by Jeremiah Burroughs

The First Consequence

Firstly, from this reconciliation follows peace with all the creatures in the world. Whereas before, not only was God an enemy, but all the creatures were also enemies: the good creatures, the ill creatures, even your companions whom you considered friends; the heavens, the earth, the beasts in the field, the stones in your house—all were your enemies. Not the least creature in the world was exempt from being part of the host of God, ready and poised to avenge God’s quarrel against you.

You are afraid of soldiers—why have you not all this time been afraid of the host of Almighty God? God has enough soldiers, even in your own house, which He can raise up against you. He can command the very dog in your household to tear out your throat if He once gives it a commission. There is an enmity between every creature and a sinful soul, and it must be so. If there is enmity against the general and commander-in-chief of an army, then there must naturally be enmity against the soldiers as well. You, as a sinful soul, walk up and down in the midst of God's host, who are ready at every moment to destroy you, waiting only for a commission from God, the Lord of Hosts, to avenge His quarrel upon you.

But now, once reconciled to God, all this host—all of creation—is reconciled to you. All the good creatures, including the angels, are now for your benefit. Before, they stood ready, waiting for a commission from God to strike you down, for the angels wait for God’s command to act against those who offend Him. When they receive such a command, they swiftly put it into execution. But now, being reconciled, these angels have become ministering spirits to you.

It is a great matter to have the angels reconciled, and by being at peace with God, they too become reconciled with you. Instead of being your enemies, they now serve as many fair chariots to guard you from whatever may harm you. The same can be said of all evil creatures as well—they are all so far reconciled to you that they shall do you no harm or injury.

The Second Consequence

Secondly, a second fruit that follows is peace of conscience. Whereas before, your conscience terrified you, struck fear and dread in your heart, and continually accused you before God, acting as God's officer to fill your soul with poisoned arrows, tearing you apart, now, being at peace with God, your conscience is at peace too.

As it says in Romans 5:1, "Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through Jesus Christ," and then follow those most sweet and comforting effects, which we will discuss further. But this is the fruit of reconciliation—peace of conscience, which is worth ten thousand worlds. To have one's conscience as an enemy, to have it constantly terrify, is a greater judgment than to have all the wild beasts in the world come to tear and rend one’s flesh.

The Third Consequence

Thirdly, there is peace within all the faculties of the soul. Consider this: before reconciliation between God and man was achieved, the Scripture says, "There is no peace for the wicked," referring to the tumultuous workings of many lusts within their hearts, with one constantly fighting against the other. The conscience tells one thing, while a man’s will opposes the conscience, and the affections are all in turmoil against one another. One lust opposes and fights against another, leading to disorder, confusion, and tumult in the heart of a wicked person. He goes against the light, and the light goes against him, resulting in nothing but conflict and unrest in his heart.

The Apostle says, "Your lusts war one against another within you," and you can easily observe this in yourselves: when your lusts rise up, they create such a woeful disturbance in your heart that you are like the sea, which casts up nothing but mire and dirt. Take a wicked person who experiences even a brief glimmer of light, revealing to him the mind of God; his heart fights against this light, and the light fights against his heart, resulting in nothing but woeful disturbances within his soul. He is never at peace, even when he seems to be at his most serene and quiet.

But now, when we are at peace with God, a blessed calm enters a person’s spirit. The conscience, the will, and the affections are brought into a sweet and harmonious order, and things are, to a great extent, more peaceful than they ever were before.

The Fourth Consequence

Fourthly, the fourth fruit is joy in the Holy Spirit. When God is at peace with a soul, the Holy Spirit comes and sheds abroad the love of God. It is true that we are not always aware of this joy, but once we know that we are reconciled to God, we begin to feel the joy of the Holy Spirit spreading through our hearts.

This is seen in Romans 5, where, having peace with God, "we rejoice in tribulation." And more explicitly in Romans 14:17, "The kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit." Joy in the Holy Spirit follows our peace, or our reconciliation with God. That is the fourth point.

The Fifth Consequence

Fifthly, another fruit of reconciliation is that the soul gains free access into God's presence with boldness. Indeed, when I see God as my enemy, and myself as an enemy to God, how can I approach His presence with confidence? But, being reconciled, I now have access to God.

Adam could not stand in God's presence once he had broken his peace with God. However, with our peace made through Jesus Christ, we may enter into the presence of God and comfortably behold His face, seeing no hatred or vengeful wrath in it.

The Sixth Consequence

Sixthly, hence, there may be a sweet and blessed trade between Heaven and Earth, between God and the reconciled soul. Just as countries that are at war with one another cannot engage in any trade or commerce, once a league and peace are established, trade becomes open.

So it is between God and the soul. The truth is, there is no free trade between Heaven and us until peace is made. We cannot trade with Heaven or receive its blessings; we may speak to Heaven, cry out, and say our prayers, but to actually receive the rich treasures that are found there, we must first have peace concluded. Indeed, a gracious heart reconciled to God never sends up a prayer without expecting a return, much like a wealthy man sending a ship to the Indies. However, it is far better, for you may lose your ship and the investment you send may fail, but when a gracious soul trades with God and sends his ship of prayer to Heaven, he never fails to receive a sweet and rich return.

The Seventh Consequence

Seventhly, now, we come to enjoy all the good we have in this world with a new right. It is settled upon us and comes to us under a new account, a new right, and thus, it is far more comforting than before. Previously, we had forfeited all that we had because we had taken up arms against God. You know that once arms are taken up, that very act leads to the immediate forfeiture of one’s estate.

Similarly, by taking up arms against the God of Heaven, we forfeited all our comforts and enjoyments, and we have reason to wonder that God has not sent some arrest upon our estates and seized all that we have. But now, with peace made between God and us, all is restored again. Therefore, those who are reconciled to God may enjoy comfort in what they possess. They may look upon their houses, their trade, their food, and their drink as all being the fruits of their peace with God.

The Eighth Consequence

Eightly, hence follows the protection of God over us and all that we have, allowing us to enjoy everything securely. I do not claim that God will never allow the adversary to take away our goods—He may do so if He sees that it serves our good—but certainly, we are under God’s protection, and not a single hair will fall from our heads without God’s permission. The enemy cannot take away even a hair or the smallest token without God’s commission, for we are under His protection. You will not lose even a farthing unless, if you knew all, you would be willing to lose it.

You might ask, "Would anyone be willing to be plundered?" Truly, if you understood how God's wisdom works in such matters and how it accomplishes His purpose and brings Him glory, if you loved God, you would willingly give up yourself and your possessions to Him. You would say, "It is better for me to give up all that I have when it may be for the glory of God, even though I cannot see the specific way, than to continue holding onto it." Therefore, the saints of God lose nothing except what is taken away by God’s authority, from a God who remains their friend. We do not fully grasp the vastness of God's love if we do not believe that His love can coexist with such actions as taking away some of our possessions. God’s love is so immense that it can encompass a thousand such instances. All these troubles and afflictions, when absorbed into the infinite sea of God’s love, make no alteration in it.

The Ninth Consequence

Ninthly, through this reconciliation with God, you and God come to have common friends and common enemies. When God enters into a league with you, and you are reconciled to Him, God says, "From now on, all your enemies shall be My enemies, and all your friends shall be My friends." And the same will be true for you: you will regard all of God’s enemies as your enemies, and all of His friends as your friends.

The Tenth Consequence

Tenthly, now you come to be in as good a condition as you were before any sin was committed in the world. We were at peace with God in Adam, and that peace was broken. I do not say that what we have now is peace as properly as it is reconciliation; it is the recovery of peace. And you, being received into this peace, are in as good a condition, in as happy a state, as Adam was in his innocence—yes, even happier.

For although there was peace between God and Adam then, there was also the possibility for Adam to turn into an enemy of God. But it is not so with you now; therefore, you are safer. God's heart is as much toward you as it ever was toward Adam, indeed, even more so, for you are now in a better covenant—the covenant of grace. Though this is no thanks to sin, God has so ordered and transformed it, just as they say of a broken bone that, if it is well set, becomes stronger than it was before.

So too, when the heart is truly set and aligned in this reconciliation with God, it is more firm with God and in a better condition than it was before the breach was made. This is something that can bring great joy to a person's heart. When someone has been at odds with a powerful person, one who holds his life and all he possesses at his disposal, how joyful it is when someone comes to reconcile them, and not only reconciles them but brings them into an even better state of friendship, where the powerful man becomes a surer friend than ever before.

Well, Christians, rejoice together in this blessed goodness of God, in this happy reconciliation that Christ has brought between God and man.

The Eleventh Consequence

Eleventhly through our peace with God, we are freed from the effects of any wrath or judgments that God may execute in the world. No aspect of that wrath shall befall us in a revenging way, as it does with wicked and ungodly people. We shall certainly be delivered from all its evils.

When judgments are sent from Heaven upon the world, there is protection for all who are reconciled to God. Though darkness may cover the world, there is light in their hearts. They always dwell in Goshen, even when God is most terrible in His judgments to others. This terror of God is removed from them.

If you were to hear the noise of trumpets and drums, the neighing of horses, the roaring of cannons, and the firing of muskets—all the dreadful sounds of war—you might be initially struck with fear and terror. But when you come to know that it all comes from your friend, it takes away the terror of all these things.

Imagine a man approaching a house where there are a pack of fierce mastiff dogs barking as if they would tear out his throat. He might naturally feel some fear, but if the master of the house is his friend and stands by, he need not fear any harm from them. Indeed, if the man were an enemy or a thief coming to steal and destroy, then he might rightly fear these dogs.

So too, the troubles of the world may approach with open mouths, as if they would devour us, but if we are God's friends and He stands by us, we need not fear what they can do to us. We have a "quietus est" (a release or protection) from God against all the evils in the world. Though the destroying angel may come, if the blood of Christ—who is our peace—is sprinkled upon the doorposts of our hearts, that angel will pass over us.

This is another fruit of our peace with God: protection from His wrath when it spreads abroad like lightning in the world.

The Twelfth Consequence

Twelfthly, again, all that is in God's word now speaks peace to us, both the Law and the Gospel. Even the Law itself now speaks peace to us because it is fully satisfied. There is nothing in the word of God that is not at peace with those who are at peace with Him. The threats found in the word of God bring no harm to the one who is reconciled to God. Every part of God's word benefits those who walk uprightly, as stated in Micah 2:7: "Do not my words do good to him that walketh uprightly?"

When you read any part of the word of God, no matter how severe or fearsome it may seem, if you are reconciled to God, you may read it with comfort. Many people hesitate to read certain parts of God's word, and some scarcely dare to listen to parts of it. But if you are at peace with God, you need not fear reading or hearing any part of His word.

Why is it that many people avoid sermons that contain any hint of terror? No matter what their excuses may be, it is a sign that there is guilt in their hearts. They view the word of God as if it were their enemy, and it is a sad thing for a person to regard any part of God's word as an enemy. If any part of God's word is your enemy, then God Himself is your enemy, for every part of His word contains His mind and heart. Therefore, if you are at peace with God, there is nothing in His word that stands against you.

Indeed, a man on the sea, if storms and tempests arise, may be afraid to look out or dare not leave his cabin. But if he is on solid ground, he can stand and look upon all the waves of the sea and all their boisterousness without any trouble. Similarly, when people are in their natural condition and not converted to God, they tremble when they hear the terrors of the Law. They cannot consider the wrath of God, which the Law threatens and which they feel is deserved because of their sin. Their very hearts quake, and they shut their eyes against these truths.

However, when they are once on the shore—when peace is made between God and them—they can look upon all the terrors of the Law and all the wrath it threatens with joy and comfort, blessing the name of God forever for their freedom and deliverance from them.

These are the blessed and happy fruits of our peace and reconciliation with God. Now, before we proceed any further, we must pause and reflect on what has been opened up to you thus far concerning the excellencies and glorious fruits of this peace and reconciliation.

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Source: Gospel Reconciliation