Mystery (2)

Is the doctrine of the gospel the only mystery?
No. All the graces are mysteries, every grace. Let a man once know it and he will find that there is mystery in faith; that the earthly soul of man should be carried above itself, to believe supernatural truths, and to depend upon what he sees not, to sway the life by reasons spiritual; that the heart of man should believe; that a man in trouble should carry himself quietly and patiently from supernatural supports and grounds, it is a mystery. That a man should be as a rock in the midst of a storm, to stand immovable, is a mystery. That the direction of the soul should be turned universally another way; that the judgment and affections should be turned backward, as it were; that he who was proud before should now be humble; that he who was ambitious before should now despise the vain world; that he who was given to his lusts and vanities before should now, on the contrary, be serious and heavenly-minded: here is a mystery indeed when all is turned backward. Therefore we see how Nicodemus, as wise as he was, it was a riddle to him when our blessed Saviour spoke to him of the new birth, that a man should be wholly changed and new-moulded; that a man should be the same and not the same. The same man for soul and body, yet not the same in regard of a supernatural life and that life being put into him, leading him in another manner, by other rules and respects, as much different from other men as a man differs from a beast. For a man to be content with his condition and to have a mind immovable, it is a mystery. Paul said, 'I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger' (Phil. 4:12). It is a mystery for a man to be tossed up and down in life and yet to have a contented mind.

Devotional Readings taken from Puritan Richard Sibbes 'Refreshment for the Soul.'
The Fountain Opened, Works, vol. 5, pp. 463-64
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