John Flavel

He says in one of his works, "A good and lawful attention to dreams is not to be forbidden.

The godly are permitted to pray that they may be instructed even in their dreams." John Trapp, he was another Puritan commentator, he says, "Actually, supernatural dreams are sent to people by God and his angels, and they are done so either to comfort us or to chasten us, and God repeats them until, or usually repeats them until they are regarded." Um, y- uh, John Flavel, you know, I got a bunch of Flavel right here.

So John Flavel-

Yeah

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Uh, Puritan, yeah.

He says, uh, he says, "But if a man have a voice, a vision, or a dream seeming to hint the secret will of God, may he not obey it?" And he says, "Yes, if it be consonant to the revealed will of God in, in, in the Word." And, and Flavel actually has an example of, of this in his own life where he has a dream about, uh, they're, they're about to embark on a ship, and he has a dream the night before, and I have the, I have it right here.

This actually comes from those works- Um, in chapter one in the, in the, in the works of John Flavel, The Life of the rate-- the, of the, of the late Reverend John Flavel, the night before Flavel embarked on this journey, he had the following premonition by a dream.

John Owen.

Thomas Watson, John Flavel, the love of God is not a naked act of the will, but a warm and affection of the heart carried out toward God as the chief good.

Even John Calvin thought that agape had a sense of emotion that was baked into the word.

And so I think we've kind of come full circle.

Life and life abundant, and it's a quality of life that you cannot find at any other fountainhead.

John Flavel, he writes, all that delights you in earthly things can never really satisfy you, for all of your desires are in God.

The comforts you have here are only drops inflaming, not satisfying the appetites of your soul, but the lamb, the lamb will lead you to fountains of living water.

which is beautiful.

No, Christians throughout the history of the church have considered the importance of the body and the interconnectedness of the body and the soul.

Some time ago, I was taking our congregation through a book by John Flavel, Facing Grief.

It was a really great Sunday school class that we had here at Emmaus.

And there was just this little comment.

Well, I am so grateful for the Lord's providence to bring you together.

John Flavel, the great Puritan said that God's providence is much like the Hebrew alphabet.

It's best read backwards.

So I'm thankful that you can read backwards on your ministry and how God's impacted you.

Spurgeon said he's the altogether lovely one.

John Flavel called him the desire of all nations.

The question is, is that how you see your king? Is that, is that how you see Jesus? If not, the disciplines are gonna become onerous.

And then if you fail to make the chief end of your doing disciplines seeing Jesus in all of his beauty, guess what? It's gonna become a burden again.

The Apostle Paul, the parolee, the average woman in the pew, we all stand condemned, receiving a common sentence of condemnation and eternal punishment.

John Flavel said, grace makes a difference, but grace finds us all alike.

We are all the same lump.

And if one was made for a vessel of honor, it is not for any goodness in the creature, but from the good pleasure of God alone.