There are a surprising number of audiobooks of Puritan works available on the Libby app. One that I recently listened to is Richard Sibbes’ extended meditation on John 20:16, which he calls A Heavenly Conference.
Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and said to him,
Rabboni; that is to say, Master. And Jesus said to her, Touch me not;
for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and
say to them, I ascend to my Father, and your Father; to my God, and
your God.—JOHN 20:16
This passage is indeed worth meditating on, and Sibbes mines it to quite full an extent. Here are a few snippets:
From reflection on Jesus revealing himself to Mary by saying her name:
“The second thing I will observe is this, that Christ, when he
teacheth, he doth it by words, not by crucifixes, not by sights. We lost
our salvation and all our happiness by the ear, and we must come to
it by the ear again. Adam, by hearkening to Eve, and Eve to the
serpent, lost all; and we must recover salvation therefore by the ear.
As we have heard, so we shall see. We must first hear, and then see.
Life cometh in at the ear as well as death. Faith, you know, is the
quickening of a Christian, the spiritual life of a Christian. Now, faith
comes by hearing; and therefore I beseech you in the bowels of
Christ, set aside prejudice, and meekly attend God’s ordinances. Do
not consider who we are; we are but poor ministers, frail men as
yourselves. But consider the Lord, that is pleased to convey life, and
salvation, and grace, and whatsoever is fit to bring to heaven, this
way. Therefore they that despise this way, set light by salvation; as
the apostle saith, Acts 13:46, ‘They judge themselves unworthy of the
kingdom of heaven.’ They can read at home, but is that the way God
hath sanctified? Did not the manna stink when gathered on the
Sabbath day? There is a curse upon all private industry and devotion
when it is with neglect of public ordinances. She could have no
comfort till Christ spake. Nay, the very sight of Christ could not
comfort her. Let this, I pray you, be enough, that I may not enlarge
the point any further. This is the way for comfort. We must hear him
in his ministers here, if we will hear him comfortably speaking to us
hereafter, ‘Come, ye blessed of my Father,’ &c., Mat. 25:34″ (pp 16-17 in the PDF below)
On the blessings of Christ joining us to His Father, so that He is now Our Father:
“I desire you therefore to remember this. It is the first sermon of our
Saviour Christ after his resurrection, and therefore forget not to
think of God as a Father and Christ as a Brother. Indeed, whatsoever
comfort is in any relation, God and Christ have taken it on them. A
father is more comprehensive than any other title: Christ is Father,
and Husband, and Spouse. And God is our Rock and Shield; and
whatsoever is comfortable he hath taken on him, and in Christ we
may command him to be so. And if we had ten thousand worlds, they
could not be compared to the comforts that arise from hence, that we
can call God, Father. It is more to us, if we could improve it in our
spiritual trade for heaven, than if we had a thousand worlds,
especially in days of affliction and in the hour of death. For it
improveth whatsoever is in the bowels of God for poor distressed
souls. When nothing else will comfort, this will comfort, if we can say
to God, ‘Father.’ Though we cannot make a distinct prayer, yet if we
can say ‘Father,’ God can pick matter out of our broken language.” (pp. 71)
Considering objections to the truth that all things are ours in Christ:
“But to clear the objection a little: if God be ours, and all things else,
how comes it that we want so many things?
Ans. I answer, It is our own fault for the most part. We want faith to
make use of and improve this comfort. And then again, we want
nothing that is for our good; want itself is for our good. And observe
this, our God is so powerful a God, that he maketh the worst things
we suffer a means to convey the greatest good oftentimes to us. If
God be our God and Father in Christ, why have we sins? Why vexed
with the devil? Why persecuted with men? Why frightened thus, and
thus, and thus? All this is for our good. God is our God by these, and
in the midst of these; and is never more our God than in the greatest
extremity of all, for then we come nearest the fountain. There is a
near and sweet communion between this God and us, when we take
of the fountain.” (pp. 94)
He has a lovely section towards the end on assurance of faith and pardon. It is well worth the read (or listen)! I have linked a PDF print version below. I highly recommend it to all of you!
Soulfood 
Leave a comment