And with this there also comes a full conveyance, by deed of gift, of all possible good in time and in eternity. The title is infallible; the pledge is present possession—even the Spirit; and faith, which is the fruit of the Spirit; and the fruits of the Spirit, which are abundant through faith in Christ Jesus. Grace is yours—glory is yours; for the God of grace and glory, God in Trinity is yours—and will be yours with all His fullness forever! May these be your summer enjoyments, even fellowship with the Father and the Son by the Spirit.
William Romaine
Letter 25
January 31, 1789
My dear Friend,
The pleasure which I received from your letter calls upon me to acknowledge it, which I sit down to do with much thankfulness. I get good from your good, and am wishing you may return to us as much better as possible. We have had cold weather, but it was very healthful, and to me very pleasant. Our air was very putrid in autumn, but the frost has taken away everything infectious. Our skies are now as beneficial as yours in France, and we lack nothing in England but to be more sensible of our privileges and more thankful for them.
You know me well. I am a man of one book and of one sentiment. The Word of God and faith in His Word make up all my learning, and enter into all my life, private and public. The practice of these principles for the year 1789 was taken from Psalm 97:1, "The Lord reigns."
My Lord Jesus, whose kingdom is of such a nature that England and the multitude of its isles may be glad thereof because He is almighty, the Creator of all worlds. He did but speak, and His word brought them into being; He did but command, and they are upheld by the word of His power. All things serve Him to this day. He is the almighty Jesus, the Lord of the spiritual and new creation, in which His Word is always doing wonders. "Behold," says He, "I create all things new; I give the Spirit of life to the dead sinner to enable him to believe in Me, that he may never perish for his sins, but may have, by My free gift, eternal life. And I will keep him by My mighty power through faith, until I bring him safe to the fullness of My eternal joys."
This is the great King, who has all power in Heaven and earth, the God-man Jesus; and the exercise of this power is peculiar to Himself. He makes and keeps the new world, as He did the old. He governs by His Word. The gospel is the scepter of His sovereign authority. He sent it out from Zion, as Psalm 110:2; and the rebel nations were made willing to submit to Him.
And to this day He gathers in His subjects by the same means. When His Spirit puts life and power into the gospel, the sinner hears His call and comes, and bows the knee before King Jesus. He believes and is pardoned and saved; henceforth he lives by and upon the fullness of the Savior.
This is the way in which He peoples His kingdom; and whenever He brings anyone to be His willing subject, He promises them such blessings under His government as the world has cannot give, nor able to take away. Faith gives Him credit. And according to our faith, He fulfills His promises and makes us really blessed.
Here you see, Sir, I get upon my own ground—living by faith—the only happy life. An emperor has nothing which can be compared with it, whether you look at the blessedness of our King's subjects as they relate to spiritual, to temporal, or to eternal things.
His name, His office, His character of old was the Blesser of all nations; so that His subjects are as blessed in Him as Abraham was to whom the promise was made.
The Blesser Himself is theirs—His life is their righteousness—His death is their atonement—His resurrection is their justification to life—His ascension is their hope of being with Him and sitting with Him on His throne.
Oh, what do they feel, when from their hearts they can say, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings!"
And then as to temporals, though He is so great a King—yet He is not above looking to the least concerns of His subjects. He numbers the very hairs of their heads. If in the least things He is so faithful, what won't He do in the greatest things? He has redeemed the body, as well as the soul; and He says, "Cast all the care of that upon Me."
"But I am sick."
"Fear not, I am your great Physician—I can bring health out of sickness. As to food and clothing, family, children, substance—trust them all in My hands. If you leave them to My management, come what may, I will make it work for your good. And if one thing is better than another in this life, you shall certainly have it, for I have said I will never leave you nor forsake you." He who says these things is King of kings and Lord of lords. I believe His royal words, and I am as happy about all temporals as I can be out of Heaven.
May He make my dear friend as happy, that looking forward, when we shall see the King in His beauty, we may one day meet and cast our crowns together down at His feet! May He reign sole monarch of our hearts until that blessed day.
William Romaine
Letter 26
February 8, 1792
My good Friend,
We have consecrated a day of thanksgiving to the Keeper of Israel, who keeps our goings safe. We hope that He will favor us with another holiday, for bringing you back in peace. Until that happy time arrives, I reckon it my privilege to be daily with you in spirit and to be keeping up the communion of saints, which is as real a blessing upon earth as it will be in Heaven. For believers are all united to one Head, have one Spirit breathing through them, and enabling them by one faith to cleave close to their Head; and, as far as they do, He disposes and enables them to cleave close in brotherly love to one another. I have you as much upon my heart while you are at Montpellier, as when I sleep under your roof at Brislington.
My prayer is for every possible good to you and yours, and praise for the blessings you have received are truly my present employment. I find it also delightful to remember you before my Lord. May He make it as pleasant to you to read, as it is to me to inform you, of our religious engagements here in the present year.
Our motto verse was "Grow in grace." Growth is the end and design of receiving grace, and the only purpose of living another year is that we may get more grace in it and use it. If we have it not, that we may seek until we find it; and if we have it, that we may improve it. Grace is as necessary for the soul, as breath to the body. The Scripture compares it to a cool breeze after a hot sultry day, and also to the dew upon herbs. Grace is as refreshing as dew, and as strengthening and bracing as the cool air is in hot weather. When it is saving grace, it is the favor of the blessed Trinity to sinners who are quickened by the Spirit of grace, and brought by Him to believe in salvation by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and thereby to the enjoyment of the Father's grace and love. In the Trinity it is always the same, and also in the Scriptures; but as to our sense and experience, there is a growth by more dependence on God's faithfulness to His promises, and more dependence on the supplies of the Spirit in applying and making the promises good.
Thus, he who grows in grace this year (as it follows in the text) will grow in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The more he knows of Him—the more he will trust Him; and he who trusts Him most, will certainly love Him best. And he who loves Him best will be using all the means of grace, that he may grow in the sense of His favor.
The love of Christ will constrain the growing believer powerfully to do what Christ loves, to bear patiently Christ's cross, and to persevere in fighting Christ's battles—always remembering that if we have ever so much, Christ gives more grace.
Reflecting on the past year, the believer should be greatly humbled at his little growth. In the present, we should be setting out in Christ's strength to get forward—more dead to nature and more alive to grace. Our activity, usefulness, holiness, happiness depend on our growing into Christ, and daily making such a progress, that we may get more grace to return Him more glory.
Letter 27
January 23, 1793
My dear Madam,
I am much indebted to you for your speedy answer to my inquiries and for good news and for much concerning our friend abroad and friends at home, very dear to you by natural bonds, but much more by that nearest of all relations, the bond of the Spirit. I acknowledge with thankfulness the many favors of God to you and am at prayers for the continuance of them—that He who has begun a good work may carry it on to perfection—in your sister, brother, and all your children. Where there are fair buds and blossoms—may they not be blighted, but bear rich and ripe fruit that will endure unto everlasting life.
In return for your good news, I am happy that I can send you some of mine—indeed some of the best which ever came from Heaven. It relates to a person called Melchizedek, which is out motto word for this year, of whom great things are spoken in Genesis 14 and Psalm 110, and such as can belong to none but the Lord God. And now that they are talking of putting down all kings, I thought it high time to look after the kingdom that cannot be moved; and such I have found in this name, as the apostle has explained it at large, and given us a whole chapter upon it, Hebrews 7.
He says Melchizedek means the King of righteousness—King Jesus, who is King of kings and Lord of lords and has all power in Heaven and earth to make His subjects righteous.
He is the Lord their righteousness—almighty to pardon their sins, almighty to subdue their sins and all their enemies, and almighty to give them faith to trust Him for salvation and for all the things which accompany salvation. Happy subjects, who being justified by faith, have peace with God and who live under His government safe and happy.
They do not live up to their privileges, if either guilty fears or natural fears distress them. When kingdoms are convulsed, states are overthrown, and the civil world turned upside down, the feet having got into the place of the head—then He says to the weakest of His subjects, "Fear not lest any hurt you; I will keep you night and day. Under My protection you are as safe as if you were in Heaven."
There was a great deal said of this most blessed Melchizedek, which I need not repeat—you have heard His praises celebrated so often by me, and long before in the Word of God, Psalm 46; and in that famous hymn of Isaiah 12. We only need more faith to make Him more precious, and ourselves more happy. Let Melchizedek be our study, and on Him may our hearts be fixed through the present year. The government is upon His shoulders, the greatest concerns and the least.
May our King, for His eyes and care are everywhere, look on our traveling friend and keep him until we meet in peace. May you and yours find it a faithful saying, recorded of His subjects, Psalm 112:7-8; and then you will prize and love Melchizedek.
William Romaine
Letter 28
August 3, 1793
My dear Friend,
I was just going to write when your letter came this morning. I wish to live under an abiding sense of the certainty of death, and of preparation for it. Just on the verge of eternity—oh, it is a blessed prospect to be able to look forward with a hope full of glory and immortality. It makes old age with its numerous infirmities, not only tolerable, but truly blessed. To live in the Lord is Heaven upon earth; to die in the Lord is the Heaven of heavens. I am a witness for Jesus, how happy it is to live by faith in Him; and Jesus Himself is a witness how happy it is to die in faith. So He assures us: "Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord." He who spoke it with a voice from Heaven, has never broken His Word to one dying believer; and He will not to you. Trust and be not afraid. Cordially yours,
William Romaine
Letter 29
January 4, 1794
My dear Friend,
When I saw your return address before I opened your letter, my heart leaped for joy; but when I read the contents, I blessed His holy name and gave Him all the glory. It is His own doing, and indeed it ought to be marvelous in our eyes. The more He makes it so, we will join prayer to praise and beg of Him that whatever was His gracious purpose in His recent painful visitation, it may be completely answered; and your wife's body and soul may be better for it.
Oh, what a Jesus we serve! With what confidence may we trust Him who brings down to the grave, and then brings up to Heaven! And He gives us full warrant: "Trust in Him at all times, you people—pour out your hearts before Him in the prayer of faith."
God will be a sure refuge for you in the distresses of life and in the hour of death. In this delightful exercise I think I hear you say, "What return shall I make to the Lord for all the benefits that He has done unto me? I will offer the sacrifice of thanksgiving and will call upon the name of the Lord. Oh, that I may answer His gracious purpose in raising me up again, that I may grow in grace and in the knowledge and love of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ: to Him be glory both now and forever."
I know your feelings. You are blessing your God, who has favored you with such a gift, and have now, as it were, redoubled your praise. You are praying to be made and to be kept thankful, that every sight of your wife may stir up gratitude and praise in your heart to a bountiful Jesus.
Oh, if ever I take my seat in your hall to worship again, may our meeting be something of Heaven, and our praises like theirs above. What mercies! How great—how many!
I believe your daughter knows how to value, perhaps much better than I can, such a parent restored to her. She is sensible of the signal favor, and I pray with the same warm heart that she may thank her God. I imagine her saying: "Oh, what a blessing to me, that my dear mother, who loves me as her own soul and is the safe guide of my youth—should be raised from such a bed of sickness and spared to me and to my sister. I wish to praise the Lord for this His goodness, and to show Him my thankfulness in word and in deed."
So be it. You have friends to join you. I know some who are giving glory where it is due and begging of God that the family and relations and all your connections may be profited by this visitation. May your wife's increasing health inspire increasing gratitude.
I am at prayers. My chief concern in these troublesome times is with God. Let Him do what He will, believers will be safe, as in the ark, as in going through the Red Sea. Yes, they may sing the 46th Psalm, as I do this day. Your friend in the Lord,
William Romaine
Letter 30
February 1, 1794
My dear Madam,
I have many reasons to rejoice with you and join my praises to Him who has done such great things for you, and will do greater still. He has restored your life from destruction; your health is returning—and your spiritual health has returned. Oh, how did my heart rejoice, far more than for anything outward, when I read of God's abundant grace to you in giving you a thankful spirit! For this is spiritual liveliness and spiritual growth. I could not help taking up these holy words: "I will bless the Lord at all times; His praises shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make its boast in the Lord. The humble shall hear of it and be glad. O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together. We sought the Lord, and He heard us and delivered us from all our fears. Blessed, blessed, most blessed be His holy name."
Do I not hear you say "Amen"?
I have observed that the public mind too much agitated about the troublesome signs of the times, and my own friends are rather uneasy about what was coming upon us. Come what may, I have always an infallible antidote; and this is my motto verse for this year, "The God of Hope!" Romans 15:13. This is one of His blessed and comforting titles—he God from whom believers in Christ may hope for all possible good, and to be saved from all possible evil.
Such are His promises—faith looks at the truth of them, and hope waits for the fulfilling of them, not doubting that God is faithful.
This is His character: a promise-keeping God. And may He render this year famous for the exercise of Christian hope—well-grounded, sure, and certain—built upon immutable things and bringing the words before us into happy experience—even that the God of hope may fill us with all joy and peace in believing, that we may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
This hope is His gift, a grace of His power, and the fruit of believing. Whatever God has promised, be it ever so great, ever so much—He enables the believer to hope for its accomplishment and to wait God's time.
If it is for sin—being justified by faith, He gives peace with God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Peace in the sense of pardon and peace in the sense of favor, that He has brought us into a state of favor, and that we stand in it with the fullest security of the word, promise, covenant, and oath of the holy Trinity, that we shall be kept to the end. This is the hope which never makes ashamed. All worldly hopes may disappoint, but this cannot (Romans 5:5).
The believer looks at sin and triumphs (Romans 8:31-34). He looks at the troubles arising from sin (for they all come from it) and he carries on his triumph (Romans 8:35) to the end. He looks at death and still is happy, for he has hope in his death (Proverbs 14:32). He looks beyond death to a God of hope. He looks for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life, with a hope full of glory and immortality (Psalm 48:14, Titus 1:1-3, Jude 20, 21, 24, 25). The Word and Spirit of God encourage us to trust and not be afraid, for He is faithful who promised.
Is this my hope? Have I begun the year with waiting thus upon God? It is very high worship, and the most honorable that can be to God's promises. Oh, for many, many such worshipers. They need not fear the raging storm threatening destruction to the earth. They have embarked all their hopes with their Almighty Jesus, and He has engaged to bring them safely to the haven where they would be, as you read in Hebrews 6:16-20.
William Romaine
Letter 31
April 19, 1794
My dear Friend,
I was made to believe that I would have seen you face to face long before this, and your last letter gave me some hopes of it; but I wait no longer. You cannot think how much I was flattered by your account of yourself, because it was a demonstration of the truth of my principles, which you have so often heard from my mouth and have so often under my hand. You see He can keep you anywhere, everywhere, when duty calls you. He can make England a very paradise; so it is to me—all but Heaven.
How well has our God carried you through the winter—found work for you, fitted you for it, given you health and strength; and what is better still, spiritual health and strength to thank Him and bless His dear name! Oh, may every heart in your family and every tongue in it ascribe with gratitude.
For your wife's recovery, and your own particular mercies and the dutifulness of your children—may He have all the glory. It is from Him that the voice of joy and health is in the dwellings of the righteous, and to Him I look with thanksgiving for making you a witness for my old doctrine. Oh, it is a blessed thing to trust Him! He promises, and He will make His Word good. Trust in Him at all times, O people, and in all places. They shall lack nothing that is really for their good. But now I have got upon this subject, I must stop, for there is no end of it; the triumph of faith is the everlasting joy of Heaven.
Both my strength and courage continue, very marvelously in my own eyes. I labor more than ever, sometimes to the weariness of the flesh; but my Friend gives me rich cordials, and I go on, aiming, as He helps me, to magnify and exalt Jehovah-Jesus. He has poured out a very remarkable Spirit of prayer; and multitudes, multitudes through the land are on their bended knees, lifting up holy hands, and crying for mercy. I hope He will hear and answer by granting us a national reformation, that iniquity and infidelity may not be our ruin.
The times are still tempestuous, and the poor church is tossed on the waves like Noah's ark; but not one who embarked with Christ shall ever perish. They may suffer shipwreck, but as it was in Acts 27, they all got safely to land. I am in the ark and hope it will soon be so with me. To this most blessed Pilot I commit you and yours. Do not forget in your best moments, your steadfast friend and servant in the Lord,
William Romaine
Letter 32
August 9, 1794
My very dear Friend,
We were in Buckinghamshire for two weeks and did not receive your letter until recently; nothing else could have hindered me from answering it sooner, especially as your plans depend so much upon it. I look forward with prayer, that it may be made a happy meeting to us all. "As iron sharpens iron, so," etc.
We need much encouragement from the warnings given us of our uncertain stay here in this poor world. Old age preaches, "Be ready!"—and increasing infirmities second the lesson.
The state of the world cries aloud with wars, tumults, cruelties never heard of before.
The state of the church also is alarming, more than anything else. Philosophy with its vain deceits, infidelity with its natural children, swarm us with most profane practices, destroying all subordination to God's ministers and to God's magistrates, whom He has set over us that we might lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. These evils are growing worse and worse, especially as none can tell when they will stop, or how. How earnestly should we endeavor to strengthen one another's hearts and hands in the good ways of God, when we see all these things come upon the earth.
I keep in my watch-tower, looking to Him for His gift of repentance and reformation to a guilty land, that our iniquity may not be our ruin; and thanking Him for His special favor, that there is a sanctuary out of the reach of all dangers, and that we, of His free grace, are in it; described in Isaiah 26:1-4. Do not cease to pray for,
William Romaine
Letter 33
October 9, 1794
My dear Friend,
In the midst of this great storm which rages through Europe with unabating fury—what a blessing to enjoy a calm within! A quiet conscience, a happy heart, a true paradise! Let the hurricane spread and threaten to carry all before it; yet you can recollect what is said of a righteous man: "He shall not be afraid of evil tidings; his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord. His heart is established; he shall not be afraid." This is the haven of peace, into which he has entered and is safe, whose anchor is Christ—all with him is sure and steadfast. Come what may upon the earth, even the great day of the Lord, instead of fearing anything that can hurt him—he may, he will lift up his head with joy and triumph in the God of his salvation. May this be your portion when most needed.
Our stay here will be short. We paid you the longest visit we have made this summer. It is continually sounding in my ears, "They sorrowed most of all because they would see his face no more," etc. It is certain that at my age, we cannot promise ourselves, on any good ground, a yearly visit to our friends. Our meetings must be before God—in the prayer of faith for them, which is the communion of saints; and praise to Him for brotherly love with its heavenly fruits. I hope to visit you with my last and dying testimony of faith.
I will go to town sooner than usual, that I may put my Triumph of Faith to the press. And then, my good God favoring me, you will read, and I trust will be a witness, that "Blessed are those who live in Jesus, and most blessed are those who die in Jesus." To him I commend you and yours, with the blessings of Jesus on you all.
William Romaine
Letter 34
November 14, 1794
Yes, poor L. is dead, and he gives us warning. One generation passes away, and another generation comes. The sun also rises, and the sun goes down and hastens to the place where it arose. His sun is gone down. Yours and mine are setting. What a comfort! Our day's work is done; we are walking as children in the light and waiting to be sent for, whenever our Lord pleases. It must be soon, in the course of nature. It may be in a moment. Come ever so soon—it will be a blessed time. When and where and how—all is settled by Him who says to you and to me, " But now, O Jacob, listen to the LORD who created you. O Israel, the one who formed you says, "Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine! When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior!" Isaiah 43:1-3
I have nothing to do with these troublous times, but in the way of prayer. Grant us peace in Your time, oh Lord. So I ask and keep on asking, although it seems to be further and further out of sight. Thus the prophet prayed: "Oh, sword of the Lord, how long will it be before you are quiet? Put yourself into your scabbard; rest and be still." To whom it was answered, "How can it be quiet, seeing the Lord has given it a charge to take vengeance, and there is no repentance, nor turning from their crying sins?" The Lord grant our iniquity may not be our ruin!
I have time to pray for Louisa. I hope He will hear and answer, who is my Friend and yours. Your wife and daughter have much occasion for faith and patience. I pray for them, that they may find grace to help them in every time of need.
Very soon, yet a very little while—and faith and patience will be no more needed. Until that time, may they do their perfect work.
I am very busy printing my dying testimony for the truth of the gospel of Jesus, and for the power of it. If you live to see it, you will know somewhat more of His unspeakable grace and favor to
William Romaine
Letter 35
To Mrs. B., Brighthelmstone, October 14, 1764
Grace be with you, my dear friend, and with yours. Upon hearing of the recent mercy which you have received, I found my heart rejoicing in the Lord, and my faith in Him strengthened. Surely His compassions never fail—He is all faithfulness and truth. The mercy which He has promised, He will fulfill to a thousand generations, and none who trusted in His promised mercy ever were or ever will be confounded. I had no doubt of this in myself, through His good hand upon me; but by His dealings with you and yours I am more confirmed, and learn to trust Him more. May His great kindness to you have the same effect. May it bring you to see more clearly that you are in Christ; and as you learn to trust and to depend more upon Him, you will thereby get more out of His fullness.
This seems to me to be the end and purpose for which a believer lives. He is in Christ, and he is allowed to live a longer time, that every new day may bring him to a more settled dependence upon Christ. His faith is to be always growing and getting some fresh establishment in Christ.
So we read of the Thessalonians, in the first epistle; their faith was so famous, that it was spoken of throughout the world; and yet afterwards, in the second epistle, it is said that their faith had grown exceedingly. It was not merely kept alive, or at a standstill, but also increased, being renewed day by day by the Word and Spirit of God; under whose teaching the believer attains more large views of the covenant of grace, of the unchangeable faithfulness of the eternal Three in their covenant offices, and of his safety in relying upon Their making good to him every covenant mercy.
Thus seeing all things well-ordered and sure in the covenant for his acceptance, through the finished work of Jesus, and for his holy and happy walk through the almighty grace of Jesus; whatever could bring him to God and keep him near to God, are all provided and all made over to him by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible that God should lie.
On this foundation resting his soul—his conscience is at peace, and he grows daily more sensible of his being in the favor and love of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, in their covenant offices, and gets more comfortable evidence of their acting in each of their offices for his good.
And as his faith thus grows, whatever opposes him in his walk becomes more easy to overcome because he sees all fullness of grace and power treasured up in his dearest Savior; and he knows it is there for his use, and he there goes for everything he needs. And by daily sweet experience, finding the faithfulness of Jesus—he grows bolder and has more freedom to go to Him. He learns not to be discouraged by what he feels in himself, be it what it may, but he carries it to the Lord.
And when he makes use of Christ's promised strength and relies wholly on it to subdue corruptions, to conquer enemies, to overcome difficulties, to deny self, and to bear the cross—then all things go well. So long as he trusts in the Lord, the Lord makes him to prosper.
The devil cannot come at such a person but by attacking his faith, and he cannot conquer him until faith gives way. And his faith will not shrink because God keeps it, and with Him he trusts all, looking up to the Lord to keep him by the power of His might.
Oh, happy man this, to whom the Lord says, "I will preserve you from all evil!"
And he says, "Lord, I believe Your Word, and on Your power alone do I depend to preserve me."
To whom the Lord says again, "I will bless you, and you shall lack nothing that is really good."
"True, Lord, so I find it. What good thing do I lack, now that You are mine, and I am Yours? You have taken all my sins upon Yourself, and You have given me all Your righteousness. In having You, I have all things, only I want more faith. Oh, that I may glorify You more, by putting more trust and confidence in You. Still, Lord, increase—still, day by day, let it be growing—a growing faith increasing exceedingly, until I receive the end of my faith, even the salvation of my soul!"
I keep writing on, thinking of these things, which are the joy of my heart. May they, in these retired hours, rejoice yours also. May the Lord convey them to you with that life and power which I feel now in writing. I am a poor creature, the poorest of all. Yet Jesus is mine. In His love and by His sweet constraining grace, I am yours,
William Romaine
Letter 36
Brighton, September 30, 1795
You want to receive something from us, which breathes the air of Canaan. Is not Jesus Canaan itself? Is He not the breath, the light of life, the bread, the water of life, the garments of salvation, the everlasting feast of joy and gladness of that blessed country? While we talk of Him along the way, as we are traveling to it, we not only breathe the air, but also enjoy the good things of Canaan itself; for when Jesus dwells in our hearts by faith, we then have possession of the promised inheritance. Our Jesus is all of it to us. Having Him, we have it all. Canaan is a wilderness without Him. The finest place you can conceive would be no Heaven, if Jesus were not there. And wherever He is, there Heaven is; as the court is where the king is.
"Whom have I even in Heaven, but You?" said blessed David. And Paul full of the same Spirit, placed his utmost wishes in being present with the Lord, which he knew was best of all.
Our Heaven, you know, my friend, is not the place nor the fine things in it—gold and silver and precious stone; but it is Jesus, our matchless, loving, lovely Savior. His presence is to us the fullness of joy.
The common notion of Heaven is very much like the Turks' paradise. Writers and preachers generally make it a most glorious place, full of the richest things; and they take care to tell us there is no pain there, but all pleasure. So it is. But what sort of pleasure? Why, to be with the Lord Christ, to see Him face to face, to see Him as He is, to behold the glory of God in the person of Christ Jesus, according to our Lord's prayer: "Father, I will that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory." This is the highest enjoyment, to behold His glory. They have nothing above this in Heaven; and of this, faith has some very sweet foretastes below.
When the Spirit has drawn our hearts to Jesus, then He gives us daily, by our fellowship with Him, happy pledges of the glory which shall be revealed; and we cannot rest until with open face we behold it. All He gives us here, only whets the appetite and makes us wish more for full and perfect enjoyment; as one sweetly sings of the beatific vision, which is the sight of Jesus:
"What we here taste of Your rich grace,
Makes us long more to see Your face."We hunger more and thirst to see the Heaven of heavens, Lord, in You.
If this is the language of your heart, you are indeed breathing the air of Canaan and partaking, according to your present capacity, of the good things of it. The Heir of that promised land is your Savior, and with Him you are an heir of God, and a co-heir with Christ. Your faith proves clearly that you are one of these happy co-heirs because you are longing for more sweet breathings and heavenly gales of grace, coming from and drawing you to Jesus, and thereby assuring you more of the promised inheritance.
There are certain means appointed for these purposes, of which, while we make use, may their end be answered in your soul and mine.
And the first is the Word, which is the ministration of righteousness, that exceeds in glory, being the righteousness not of a creature only, but also of God; for therein is this righteousness revealed from faith to faith. The Word is a revelation of the glory of this righteousness of God in the Person of Jesus Christ, revealing to us the Father's grace and love, in placing the fullness of this righteousness, with all its fruits, in His co-equal Son; and the Spirit's grace and love, in testifying and glorifying of this fullness, and in bringing the believer to rest safely and live happily upon it.
This is the subject of both testaments, which we should be studying night and day, and meditating on it with love in our hearts—until we get within the veil and need no more love tokens and kind promises from our heavenly Lover—He being then ours, with all His glory, in full and never-ending fruition!
Here I take shame to myself for reading so little of this precious treasure, which breathes throughout the perfumed air of Canaan. Learn, my friend, from my sad experience.
Secondly, that you read Scripture in a constant dependence upon the inward teaching of the Spirit of Jesus. The Word is the ministration of the Spirit, by which He is administered, and with which He acts. For He is to the Word, what light is to the eyes. Let a man have ever such good eyes, he cannot see anything with them unless he has light. So the Word must have light shining upon it to make us see it in its clearness and feel it in its power.
When He opens the eyes of our understanding and enlightens them to understand the Scriptures—one cannot help admiring and adoring what light He throws upon them and what life He puts into them; for He renders them the power of God unto salvation. Then one gets up to Pisgah's top, and not only fine prospects of Canaan's fruitful hills appear, but also her spicy fragrances perfume the air and bring us rich foretastes of that good and gracious land.
Oh, for more of the Spirit's influence! He is the very breath of life to quicken the Word. With Scripture in your hand and Him in your heart, you will have the inspiration of the Almighty, and your present knowledge will be but like infancy, compared to that maturity to which He will bring you.
Thirdly, the Word of God thus explained by the Spirit will make this material world breathe the air of the spiritual world. The things that are made, were made what they are on purpose, to represent and to convey ideas of the invisible things of God. Every outward object is a picture of some inward object, for none of them were made for themselves, but were to reflect and give ideas of something else: namely, of Jesus and of His spiritual world.
Here the Scripture becomes a vast help to a spiritual mind. It represents the world and all things in it, as mere shadows—and informs us what the true object is which each of them stands for—so that the pondering mind looks through the sign, to the thing signified. Thus all nature preaches grace. Every object speaks something of Jesus, and you cannot open your eyes without being told something of Him.
Many are the advantages of viewing things in this light, such as a continual increase of knowledge. The understanding improves by every object, as it learns to spiritualize every one of them. And it is kept close to the truth; for whatever presents itself to the eye, carries its instruction to the eye of the soul, and thereby becomes profitable to our spiritual and eternal interest.
Temptations are kept out, for they all come from not seeing objects in a true light. The enemy misrepresents, and thereby deceives. Whether he tempts the eye or the heart, he cannot cheat them except by false colors and lies.
The world is kept out; for the spiritual man cannot fall in love with shadows, which all things here are.
The whole creation is but a picture; the body and substance is Jesus and His kingdom. The principal advantage is conversing and having fellowship with Jesus in every object, of which we know the time, nature, and use. When we sit down or walk along the way, eat or drink or rest—when we see the heavens above with their furniture of sun, moon, etc., or the earth beneath, with its creatures, its products, etc.—everything has a tongue and reads a lecture concerning Jesus.
This the spiritual Psalmist heard when he calls upon all animate and inanimate things to join him in praising his Jesus—and a blessed concert they make. My heart has been ravished with hearing the heavens declare the glory of God, and the earth and all that therein is, echoing back again loud praises to His glory.
I cannot walk into the garden, but flowers and fruits tell me to praise my Jesus. In the fields I am told of Him, and that not fancifully (as a sportive imagination may make something out of nothing), but the Scripture informs me what such an object represents, and the sight of it raises the spiritual idea.
So that, whatever I rightly understand, it speaks to me of Jesus and reminds me of something relating to Jesus and to His kingdom.
Then, my dear friend, Canaan is kept in view, and we always breathe its pure air. And that incomparably glorious Jesus, who makes Canaan what it is, grows better known and more beloved. He has become my one study, but I am a very dull scholar. What I have learned is but just enough to make me count all but dross for Him. "What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith." Philippians 3:8-9.
So much remains still to be learned, He being an infinite and an everlasting good, that I am ever pressing on. Oh, how my heart longs for more of the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord! And as I get some little advance, fresh views of Christ's glory sink me to the dust. My vileness is most felt, when He is seen most clearly. The more precious He grows, the more humbling views I get of myself. As Christ rises, self falls!
May you find it so, and the more you find it, so much the more will you breathe the air of Canaan. I know not how to stop, but my paper, against my will, won't let me go any farther.
William Romaine
Letter 37
Lambeth, January 26, 1768
My dear Friend,
I received your recent letter in which opened up the state of your soul. I see nothing singular in it. Scarcely a day happens, but I meet someone in your condition, with exactly the same complaints arising from the very same cause. And I have convinced many, through the divine blessing, of their interest in Jesus from the very arguments they made use of to doubt and question it.
Were I to draw the true character of a believer, I would put into it every single circumstance that you mention in your letter; and I would undertake to prove that it made strongly for you, and nothing of it against you. It is the very frame and temper of a real Christian. Just as you describe yourself, is everyone who is born of God. Each feels the very things you do, and is never right when he does not feel them; it being the proper work of the Spirit of Jesus to bring all that are under His teaching to be content to be exactly what you find yourself, that you may be led to live outside of yourself upon the fullness of Jehovah-Jesus. He is teaching you this lesson, that He may glorify the Savior in you.
But you are a bad scholar like me: slow to learn, ready to forget, and, what is worse, apt to pervert the divine instruction. You misapply and put vile constructions upon the teaching of the Spirit of God, and give a legal turn and cast to His lessons. I can see, as if written with a sunbeam, the disposition of your mind herein, and can trace from my own experience, all the turnings and intricate windings of your present temptations.
I observe what you say of your judgment. You are enlightened to see that Jesus is all in salvation work. The covenant is ordered in all things and sure; this is all my salvation, and as far as I know my own heart, this is all my desire.
You unsay these words in the same breath you say them; for because you are not always satisfied with this salvation, or always alike comforted with it, or with equal happiness enjoying the glorious fruits of it—you therefore doubt and reason about its being yours. Thus you argue: "My judgment is clearly convinced, and my heart desires to be cast wholly upon the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation—but in the act of doing this, I always fail."
What reasoning is here! How directly contrary to the spirit of the gospel! For you are looking not at the object of faith, at Jesus—but at your faith. You would draw your comfort not from Him, but from your faith. And because your faith is not quite perfect, you are as much discouraged, as if Jesus was not a quite perfect Savior.
My dear friend, how sadly does the sly spirit of bondage deceive you! For what is your act of believing? Is it to save you? Are you to be saved for believing? If so, then you put acts and works in the place of the Savior. And faith, as an act, is in your view part of your salvation. You turn the free grace of the covenant into a work, and how well that work is done becomes the ground of your hope. What a dreadful mistake is this, since salvation is not to Him who works, but to him who believes!
But besides this mistake, I can see one of the greatest sins in your way of reasoning, and yet it is finely cloaked under a very specious covering. I pulled your cloak off, and behold there was rank treason under it—against the crown and majesty of my Lord and God; for you are kept looking at your act of believing. What is this for? Why certainly, that you may be satisfied with your faith; and being satisfied with it, what then? No doubt you will then rest in it and upon it, satisfied now that Christ is yours, because you are satisfied with your faith. This is making a Jesus of your faith, and is in effect taking the crown of crowns from His head and placing it upon the head of your faith! Lord grant you may never do this any more.
I observe thirdly, how by this mistake and by this great sin, the sin of sins—you are robbed of the sweet enjoyment of the God of all comfort. You lose what you seek, and lose it in your way of seeking. You want comfort, and you look to your faith for it. If faith could speak, it would say, "I have no comfort to give you; look unto Jesus—it is all in Him." Indeed, my friend, it is. The Holy Spirit, the Comforter, will not glorify your faith. He will not give it the honor of comforting you. He takes nothing to comfort with, but the things of Christ—and His things, not as used by you, but as given from Him, who is all yours.
This lesson, I think, He is teaching you, although you pervert it. He is bringing you off from looking legally at your faith. He intends you should not regard, as you have done, how you believe, but to settle you in believing.
I have been long at learning this myself, and have learned but very little. I can say my lesson, but when I come to practice, I find I am a dull scholar. The Spirit of Jesus has been teaching me to draw my comforts, not from how well I believe, but from Jesus, in whom I believe; not from there being no failing in my act of faith, but that I do act faith upon Jesus, though failingly.
My salvation is quite a distinct thing from any act of mine. It depends on the divine purpose and covenant, is absolutely and eternally fixed in the divine will—and this is made known to me by faith. I receive the evidence of it by believing, and so take possession.
Faith is not the cause of salvation, but the effect of salvation. The cause is the act and grace of the Trinity: what the Father out of sovereign love gave, what the Son bought with an inestimable price, and what the Holy Spirit proves to a sinner to be a price every way fully sufficient, and so brings him to depend upon it for his redemption.
You see, then, that in consequence of the Father's giving Christ for me, the Holy Spirit brings me to Christ and enables me to trust and rely upon Him. This is all that faith has to do in the matter. It is the fruit and evidence of the covenant grace of the Trinity.
At best it is but an open, empty hand, stretched at God's bidding, and at God's enabling to lay hold of Christ; but Christ so laid hold of, is my salvation. It is not faith, but Christ. It is not my hand of faith, but Christ received into my hand, that saves me.
I grant you, and I know it well—that much faith brings much comfort from Christ and carries much glory to Him. But the way to get much faith is not to look at it, as you do; but at the Savior. Not to look at your hand, but at Jesus! Not how you hold Him, but that He holds you, and your faith too. Therefore you shall never perish, but shall have everlasting life.
After I had observed these errors in your looking at the act of faith, I did not wonder at the following parts of your letter, such as your not being pleased with your faith, and therefore not pleased with your state—nor your graces, nor your attainments, nor your own righteousness, but you thought that everything was against you.
This is still the same teaching of the Spirit, but you pervert it. Have you nothing to look at but Jesus? Then look unto Him, and be saved. What? Can you see nothing to rest on of your own? Are you forced to renounce the goodness of your faith, as an act, and do you experience that you cannot be saved for it? Very well; hold fast right there. Stick to this: no grace, as acted by you, can save.
Follow this blessed teaching and cleave with full purpose of heart to the Lord Jesus. You must learn to make Him all in your salvation. He must save you from your faith, as well as from your unbelief; faith as you act it, being full of sin. If the highest and best act of your faith was to be weighed in the balance of the sanctuary, you would deserve a thousand deaths for it. So much corruption would be found in it, that you could not escape the damnation of Hell.
Turn around then; take your eyes off from your acts of faith—and look at Jesus. Expect to be received as a poor helpless sinner—not for great and high believing. Come to be saved from your faith, as an act. Follow, as all your salvation is laid up in Him, follow Him; take comfort from Him; see yourself in Him, not for anything in you. Trust Him, not yourself, not your acts; and learn to know divine teaching by this mark: that teaching which tends to humble you, is from the Glorifier of the Savior.
Since I sat down to write I have been many times interrupted, but I was resolved not to be stopped in writing today, that you might, at least, know what could be said of your case. It is a very common one—common to all who are taught of God—so peculiar to them that, as I said before, if I was to draw the character of a true child of God, I could not leave out one, not a single one, of the circumstances which you bring against yourself. Indeed, Mrs. B., they are all on your side, and witnesses for Christ.
Oh, do not then stifle, pervert, nor dispute their evidence. Allow what they say: your faith is not perfect, your acts fail, you fail in all things. That is good, very good. Then away with them! Cast off all looking at them, and all dependence on them. Take yourself to Jesus, trust Him, use Him, grow into Him, and let nothing separate you from Him. So be it, Lord Jesus.
William Romaine
Letter 38
Blackfriars, August 12, 1769
My dear Friend,
The lesson which the Lord is now teaching you is plain. His way of teaching it has nothing new; it is the established method in His school, and your averseness to learn it occasions all your uneasiness. When He has made you a good scholar, you will then find relief in your soul, whatever befalls your poor infirm body.
I take it for granted that you are acquainted with the doctrines of free grace and finished salvation. You are not allowed to doubt of their truth, but you cannot receive comfort from them at this time. Your conscience draws fresh bills of indictment against you. You do not see your interest in your divine Advocate, and therefore you cannot answer them as you used to do. Hence you are puzzled and mourn, have become impatient and fretful, fear this and the other—and are left to yourself, to your sinkings and dejections and groundless apprehensions. Imagined miseries are felt as real, and imagined fears of dying are as bad as death; yes, worse than death will ever be to you.
This is something like your case, is it not? And what is to be done? Where is the remedy? Certainly our all-wise Physician has left some prescription for it; and He can make it, as bad as it is, work under Him for good. But how?
Why, He would teach you now one of His highest lessons, and you are brought into circumstances most exactly suited for your being a proficient in it. He intends in this (as in all things) to promote His own glory as the Alpha and Omega of your salvation, not only in working of it out, for He has satisfied you of this, but also in the security of it. He must have all the honor of the safe-keeping of it: it for you, and you for it. He is the Keeper of Israel, who keeps all the Israel of God by the power of God; and you cannot glorify Him in this His great covenant office, but by giving up your body and soul, you and yours, absolutely to His keeping.
And how could you be taught this in a shorter or better way, than by being brought into your present distress? For you now find that you can no more secure and keep, than you could work out, your salvation. He must do it all—He must begin, carry on, and finish your salvation. This is your lesson.
Finding yourself then in this situation, utterly helpless, without anything good in you—a poor, dejected, fearful, destitute creature—commit the keeping of your soul to Jesus. You will thereby bring Him a richer revenue of honor than all the rejoicing Christians in the world. You will glorify His faithfulness to His Word and work, by venturing upon that arm of the Lord which is engaged to do all for you, and all in you.
Mind one of His sublime styles and titles: He is the Savior of him who has no helper. What? Have you no help? Do you feel it? Then the Spirit says that He is your Savior. Mrs. B., He is yours, as surely as He ever saved anyone who had no helper.
"But alas! How weak is my faith!" My dear friend, do not look at your faith—that will only puzzle you. It will make believing to be a work and will tempt you to be comforted when you believe well, and to be dejected when you are displeased with your believing. You know it is not the degree or the joy of faith that saves; but it is Jesus who saves, and your safety arises from trusting to the work of Jehovah-Jesus, and your comfort should spring from taking it to yourself upon the warrant of God's free offer to sinners like you; not to qualified sinners, but to coming sinners. "All whom the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out." John 6:37. It matters not how he comes, nor who he is, nor what he has been. God gives His word and pledges His honor to all who come to Him: "You shall never, never perish, but shall have everlasting life." Whether he comes fainting, lives fainting, or dies fainting, it is the same; the word cannot be broken, but stands fast forever and ever.
Mrs. B., fainting, dejected, without spirits or liveliness, comes; and she shall never, never perish, says God—she shall have everlasting life.
But what signifies the truth of this to me, while I find no comfort in believing? Your case does not admit of comfort; the Master is carrying you up into a more exalted state of believing, wherein we are to get above infantile comforts. You could not learn the present lessons of His love in a comfortable frame; He therefore brings you into the valley of Baca, to teach you what Jesus is in Himself, and that all your salvation is in Him, undertaken, fulfilled, applied. And that after all your knowledge and all your experience, you have nothing to this moment to depend upon, but His faithful arm and watchful care.
This is His last lesson; nothing is beyond it but Heaven. You are left to your present distresses on purpose to learn this. Your dear Jesus lets you feel how utterly helpless you are—that you may find how faithful He is to His promised help. He is as exactly suited to your case, as light is to your eyes. Your relief does not consist in getting comfort again, but in getting nearer to Jesus and in seeing what He is to such as you, and thereby growing up more into Him.
Your present frame is to bring you to commit the keeping of yourself and of all your concerns to Him. You find you can do nothing—that you are quite lifeless, heartless, comfortless. Very well; but Jesus has undertaken to keep such as you, and He is now making you willing that He should be your keeper. Oh, that you would not reason and puzzle your poor heart, but follow His teaching and now simply leave it to Him to do what He will. Your salvation will then be as safe in His hands, as if you were in Heaven.
And why should you not simply trust Him? Consider: you cannot honor His office as your keeper; you cannot bring Him more glory than others do—but by coming as the weakest of all creatures. You find you are so. Then let His strength be perfected in your weakness. You see that you can do nothing; let Him then have the crown of doing all. What sad work would you make, if your graces or comforts were left to your own keeping! You are learning now to put no confidence in the flesh. Oh, that you may yield to the Spirit's leading and may be willing to be just what your God would have you to be!
But how can you do this under your faintings, sinkings, etc.? These are your schoolmasters. Without them you could not learn your absolute dependence upon Jehovah-Jesus, and you experience these on purpose that you may find how careful Jesus is over you. He has the same love to your soul, the same faithfulness to His own work—when you have no strength, as at other times. He says so: "I change not—I am the same yesterday, today, and forever"—the same to the fainting believer, as to the rejoicing believer.
Oh, fall, then, fainting into His loving arms! Venture upon Him; cast yourself upon Him, for He is a very present help in every time of trouble.
You see I have no more room. I will follow my advice above, with my prayers. I pity you much for what you suffer, but I wish God may let you see it as I do. Still all is well—may you say so. Read as you can bear it and pray for light to know, and faith to follow the Lord's leading. It is a dark night and a long night, but the morning comes, and you shall rejoice with the gladness of His people.
William Romaine
Letter 39
Berwick, near Shrewsbury, September 9, 1769
Dear Madam,
We were setting out upon our journey when we received Miss M's letter and have scarcely had any resting time since. No opportunity offered until the present, of sitting down to inform you of my constant remembrance of you in my prayers. My daily petition is that God may bring you to submit to His will and to make you lie in His hands, just what you are—a lump of sinful clay, that in His own way He may mold you and form you into a vessel of honor.
Oh, this is hard! To flesh and blood it is impossible. To have been, like you, in light, but now in darkness; to have walked in comfort, but now every ray of it gone; to suffer the disease but no feeling of the remedy—who can bear up under such trials? None can of themselves, but "I can do all things through Christ strengthening me."
So Paul said who rejoiced to be what you are: he was not only content to be a pensioner, living on the mere grace of Jesus, but he also gloried in his infirmities, that the power of Christ might rest upon him. Every infirmity brought him to feel more what you now feel yourself to be; but this did not keep him from Christ, as it does you. No, rather it brought him to greater experience of the power of Christ, in so managing his infirmities as to make them the means of nearer communion and more intimate fellowship.
My dear friend, I must repeat it. Although you tell me my last letter was a lance rather than a healing medicine, your present frame is necessary; you really need to learn the lesson which it is sent to teach you. Without it, how could our great Prophet bring you to live entirely out of self, and upon His fullness—which, when He is teaching, how do you murmur and repine? Whatever you knew of this before, it is plain you had it but in theory, for the practice has quite overset you.
You cannot believe, although the ground of believing stands good, unless you have the comfort of believing. For now that you are left to yourself, you think you are lost because you are allowed to feel what a poor miserable creature you are; not considering that, as bad as your condition is, yet there is a remedy for it, hope under it, and a good end to be answered by it. There is a remedy infallible, which you overlook at this time, although it is as exactly suited to your case as food is to the hungry.
What? Have you forgotten the covenant of the eternal Three—the Father's everlasting appointment concerning those whom He gave to His Son? None of them can be lost. The Son's accepting them as the Father's gift, undertaking for them, writing their names in His book, becoming man, living and dying for them; and by these relations to them, He is their Head, and they are His members, one with Him and He one with them, in a bond which nothing can break. And the Holy Spirit given to them and dwelling in them, to work all their works for them and in them, and to keep them safe by His mighty power, until they are received into glory.
This is the covenant of the blessed Trinity, in which it is enacted and provided, that nothing should befall you but what is for your good; yes, that the very state you are in, which is one of the sad fruits of the corruption of your nature, shall be so overruled, as in the end to promote the gracious plan of your salvation.
Do you not know, Mrs. B.—do you not believe all this? You do—I am certain you do in theory. I ask you, then, what is it that obstructs your practice? How is it that your present trials, which are working for your good, which must do you good, being appointed and sent for this very purpose—are so mistaken and misapplied?
You are left to reason against God's covenant purposes, and to pervert (as far as you can) God's gracious design. You may go on indulging this strange temper, but know assuredly, my good friend, that God will not only save you, notwithstanding your vile reasonings against Him, but will also make you one day acknowledge that it was good for you that you had been in this trouble; for still there is hope.
Hope is grounded upon some promise, and God has not left you without a word of promise to trust in. His covenant, made for you, is ordered in all things and sure. This dark dead frame of yours is ordered; all your nervous feelings, faintings, etc., are ordered; all things, how much you would suffer, and how long until you would be forced to acknowledge God to be just in His dealings with you. And though you may try to break His covenant, reason against it, indulge your own absurd reasonings, give place to unbelief—yet His covenant He will not break for the sake of your peevishness. No, He will not. It is sure in all things—as sure to one walking in darkness, as to one walking in light—always alike sure on God's part, though to your feeling it may look as if He was going to alter it.
Could this blessed truth break in upon your soul and shine in its divine glory, then you would be made to see that your present frame is most mercifully intended to teach you in experience, the faithfulness of God's covenant. For now you find you can do nothing. What more seasonable, what more comforting, than to be satisfied that your salvation is in safe hands, and that God is managing it so well that it cannot possibly miscarry?
Thus would hope revive, and soon be able to bring in strong consolation; for you would discover many gracious ends answered by your having gone through this dark and dull and helpless state. Depend upon it; good will come out of your distrustful murmurings and unbelieving repinings. God will get a rich revenue of glory, when He has brought you to experience that all your salvation was outside of yourself, and to be willing to take it and to enjoy it as the free gift of free grace—in every comfort, in every blessing, both in earth and in Heaven.
You are put to school to learn this and to trust God simply; and sad work you make of your lesson—you read it backwards! He would teach you that salvation itself, and everything belonging to it—is at His absolute disposal. And therefore He keeps you at school, and under sharp discipline too, because you are so dull at your book. Oh, that you may be made to feel that all is well!
David was once in your case, and he had a blessed outcome. So will you have. Read the 130th Psalm and mark where he began. He was in the depths, and he ended in the heights. After the dark and black night, the morning will arise—a morning without clouds, and your soul shall be glad and rejoice in the salvation of our God. Much, much glory will then accrue to Him from your present darksome visitation.
Perhaps you say, "These things may be true, but how can I take any comfort from them while I am in my present distress?"
Why not? They are the remedies prescribed by God for your very case, to give you a good ground of hope at present, and to produce the most blessed effects in future.
May the Lord the Spirit seal these things upon your heart, and may it please Him to do it soon. His time is best; but, for your sake, I would plead with Him, lest you should quite faint. But that will not be.
You know that I do not follow impressions unwarranted by the Word. I give little credit to anything of that kind. But here I have the Word on my side—that God will not leave you nor forsake you; and I am persuaded you will soon know you are not left. To my apprehension the clouds are breaking, the storm is dispersing fast; the day-star is dawning, and your own Jesus is rising with the light of life upon your soul, never, never to set again. It is but a very, very little while, and you shall see the King in His beauty as you never saw Him before! So be it. Amen.
William Romaine
Letter 40
Blackfriars, February 22, 1770
Grace and peace be multiplied to our dear friends at S____. Mrs. B., take the light of the Word and behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed upon you! What were His purposes of grace in giving you to His Son (admire and adore them); in revealing them to you by His Spirit; and in bringing you to know your Father in Heaven? That you might come to enjoy Him who is your supreme happiness! You do enjoy Him, glory be to His sovereign grace; but please mind: you enjoy Him now as a fallen creature. You are brought back to the Father, through the Son, by the Spirit. The Son was your Surety; the Father accepted Him in your stead; the Spirit has enabled you to believe that the Father loves you perfectly in His Son. Thus you come to the enjoyment of the eternal Three.
But not such enjoyment as you will have in Heaven. The manner of enjoying God will be different: Here it is by faith, there by sense. Here by hard fighting, there by constant peace. Here sensual things are always opposing and lessening spiritual enjoyments, there all are spiritual. Here the enjoyment of God is at best imperfect, there it is absolutely perfect. Here, as you are made up of flesh and spirit, sensible enjoyments must be withdrawn, in order to make room for spiritual; the absence of sensible is necessary for the growth of spiritual.
On which account I cannot but bless God for you, who takes so much pains with you. He has chosen you to better things than the world has to give. Your portion is not here below. God Himself is your portion, and all His dealings with you are to bring you to enjoy Him as such. He ploughs and harrows and takes every method to get a good crop. He rains and shines, sends winds and storms, frost and snow—all fulfilling His Word. His frowns and His smiles have one lesson. Sickness in yourself, in your family, in your husband—are all covenant visitations and speak aloud: "Mrs. B., you are the Lord's, and He won't let you alone; He won't allow you to settle upon your lees. You must be kept stirring. All peace and quiet would be your ruin; therefore God, even your God, has, in His richest love, weighed out every grain of suffering needful to keep you near to Himself."
But why have I got preaching? You do find it true; I know you do, that the time of living by faith in the Son of God has always most sweetness when the life of sense is lowest in its enjoyments. May the Lord grant you to daily make up your happiness in God, your covenant God and Father, and in those things which improve in the using when all other happiness fails. Amen.
William Romaine
Letter 41
London, March 7, 1778
Messiah is one of the high Hebrew titles of the Redeemer, which, being interpreted in the Greek is the Christ, and in the English is the Anointed. Oil was the instituted emblem of the grace of the Holy Spirit, and anointing with oil was the outward and visible sign of His inward and spiritual grace. We meet with the institution Exodus 30:22 to the end. This holy ointment was to be used in consecrating the tabernacle and all its vessels, and in setting apart certain people for some great offices. It was unlawful to use it upon any other occasion; whoever did was to be cut off from the people.
This consecrating unction was used to the tabernacle, which was a type of the body of Christ; and to every vessel of the tabernacle, to show that Christ and everything of Christ, was under the sanctifying influence of the Holy Spirit.
And it was used to consecrate, or set apart—the prophet, priest, and king, because Jesus was to sustain these offices. He was the anointed Savior. His human nature was conceived and formed by the Holy Spirit. Every thought of His mind, every motion of His body was under the Spirit's influence, and that every moment; for He had the Spirit without measure. He had infinite grace to obey, to suffer, to conquer. Nothing could possibly be lacking to render His obedience, sufferings, and victories absolutely complete and everlastingly perfect.
We have a demonstration of their full value and acceptance. He died, but rose from the dead. He sits at the right hand of the Majesty on high, infinitely replenished with the graces and gifts of the Eternal Spirit. Yes, in Him dwells the fullness of the Godhead bodily. Here is the fountain of all blessings.
His name, Messiah, shows not only that He is thus anointed, but means one who has the power to give the unction of the Holy One. He, as Head, has it for His members, which is beautifully described in Psalm 133. As the precious ointment poured upon the head of the high priest flowed down to the skirts of his garments; so does the spiritual anointing. On Christ it was poured without measure. From Him it descends to the lowest member. Every believer has his share of the Spirit's divine influence.
The Spirit of Christ is given to quicken the dead. He unites the soul to Christ. He enables it to live by faith upon Christ, and to live to the glory of Christ.
And therefore this anointing is absolutely necessary. Without it no man can be a member of Christ; for if any man has not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His. A Christian means one who has received the unction from Christ. The same Spirit who is in the Head, is also in each member; for he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit, and is as intimately united, yes I think more, than the body and soul in one person. This constitutes the Christian. He has actually the Spirit of Christ, whereby he is one with Christ, and Christ with him. Christ dwells in him, and he in Christ. Or as the apostle expresses it, "I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ lives in me." Christ was his life, as truly as any member lives by its union with the head, as evidently as a branch is nourished by the sap received from the stock upon which it grows. The anointing which he receives from Christ makes and constitutes him a real Christian, as certainly as the member lives by its oneness with the head, or the branch with the vine.
Our Lord's name, the Messiah, leads us to consider Him in this view: not only anointed Himself, but also the giver of the same grace—He having received it on purpose that He might give it to His people. By His own command the name of "Christian" was first used at Antioch, and it has been ever since the peculiar title of those who profess faith in Him and influence from Him.
Many, indeed, have the name without the reality; as a man may be called rich, who is very poor. But such are not Christians. They have a name to live, while they are dead. But he who is truly so called, has actual fellowship with Christ by His Spirit. Christ had the Spirit without measure, and the Christian partakes of the divine anointing. He is called after Christ, a Christian; for he is made alive and lives and acts by the same Spirit that is in Christ, who is Head over all things to His church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
But if it is thus certain, that the Head and the members have the same unction, or anointing of the Spirit—how can anyone know it? Should it not be very clear, as it is the thing which makes the Christian? Certainly it should. And the Scripture leaves no doubt concerning the way and means in which it is to be known. The anointing is known by believing: "You have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things."
The Word is the ministration of the Spirit. We are begotten by it, and then nourished by it. Holding the truth in love, we grow up into Christ in all things.
How is this anointing enjoyed? In the same way as it is known. The influence of the Spirit of Christ keeps up, through faith, communion with the Head and members—testifying of Christ, and glorifying Christ.
How is this anointing improved? By daily use we get more faith, more hope, more love to Christ, more happiness in the Father's love in Christ, whereby we learn more subjection to His will and ways.
In this new year, I wish you new grace, fresh unction. Yes, may you be every day anointed with fresh oil—much fellowship with Him, your Guide, your Keeper, your Savior. I have only time to pray for you and yours. My wife, with real love, wishes you the same unction.
William Romaine
Letter 42
Weymouth, October 11, 1777
How faithful is our God! He is crowning the year 1777 with His goodness. Indeed He is always the same, love itself—but we change; and for lack of continual trusting, we lose many tokens of his favor. Could you, for instance, always build upon this rock: "Thus says the Lord!"—how fixed would your walk be, hanging on His unchangeable will! How numerous would your comforts be, depending on His infallible Word! His will is only known from His Word, and His Word abides forever. As He has said, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My Word shall not pass away." Your dejections, sinkings, alter nothing in God—nor in His will or Word. And they come to teach you this. May you learn to renounce leaning to self, good or bad—and may you ever build on the Rock that is higher than you. For it is Christ the Rock of ages; the same yesterday, today, and forever.
We are planning to revisit you. But a thousand unforeseen things, besides death, may hinder us from meeting any more upon earth. Our visits are short. They disappoint us. We are apt to expect from them, what is only to be found in Him. We bear the pain of parting, in hopes of meeting again. But when He visits us once, it is forever—not with continual comforts or abiding presence, but with a promise: "I will never leave you nor forsake you." Faith in this will make your mountain sure, when everything else says it will be cast into the midst of the sea. Only believe.
Having a little of that faith which works by love, I can feel how the members under the same Head sympathize with each other. Distance makes no difference. The Head is in Heaven, the members on earth—yet one Spirit breathing through both, they rejoice and mourn together, which is heavenly friendship. Oh, for more of it in human hearts! I am not without it to Mr. B. and every one of your family.
If it is right, I could wish for you that tomorrow may be a sky without a cloud, a sea like glass, smooth forever and ever, will be your happy lot. There we shall meet and bless the kind hand of our Jesus, for mutual, as well as for personal salvation. You know there is nothing good you wish yourself or yours, which my wife does not wish you as well as,
William Romaine
Letter 43
Blackfriars, March 30, 1778
My dear Friend,
I am glad the Lord won't let you alone. He is very kind to you and takes a great deal of pains to make you a great proficient in His school. He has put you into the upper grade, and you have but one lesson to learn, and that He will teach you Himself. You must have no undermaster. He won't permit it; not only because they are incapable of teaching this hard lesson, but also because He will have all the glory of it.
"If any man will be My disciple, let him take up his cross daily and follow Me." The cross is the badge and honor of discipleship. He puts it on each of His disciples. He instructs in the true way to take it up, in the right method of bearing it, and He gives all the profit which comes from it.
I have prayed Him to teach you how to follow Him. And as He has you now in His hands, prayer for His blessing is worth more than all the fine lessons of men. Indeed they are apt to do hurt because they take the eye off from His hand and His rod, and incline us to hearken to reason more than to faith.
It is one great design of the cross to bring us to have nothing to do with any person or thing, but with Christ alone. He sends the cross to wean us from the world, reason, sense, and self. Oh, blessed cross, which deadens us to them and makes us more alive to Jesus! May every cross have this effect upon you.
Remember, just so many comforts as you have—so many crosses may you have. The cross grows out of the comfort. The dearer the comfort—the bitterer the cross. What a large provision have you for suffering—husband, children, substance, friends, farms, servants, etc., etc. The good Master sees how desirous you are to go to Heaven with this and the other comfort. You think He might very well spare it to you, being such an infinitely loving Jesus; that you might keep it, and yet keep His love. God loves you far better than you love yourself. He knows better than you do, what is best for you—and He will manifest it to you. Yes, you shall feel in your heart that His almighty love can bring you good out of evil, and pleasure out of pain.
Now He wants to communicate this. At this very time He is training you up for it. He is going to bestow upon you some of His choicest favors; and He has such a certain, fixed way of giving them, that I know His mind and will as plainly here at London, as if I were with you, and you were to tell me all your thoughts. For indeed I find Him very communicative to His friends. He keeps nothing from them. And the Lord said, "Shall I hide from Abraham the thing which I do? No, Abraham is of My court, and I will make him of My cabinet."
The same Lord has said to you and me, "From now on I call you not servants, but friends," etc. (John 15). Our divine Teacher still makes known to us what He does. It is your business and your happiness to wait on Him for the discovery of His will in His present dealings with you, that you may be able to do it, or patient to suffer it. This He expects of you. And may all within you say, from a feeling submission: "Lord Christ, not my will, but may Your will be done." I am thankful for the grace given to your husband. May it increase and abound yet more and more. I am yours,
William Romaine
Letter 44
To the Reverend Mr. K.
April 11, 1789
My dear Brother,
The famous Dr. Johnson declares that a man of genius may force himself to write whenever he pleases. If he found it so, I do not. I cannot even write a letter when I will; if I could, Mr. K. would have received an answer before this time. Indeed I do not wish to be of the doctor's mind, for I find the activity of our nature is a perpetual temptation to look upon ourselves as something. It seems to me safer and better to feel that every exertion of mind and body depends upon the grace of Another—life and breath and all things.
Say, "Here is a fine garden, but who planted it?" Say, "There are fragrant flowers, but unless the north wind awakes and the south comes, what is there to make the sweet spices of them to flow out?"
The soul is as much dependent on the fresh supplies of the Spirit, as the body is upon breath; so that the feeling of my poverty is my only riches, and the sense of my weakness is my only strength.
If I write a letter, if any good accompanies it, I wish ever to ascribe the praise to Him, without whom we, says a blessed man, even we are not sufficient of ourselves so much as to think one good thought. What possibly can be more humbling? And what can be more opposite to the doctor's spirit? Let him and such as him, plume themselves upon their self-exertions, but we have learned Christ better. In His school we know that the humble sits the highest; and he does most for Christ (or rather Christ does most in him) who is sensible that without Christ he can do nothing.
This is the Christian principle of all our activity, because through Christ strengthening us, we can do all things. Upon this ground I thank you for your letter, as I have already thanked Him who enabled you to write such a letter. And upon the same ground I compliment you on your sermon. Blessed be His holy name who sent us such a cordial from you. Indeed it greatly refreshed my spirits, and my wife desires me to tell you that she partook of my joy. We also rejoiced together in the account you gave of yourself and your family. How great, how many mercies—mercies upon mercies, in what you have and what you have not—God Himself being your portion!
He makes the flesh bow to the Spirit and enables the renewed heart to say, and truly, "Father, this is a sharp stroke, but I know it was sent in love! As such I kiss the rod—may Your will be done." Glory be to Him who gives grace sufficient to bear with patience; yes, to improve with profit our greatest trials, even to sacrifice our Isaacs.
Oh, He is faithful, as you can witness, to that sweet abridgment of His gospel, when rejecting the outward ceremonies as nothing availing unless mixed with faith, Psalm 50:14-15. And a little lower, "Whoever offers Me praise, glorifies Me."
Your letter just came up to my wishes, for its being so very particular with respect to your own family and to the T's. It is a great favor to me to know the circumstances of my friends, their children and families, that I may advise and pray for suitable grace. You give me fresh matter to ask for yourself—success to the preached gospel at Southampton. May He help you always to give your people good Scripture food, and to bless them with an appetite, that they may be nourished and grow thereby up into Christ Jesus, and that in all things.
William Romaine
Letter 45
My dear Friends,
For so you are in the Lord, in that bond which He ties and none can untie. Thanks to Mr. T. for his letter and for his kind remembrance of us. We are, as to outward things, just as you left us; but I hope not at a standstill in spirituals—halting and creeping slowly but surely. How this is to be done, in what way, means, and method, would save you a deal of time and. I will give you a little plan of what I call MY DAILY WALK.
I had observed a great deal of my time was spent, and most of it quite lost. A very, very little was left. I saw the necessity of stewarding it well, and of making the most of it. This led me to settle and determine a fixed rule of living: "Here is a new day. What lies before me to be done? What do I live for today? What am I now to propose to myself, as the goal and aim of all my actions?"
This matter was brought to a point. And I was made to see that these, and these only, were the things I was to do:
First, I was to look to my conscience, that the peace of God might rule in it always, and by all means.
Secondly, I was to look to my heart, that it might be happy in the love of God.
And thirdly, I was to watch over my tempers, my walk, and my conversation, that I might enjoy the peace and the love of God.
I saw that my main business concerned my conscience—how guilt, fear, and unbelief might be kept out of it, and the peace of God might be maintained in it. If conscience is good, all is good; and that is a good conscience which witnesses to the truth as it is in Jesus.
Conscience is that faculty of the soul which compares my heart and life with the holy law of God, brings me in guilty for transgressing its precepts, and leaves me to suffer its just penalties, under guilt and condemnation.
The gospel offers a perfect righteousness to satisfy the precepts; and an infinitely valuable atonement, the sacrifice of God, to satisfy the penalties of the law. By believing in this righteousness and in this atonement, the conscience is saved from guilt and condemnation; yes, the conscience acquits and justifies the sinner and brings in a true verdict for him. It says what God does; it pleads its discharge under the broad seal of Heaven and stops the mouth of guilt and unbelief, with these words written in golden letters in the royal charter of grace: "You are forgiven all trespasses; you are justified from all things; you are a son of My love and an heir of My glory—through faith in Jesus My beloved."
Here, Sir, I triumph. I believe these words on the divine testimony. My conscience bears witness to their truth. It is a good conscience; it agrees with God and looks upon Him as reconciled perfectly. It fears to dishonor Him, by calling into question the infinite value of Christ's righteousness and atonement, or doubting of their being mine, while they are freely offered to me, and while I find my need of them and have any dependence upon them.
Thus the peace of God rules, takes the lead in the conscience, rules always . . .
the offer being always the same;
the righteousness and atonement of Jesus always the same;
my need of them always the same;
and my interest in them always the same—
which I daily learn to maintain by all means, against all corruptions, enemies, and temptations from every quarter.Tell Mrs. D. from me, that this is her first lesson in the school of Christ. When she feels anything wrong, she is low; her sins displease her; her duties cannot please her. Tell her that these very things, if rightly managed, will establish her conscience in the peace of God. Every new day she lives to learn that she has nothing to trust to but the atonement and righteousness of Jesus, and therefore to depend on God's being in friendship with her, an unchangeable friendship through Jesus Christ her Lord. Oh, that her heart may be sprinkled from an evil conscience and mind.
That is evil an conscience, which refuses to build its peace on the life and death of our Emmanuel; and that is a good conscience, which has peace with God through faith in Jesus and expects all the love of God freely in Him.
This is my second work, to keep my heart happy. And this I constantly experience, when the conscience is on Christ's side and testifies aright for Him. God is reconciled. He is my God. We are agreed, and now we walk together. He bids me call Him Father—He has a heart of love and fatherly affection for me. He sees me in Jesus—loves me, yes blesses me in Him. My title is clear to all spiritual blessings because God being my God in Jesus, all things are mine!
My happy walk is in the belief of this and in the enjoyment of it. I do not aim at getting any new title to my heavenly Father's love, but new enjoyment. All is mine in title, but I want more and more experience of my spiritual blessings in Jesus. Every day I am seeking to know more, to enjoy more of the riches of the Father's love in Jesus. And I find no way to come at them but faith, and no way to increase faith so effectually, as to keep the peace of God ruling in the conscience always, and by all means.
Observe, Sir, when you want to enjoy the love of God, and in the enjoyment of it to find your heart happy—look at nothing to bring it to you but Jesus. Read your share in it; take possession of it for nothing done in you or by you, now or at any time, but only for and in Jesus: His atonement and His righteousness being your constant title to the love of His Father and of your Father. Thus walk with a reconciled God. Christ is your way, and Christ your end. Go on leaning on Christ every step for strength, relying on Christ for victory over corruptions and enemies, whatever within or without that would try to stop you in your way—trusting Christ for blessings, whatever can keep you safe and make you happy all your way, making His company and presence your Heaven here, as well as in glory.
Thus the true believer walks with God, and the sense of his being a child of God and the experience of his Father's precious love, makes him happy.
Christ enjoyed, being the death of every selfish affection—mortifies the carnal heart, crucifies worldly tempers, and subdues creature-love.
Please tell Mrs. D. of this. If she would daily walk with a happy heart, she must learn to make up all her happiness in the love which God has for her in His dear Son. She must look quite away from her graces, her gifts, her righteousness, her duties—God does not love her for these—He loves her only in His Son; and she in believing this, is to find all her salvation and to enjoy all her happiness.
I know her temptations and therefore go on to the third and last thing, which enters deep into my daily walk; and that is: how my tempers are to be regulated and my conduct ordered, that I may night and day enjoy the peace and the love of my reconciled God and Father. I find this very hard work because it is so hard to keep peace in the conscience and the love of God in the heart ruling always. But God's Spirit is almighty to teach this lesson, and to give power to practice it. And I cannot deny Him His honor.
What I have learned of Him has been chiefly from this Scripture: "Walk humbly with your God." He is my God; I walk humbly with Him, in Christ as mine. So His sweet peace is enjoyed, and His happy love possessed. While these rule in the conscience and in the heart, the power of the Spirit maintains His influence over the tempers and over the life and conduct, and He keeps all in subjection to Jehovah-Jesus.
The conscience says, "I will have nothing to do with anything for salvation, but the righteousness of Jehovah-Jesus, and His atonement on the cruel tree."
The heart says, "This is all my desire."
Hope says, "I have cast my anchor on Jesus, I cannot be disappointed."
Fear says, "I would not for the world offend my God and Father."
Then the whole man bows in subjection to the Father, Son, and Spirit and says, "Lord God, rule in me—rule over me. Guide, keep, bless me and mine all the way to Heaven."
You see, my good friend, from where I draw my safety and my happiness—not from self. Oh, no—but from God in Christ. I look not at, depend not on—not in the least—myself, but wholly on my God. Whatever is of my own and comes from myself, shows me the necessity of walking humbly with my God.
Self consists, as I feel to this hour, of needs, miseries, temptations. These do not hinder me, but help me to walk more humbly with my God. They show me my constant need of Jesus and His salvation, and keep me constantly dependent on Him. No failings in duty, no sense of indwelling sin, keeps me from my reconciled God and Father—but brings me to walk in nearer fellowship with Him. And seeing that all is of His grace and mere sovereign love, pride is renounced—every high thought is brought down—and the Lord Jesus alone gets all the glory—which is His due.
This is a little sketch of my daily walk. It is enough to let you see that I have to do with nothing for the peace of my conscience, the happiness of my heart, the conformity of my tempers and walk to the will of God, but Jesus—His Father's love and my Father's; witnessed by the Word and made mine by believing.
The end of my walk is not to get, not to procure a title to—but to make good, and to enjoy my title to His love in Jesus. I learn and am learning to look at Him.
Look unto Jesus! May you do it more than I, and then you will get on faster than I to Heaven.
William Romaine
Letter 46
To Mrs. P., Blackfriars, February 10, 1773
My very honorable Friend,
I thought myself greatly favored by your long and kind letter. Many circumstances concurred to make me thank God and you for it. Your acknowledgments to me are overpayment, especially as they prove that the great pains which the Lord had taken with you were not in vain. Indeed I believe they were not.
Your trial was sharp and long—very, very grievous to the flesh. And only He who brings down to the grave and brings up—only He could have carried you through it. His almighty grace supplied you with patience; suffering and bearing were then your exercise.
Now this is over, profiting is your lesson; and it must be the same grace that produces the blessed fruits that grow upon the cross. Oh, for a rich and plentiful harvest of them in your soul!
I would set my wishes before you for the improvement of a recovery from sickness, not from dry precept but from a winning example. It is not the worse for being ancient—but only mellower and riper.
Oh, Mrs. P., I can wish you nothing better than more acquaintance with your best Friend. Do not, Madam, please do not be shy of His company. He loves familiarity. Be free; be intimate with Him. Nothing can please Him so much. Converse with Him as you would with your own husband and be assured He will tell you no lies. You may safely believe every word He says. You may venture your soul upon it, for it is all gospel. It is the truth of God: infallible, unchangeable. It is for lack of knowing Him better, that you now and then are tempted to think that He says more than He will make good. Oh, no. He is truth itself, and also the Lord God Almighty. Believe, only believe, and you will certainly find a performance of those things which have been spoken by the Lord, and by us His servants to you.
You are within the reach of my prayers, and I would not wish to forget you in them; as long as you and I are upon praying ground, I would be ever making request for you. God make you what He would have you—that is, a humble, happy believer!
William Romaine
Letter 47
London, February 4, 1786
Mr. S.
We have come together this morning to devote ourselves afresh to the service, and to begin the year as we hope to end it, in the faith and fear of the Son of God; for He is our Alpha and Omega—and all between the beginning and the ending. He is the self-existent Jehovah, who was and is and will be: the first cause and the last end, of all beings and all things. For He is the Lord God Almighty; and as such we take Him this new year to be our Emmanuel, that we may live by Him and on Him every moment and for everything. For He is the God of nature, the God of grace, the God of providence, the God of glory.
First, Jesus is the Creator of all worlds (Psalm 102:25-27, Hebrews 1:10, as also Colossians 1:16-17). He has the same essence, same attributes with the Father (Isaiah 44:6-8); and by taking our nature, He is God and man in one Christ.
He has every perfection to fit Jesus to be, secondly, the God of grace. He is a proper surety to act for us, by completing all His covenant engagements with the Father; and having, by His most holy life, wrought out our righteousness, and by His infinitely precious death, made a full and perfect satisfaction for sin, He is the Almighty Giver of all His grace. He has it all in His fullness. He is . . .
a Prophet to teach the ignorant;
a Priest to pardon the guilty;
a King to govern the helpless.And sitting on the throne of grace, He is able to bless the miserable even with all spiritual blessings; yes, and with all eternal blessings.
He is the God of all grace; and we ought to grow in grace, by our settled dependence upon Him for the concerns of this life, as well as for eternal life. It is our privilege, and we should find it our happiness, after we have trusted our souls in His hands, to trust our bodies and all that belongs to them, in His hands also.
For Jesus is, thirdly, the God of providence. He has the ordering and directing of every person and every event. Not a sparrow falls to the ground without His notice. There is not a hair of our heads, but He numbers them. He interests Himself in the very least, as well as the greatest concerns of His redeemed people. And on this account, believers should exercise their faith in every action of life, and they would find that by trusting in Him for all things, they would have a spiritual use of, and profit from temporal things.
I have left my all to the care and providence of my Almighty Friend; He will manage for me better than I could for myself. My health, my circumstances, my family—are all under His wise government. I may therefore trust and not be afraid. He is almighty to fulfill His offices and all His promises. He is almighty to protect His from all enemies, miseries, sin, Satan, death, and Hell. And come what may, He is almighty to make all things produce good, as He said in Genesis 15:1. "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose!" Romans 8:28
My dear brother, you know something of this blessed life, but there is more than you have yet learned. Let Mrs. S. bring her case and leave it with the Lord. All will be well—only trust. Pray for more trust. For as faith increases, it will open to you most blessed views of the Omega, who is, fourthly,
the God of glory. He gives it, for He is the Author of eternal salvation. Read John 17; mind what He there prays for, and He has all power in Heaven and earth to bestow it. The whole company around the throne are ascribing to Him all their glory, as you see (Revelation 5:9 to the end). I join them. So do you. Thanks be to Him for His unspeakable grace. Through the year, trust our Alpha and Omega.
William Romaine
Letter 48
Many, many thanks to Mr. and to Mrs. T. for their remembrance of us this year. I am ashamed I have not acknowledged your favor sooner; but truly, Sir, I am growing very lazy and good for nothing. It is high time I was turned out of the vineyard—and any other master but mine would have had nothing to do with me long ago. I loathe myself and stand wondering daily at His kindness.
Never was self lower and His loveliness higher, than in this new year. Though we are but just entered on it, yet He has already granted us some delightful Pisgah-views. It has been for many years a custom with me to have a motto verse, a sort of a watch-word, something very short, easy to be remembered, and which may serve the believer to feast upon for a year. I have found this very useful to myself, and so have others.
Our text for this year, 1772, was "Christ is all!" He has all the fullness of salvation in Him as God-man; and He has it to the glory of the Father and of the Holy Spirit. For it pleased the Father, that in Him should all fullness dwell, as the Head for the use of His members. And it pleased the Holy Spirit to testify of His fullness in the Scripture; and it pleases Him, by His grace, to bring believers to use it and to live upon it.
This is the true saving work of grace. All other experience is not worth a farthing. The Holy Spirit comes to pull down self and to exalt Christ—and this He does effectually. He enlightens the understanding and convinces it that Christ is the one Sun of the spiritual world. He sends His scholars to Christ, and to none but Christ, to be taught the things of God. He brings them humbled to the Savior's feet, where they sit to hear His words. Thus He glorifies their divine Prophet; and in the matter of teaching, He makes Christ all.
The Bible and ministers and means are only to lead to Christ, that out of His fullness they may receive lesson upon lesson, line upon line.
I think I hear Mrs. T. ask, "But how shall I know that I am one of Christ's scholars, and that He is my Teacher?" My dear friend, you are to know it from what you have learned. You cannot be certain of it any other way; and He would have you to look at His truth, and to try yourself by it.
When you think of your fallen state, in which you inherit a corrupt nature, and can in it do nothing but sin; when guilt is in your conscience and fear is in your heart, what is it that brings you any relief? To what do you look for pardon, and from where do you expect peace with God? Your answer will show that the Lord God, our Prophet, has been teaching you.
I think I hear you reply (for I have heard you say it,) "Why, to be sure, I have no hope but in that sacrifice of the Lamb of God which perfects me forever, and in that righteousness of His which justifies me from all things." This is the true object of salvation. This, and nothing else.
Christ is all! There is . . .
no pardon but in His blood,
no justification but in His obedience,
no Heaven but what is the free gift of God, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Christ is all. Thus far all is well. But the comfort of this, is the comfort to know it is mine.There Mrs. T. has her objection ready. My dear Madam, show me the text which says, "He who is comforted shall be saved," or that faith consists in knowing that salvation is mine. You are called upon to trust the work of Christ, and to trust for yourself upon the free warrant of God's faithful Word. Rest here, giving credit to God's promise of salvation to all who will receive it, and I will lay my life for it, that you will never lack comforting, and soon be satisfied you are a saved sinner. If you rest not here, any comfort you get will not be true nor lasting; and your attempt to get comfort from yourself will be only the act of your own mind, and will prove as changeable as the wind.
"But you would not have me to go on in a dark, uncomfortable way, not knowing where I am going?"
No, Mrs. T., I want to lead you to light and comfort, in the direct road. Christ is the way—look more at Him and less at yourself. Trust more to Him, and less to your faith. Be always thinking of your emptiness, and of His fullness. Meditate on Him; pray to Him. You cannot be thus employed about the Sun, without being enlightened by his rays and cherished by his warm beams.
When people are very cold within doors and see the sun shining sweetly, they do not ask, "Is it my sun? May I go out and walk in this noon-day brightness and get myself warm with this delightful sunshine? Is it for me?" Yes, it is for you! Whoever will, may take . . .
Christ for their pardon,
Christ for their righteousness,
Christ for Heaven, and
Christ for all they need until they come there.You are willing; therefore Christ and all He has is yours.
Now, Mrs. T., what do you say to this?
"Why," say you, "to be sure I do build upon this foundation, but I still lack many things." Very well, I am glad you do—the more you lack, the better. Whatever you lack, it is in Christ's fullness; and He has it for you, so that there will be a blessed communion between you and Christ, and a holy friendship in giving and receiving. Every moment you need something, Christ says, "Here it is—come to Me for it. I can deny you nothing; be it for temporals (Psalm 34:10) or for spirituals (Ephesians 1:3) or for eternals (Romans 6:23). All is yours!
This is living by faith in the Son of God, and it is the best way to live. For you cannot be thus receiving every moment out of Christ's fullness, but you must experience that He is yours, which will make your faith practical and certain. You will then be done with disputing about your interest in Christ. While you are making use of Him, you can no more question His being yours, than you can dispute whether the food which you have been eating today, is yours. Thus you see, Christ is all in time and all in eternity. May He have His honor in little H. Do but trust Him, and you will see what miracles He will do for you. My wife joins me in this advice.
William Romaine
Letter 49
You may depend upon this, as one of the sweetest axioms in divinity: whatever it is which makes you pleased with yourself is not true grace; and whatever makes you displeased with yourself is not true grace, unless it brings you humbly to Christ and makes you put more trust and confidence in Him. May the good Lord teach you these things practically. I have learned them by long experience; though I know but little of them, yet I am getting on in the school of Christ and hope soon to be in the lowest grade, for there we learn most and fastest. We there depend entirely on the teachings of our divine Master, who reveals the secrets of His kingdom to none but babes. As a new-born babe depends entirely on the care of its parents, so must we depend on God our Prophet and Teacher. And when we are brought thus humble, He will make known to us what He hides from the wise and prudent.
I would therefore wish you to be the humblest man upon earth, not only that you might know most, but primarily that you might love most.
He who feels his sins and miseries, his vileness and unprofitableness, with the deepest loathings of them—is in the fittest way to love Christ. If he is an experienced believer, the feelings of those sins, miseries, etc., will make Christ more precious. The more he finds of the exceeding sinfulness of sin in himself—he will trust the more in Christ. The more misery he knows he deserves—salvation from it will make Jesus more dear and lovely.
His vileness sets forth Christ's grace.
His unworthiness sets forth the worthiness of the Lamb.
His unprofitableness sets forth the sufficiency of Jesus, who is all in all.
When you are going to measure Christ's high grace, do not get upon a mountain, but go down into a valley; lower still, to the depth from which David cried; lower still, to the belly of Hell; from which Jonah cried. And from there measure the heights of Jesus' grace, and from there see how lovely He is.
When the Spirit of Jesus is humbling you, showing you your deceitful, wicked heart, laying open your ruined nature in all its abominable workings—has not this often discouraged you, my friend? Instead of trusting Christ and loving Christ more, did it not weaken your faith and so lessen your love, and thereby counteract the gracious purposes of Jesus' Spirit?
May He teach you better, that every future sense of sin may greatly endear the Lamb of God to you, whose blood cleanses from all sin. Depend upon it, that only is the true humbling for sin, that makes Jesus' blood more precious.
William Romaine
Letter 50
Lambeth, December 3, 1767
Dear Sir,
I make you a present of The Life of Faith. I have also sent you a book of inestimable value, which I was inclined to do, because it affords me an opportunity to introduce myself to you and give you a word of advice on your going into the pastorate. It is a great undertaking, and I will speak freely to you upon it; as if I were in your circumstances, I would have wished someone would have dealt with me. May the Lord God make it a blessing to you.
First, I would have you, Sir, to consider one qualification for the ministry indispensably necessary, and that is, the knowledge of yourself. You cannot teach this to others, until you have been taught yourself; nor farther than you have been taught it. Consider what is your natural state: are not sin, misery, helplessness, your condition in Adam? Are not you by nature a child of wrath?
Sir, do you know this? Have you ever felt the plague of your heart? Have you ever seen the legion of lusts within you, every one of them ready to take up arms and rebel against God? Are you sensible how often they have drawn you into actual rebellion? And do you know what will be the end of this sinful state, without a Savior?
Think, Sir, how can you teach these things if you have never felt them? Oh, beg of God, then, to make you sensible how much you need a Savior, that you may know how to address yourself to others upon the same subject.
Secondly, another indispensable qualification is the knowledge of Christ: to know His person—God-man; His work, in His life and death, as our whole salvation; made ours whenever His Spirit enables us to receive it, and enjoyed as ours so far as by faith we dare believe in Him.
This is the doctrine to be preached. How can a man preach it who does not know it, or who does not believe it? Try yourself here, Sir. Is He in whose name and to preach whom you are ordained—is He true and very God—the self-existent Jehovah? Is there salvation in no other Person or thing? God help you not to be deceived in that most essential doctrine.
A third thing is absolutely necessary: namely, the knowledge of God's Word. I send you this little blessed book, in reading which you will learn yourself—here is your true picture—and here is the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom to know is life eternal.
In reading and hearing the Scriptures, the Spirit sets in with the Word, and shows the sinner himself, and then shows him the Savior and enables him to believe unto salvation. All the teaching of God's Spirit is in and by the Word. He accompanies nothing but His own truth with His own blessing. And that He does so bless, that faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.
Are these things so? Is the Bible the Word of God? Does it make the believer wise unto salvation? "All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:16-17. Oh, Sir, what are you doing, that other books are so much read, and the Bible so neglected?
Will you learn from a poor penitent? Indeed I repent, and God forgive my mis-spent time in sciences and classics. I saw my folly twenty-two years ago, and have since studied nothing but the Bible. And I assure you, Sir, I have not progressed but a little way. I see such things before me which I know but in part, that I am pressing on, and I wish for some of my lost time to spend in this blessed study.
Take warning. Prize my little present. Read it over and over; it is valuable as coming from my heart's love, but infinitely more so as the copy of Christ's love. You cannot read it too much. Wear it out in reading, and I will give you a much finer edition. But the finest is that which the Spirit writes upon the heart. Oh, that He may write a very fair copy upon yours.
Fourthly, your next thing is to know your office. To what are you ordained? If you know not yourself and know not Jesus nor His Word—then how can you possibly discharge your office? In these things the chief part of it consists.
A minister, unacquainted with himself, can never show his people what they are in themselves.
What can he say of Christ, who is not acquainted with Him?
Or how can he preach the Word who never studied it, or who never had his understanding opened to understand the Scriptures?
Think of these things, Sir, and meditate much upon them. Weigh well your office; examine well your call to it.
Are you enabled faithfully to declare the whole counsel of God?
Can you with boldness tell sinners their guilt and danger, which will make all the unconverted your bitter enemies?
Can you with clearness, to set forth the way of salvation through our Surety, Jehovah-Jesus?
Can you clearly show the work of the Spirit in convincing of sin, in working faith in Jesus' Word, to rely upon His blood and righteousness and enabling the believer to live upon the fullness of Jesus' grace, receiving out of it grace upon grace every moment for all the purposes of spiritual life?
That you may do this successfully, in spite of all opposition—are you made willing to practice what you are to preach? That is the best sermon which the minister preaches all the week. Nothing is so powerful as example. Blessed is he who lives out of the pulpit, what he says in it; and knows his doctrine to be truly his experience. So may it be with you.
William Romaine
Letter 51
February 20, 1784
My very dear Friend,
You made up by its rich contents, for the long time your letter was in coming. I am much indebted to you for its companions—both tasting of brotherly love, which completes the banquet; thanks be to God and to you. Be not offended that I put Him first because I owe to Him the knowledge of you, the love of you, and from Him proceeds all fellowship of love between us. While we keep Him in sight in our friendship, it will be a mutual blessing.
For this I am praying, and you know our God is famous for hearing and for answering prayer. Indeed, what He hears and answers is first His own, for He gives us the Spirit of prayer. We know not what to ask, of ourselves—and when we do know, we cannot ask aright; but He enables us to feel our needs, to ask a supply of them in faith, and He helps our infirmities in asking.
When we have done our best, He teaches us to present our petitions for acceptance into the hands of our great Mediator. As they come from us, they are nothing of worth; but when Christ makes them His prayers—then they go up with much incense and come down with abundant blessings. I wish you may be as humble an asker, as He is a liberal giver.
I have complied with your request, in writing your name and mine in the Bible—in which also, you desired me to write some directions how to read it. This I have not done because the subject of prayer is the whole Bible. All the volume is to be prayed over as you read it. Yet I will lay open my heart to you and will let you into my own practice. Something like this is my constant prayer; and as far as you believe, it will be yours. May you use it with more faith than I ever did:
"Oh, Spirit of wisdom and revelation, be with me whenever I read Your holy Word. Testify to me in it and by it of Christ Jesus—who He is and what He is to me; and glorify the Father's love in Him. Open my eyes to see the wondrous things revealed in it upon these subjects, that I may understand them in Your light, and that my judgment of them may be the same with Yours. I beseech You also to enable me to mix faith with what I do understand; and what through Your teaching I am enabled to believe aright—that help me to receive in the love of the truth. Oh, God, fulfill Your promise—put Your blessed Word into my inward parts; write it upon my heart. And what I am taught to love, grant me power to practice, that Your new covenant promise may in me have its full effect, and I may be in heart and life cast into the mold and form of Your Word—thus becoming a real living edition of the Bible. Make it my daily study. Render it my constant delight. Let my meditation of it be always sweet. Oh, holy and eternal Spirit, witness thus to Your own record and let me experience it to be the power of God, as well as the truth of God. In this dependence upon You in the use of it, let me be daily growing until, by the will of God, I shall have served my own generation; and then let it be the last act of my life, to seal the truth of Your testimony concerning Jesus. Let me find Your witness true in the hour of death, and beyond death all the promises made good to me, through Jesus Christ, in life everlasting. Amen and amen."
William Romaine