to see my childe in heaven and the childe shall think what an happiness were it for me to see my Parents in Heaven you think so here We guess at things thus childishly but yet either this shall be or that which is as good or better then this As suppose I should think how glad should I be if such a one would give me a shilling if after I come to know he will give me this or a Twenty shilling piece I do not trouble my self to know whether he will give me a shilling or no. And so much for Communion with the Angels and Saints CHAP. LII The happiness of Gods people in the Perpetual Sabbath that they shall enjoy NOw the last thing in the Explication is to shew wherein the happiness of the Saints consists is that Perpetual Sabbath that they shall keep with God whereof this Sabbath is but a Type Heb. 4. 9. Sabbaths here are comfortable and we have felt some sweet and some comfort in some Sabbaths but take all the comfort that ever you had in all the Sabbaths you have had here and put all into one that would be a comfortable Sabbath but that perpetual Sabbath that shall be hereafter will be the accomplishment of all those Sabbaths and that will be sweet Now I shall express my self in these six or seven particulars to shew the happiness of Gods people in that perpetual Sabbath First they shall be exercised in the highest employments that any creature can be exercised in or that they are capable to be exercised in The happiness of a creature consists much in that which it is exercised in as there is a great deal of difference between the happiness of a Noble-man in Court and the happiness of one that is employed onely in cleansing channels and the meanest employment that is because their exercise is different the one is exercised about business that concerns a King and a State and the other is imployed about mean things therefore according as the exercise is that any creature is raised to so is the dignity and excellency of that creature Now we are exercised in mean things here in comparison of what we shall be hereafter and yet our business here in making provision for the flesh in getting meat and drink and clothes and money is sweet but though out of obedience to God we ought to go on comfortably in our callings and places wherein God hath set us because God calls us to these low mean things yet we are to account them a mean condition in regard of that which our natures are capable of it is but a sore travel that is laid upon man and this shall not satisfie us as if we were capable of no higher things but when we shall be raised to be busied about the highest employments that a created substance is capable to be busied about that must be comfortable as the Psalmist speaks The high praises of God shall be in their mouthes They shall be always busied in the high contemplations of God and of the Trinity and they shall be always singing praises to God and to him that sits upon the throne and to every Verse of the Song that they shall sing to the Lamb there shall be a Selah put to it it must be glorious because this is the highest glory that God hath not onely from his works here but from all the counsels of his wisdom about the great mystery of redemption from all his works in Heaven and the highest glory that he hath from all the communications of himself to the Saints in Heaven in his praises that they shall be exercised in all the happiness that we have from God here is a way of subserviency unto the actual praising of God there whatsoever God communicates to his creature the top of all is not that the creature should have it but that it should reflect the praise of all upon God The end of all that God does in the world is his glory that he shall have in Heaven and the end of all he does in Heaven is the actual working of the souls of his Saints upon himself Secondly the happiness of the perpetual Sabbath may be expressed in this in that the souls of Gods people shall be always up and fit for these high works God calls us many times to most excellent things to be exercised about himself but our hearts are not fit for these exercises sometimes we finde our hearts enlarged and when our hearts are up we take delight in holy exercises but at other times how hardly are we drawn to them and we are weary in obedience and count it a slavery those exercises are heavy to us but there is a time coming when our hearts shall be always up never to seek but shall be always upon the highest pin enflamed with heat continually as it is an heavy curse for a mans heart to be suitable and fitted for temptation when a temptation shall come so it is a wonderful blessing to be fitted for any holy employment when we are called to it this there shal be always in the Saints in heaven in keeping this their perpetual Sabbath It is reported of Anselm as he was walking out of his house he saw a bird that was fluttering to fly up and could not get up but fell down and looking upon it wishly he saw a string tyed to the leg and a stone at the end upon this his heart broke and he bemoaned himself This is my condition says he though sometimes I would fain get up in holy exercises with God O but this burthen of sin and weight of sin is like a stone and presses me down when I am got up a little way I am pull'd down again my heart is seldom fitted for holy exercises So it is with us usually though through Gods grace there are some wings to move up a little yet this weight and burthen of sins presses us down and makes us unfit for holy duties let us go humbly a while under that sore burthen but know we shall be freed from it ere long Thirdly the happiness of the Sabbath consists in this there shall be no intermission but they shall continue day and night though there shall be no night then we shall not go to duty and break off again and go again and break off again no there shall be no other imployment though the duties of Gods worship here be of an excellent nature yet we are not to spend all our time in them but then there shall be nothing else to spend one moment of time in to all eternity Fourthly there shall be no weariness though we do spend some time in holy exercises here we are quickly weary before we have done Though the spirit be willing the flesh is weak but when we shall have been praising of God millions of years we shall be as fresh at the end of them as at the first moment when we are
exercised in holy duties with others it is good to consider of their weakness whether they be able to hold out and joyn with us but there we shall not need fear weariness in our selves or any others Again we shall see nothing else done by no body else Here we get together and sing and pray and hear the Word and this is comfortable but we see the Sabbath broken by others and that damps our hearts but there is a Sabbath coming shall be so kept as we shall see none break it but every one we have to deal withal shall keep it But yet by the way it is better in a place where it is not altogether so well kept and is in a rising way then in a place where it is better kept for the present but is in a declining way but though it be a grief to us to see the Sabbath broken yet know there is a Sabbath coming that we shall keep and none shall break it Again the happiness of the Sabbath consists in this to keep this Sabbath in these high exercises when so many thousands shall be yelling and roaring under the wrath of an infinite God they shall consider we are now in the presence of God keeping a Sabbath unto him as the children of the Bride-chamber singing songs of triumph to him that sits upon the throne for ever whereas others are cast out from God and are roaring and yelling under the burthen of the wrath of an infinite God and that might have been our portion This addes to the glory of the Saints and therefore the Scripture hath this expression Without shall be dogs That expression is taken from the maner of the Iews marriages usually they were in the night and the Bridegroom and his Bride and their company were taken in with torches and delight into the Bride-chamber others were without without light not taken into the chamber so in Heaven some shall be taken to be exercised in these glorious things and others are cast out as would it not adde much to ones happiness to think thus with ones self I am now going into a place where I shall have abundance of mirth and joy with my friends and others in the mean time lie in the cold starving in the dungeon and I might have been there as well as they if a man should go along with the King in triumph and be at the right hand of the King in glory and as he goes by he should hear a company of poor wretches out of a dungeon crying yelling this sets out his glory so to be at that time thus exercised in those heavenly employments when as others shall be cursing themselves and the time that they were born and blaspheme the name of God it is a comfort to a company of gracious hearts when they are got together in holy exercises to think there are others in the Tavern drinking and swilling and blaspheming what difference is between our condition this day and their condition this does mightily refresh ones heart and enlarge it to praise God for his mercy and so in Heaven the Saints shall know every instant when they are keeping this Sabbath others are howling under the wrath of God and cursing the time they were born Lastly this Sabbath is to be kept in our Fathers house we shall not sing the songs of Zion in a strange Land but in our Fathers house Those godly persons in the times of the Maccabees accounted themselves happy that they might worship and serve God though in the Dens and Caves of the Earth it will be more happiness to serve God in Heaven and in our Fathers House I remember I read of one Marcellus a godly man being cast into a stinking place he did make that his Temple to God and perfumed it with his prayers and after the Christians built a Temple in that place and so we may make a filthy dungeon a Temple but if it be comfortable to be exercised in holy duties in the most filthy and vile places much more comfortable shall it be when we come to Heaven in our Fathers house In Rev. 15. we read of those that sung the song of Moses they stood upon the sea of glass mingled with fire to sing the song of Moses though it be upon the sea of glass this uncertain life of ours full of trouble it is comfortable but to sing it in our Fathers house will be comfortable indeed though we do meet with troubles here yet if we can enjoy the Sabbath we comfort our selves but we shall have a better Sabbath then these even a perpetual Sabbath in our Fathers house put these together and you shall see what this perpetual Sabbath is that Gods people shall have in heaven Now put all together that we have said negatively comparatively and positively the perfection of their natures their bodies and souls and whole persons their glory at the day of judgement their possession of heaven their having God to be their portion their communion with Christ their communion with the Angels and Saints and this perpetual Sabbath that they shall keep and do but apprehend what infinite joy must flow from all these these are as the several streams of this Paradise of God In Gen. 2. we read of Paradise that God made for Adam and there were four streams that were to water it this Paradise of Heaven have these seven streams to water it to make the Saints happy do but consider what infinite joy must flow from all these put together every one does cause joy but put them all together and the joy that comes from hence is a most pure joy and a most spiritual joy and a full joy and a divine joy First pure that is not onely free from any mixture of sorrow but without any thing that should sully it without any sin Here all our pleasures are mixed And spiritual If it were to rejoyce in the good that our bodies shall have it were admirable joy but the joy shall not be so much in regard of the happiness of our bodies but in regard that God is our portion it shall be spiritual yea the happiness of our bodies shall be spiritual and supernatural And it shall be full How full must it needs be they shall enter into their joy because the joy cannot enter into them We rejoyce in believing with joy unspeakable and glorious If the seed time be so glorious how glorious will the harvest be says Cyprian They shall not taste but they shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house The fatness of Gods house in the world does abundantly satisfie the souls of Gods people but the fatness of Gods house hereafter how will that satisfie them The people of God shall have such objects to rejoyce in as is the essential glory of God and all the glory that is put upon him by all his creatures and all the good they have by Gods
pleasantly First be sure to keep the heart right within be sure to keep all at peace within thy soul you know according to the temper within so there is the relishing of things without He that hath peace within can easily go through the duties that are required without with joy Further exercise faith in the work and office of the holy Ghost that office that the holy Ghost is designed unto by the Father and the Son to be the Comforter of his people to bring joy and comfort to them look upon the holy Ghost as designed by the Father and the Son to bring joy and delight to the souls of his people What an infinite difference there is between the comforts of a carnal heart and the comforts of the godly The one come from a little meat and drink and the other come from the exercise of faith about the office of the holy Ghost that is designed to this work Thirdly in all that thou doest be sure to be upright Though thou beest able to do but a little in any way of God if thou beest upright God accepts of it and and thou wilt finde comfort Thou sayest thy duties are mean it may be so but if thou beest upright thou mayest have comfort it becomes the upright to be joyful whereas the most glorious performances if they be not in uprightness are but abominable Again sweeten all your duties by spiritual meditation a Christian that treasures up spiritual meditation and every duty that he performs brings it in by meditation and hath a great many meditations to rowl his duty up and down in this is delight To go to duty and to have a barren heart to act there is no delight but to go to a duty and to exercise spiritual meditation this is sweet Again labor to principle thy heart aright in the ways of godliness to understand what they are if thou understoodest what they are they would be delightful and the reason why many do not go on delightfully is because they do not understand what is in the ways of God to cause delight You will say What is there in the ways of God to cause delight First every work of godliness and that ability that grace hath to exercise is a beam of that infinite choice eternal electing love of God upon thy soul if thou lookest upon it so it will be wonderfully delightful Secondly look upon every duty of godliness as having more of the glory of God in it then the whole frame of heaven and earth besides Take all Gods works in the Creation in Providence in the Heavens the Sun Moon and Stars in the Earth and the Seas there is not so much of the glory of God in them all as in one gracious action that a Christian performs and if you looked at it thus it could not but have pleasure in it Thirdly look at that action of grace as that in which God attains his end in creating heaven and earth more then in other things besides as there is more of God in it so God attains more in it the end of God in his counsels is more attained by any gracious act then by any thing else that can be done save of the same nature How delightful should we be in the ways of godliness if we looked thus at them Fourthly look upon every gracious act as the seed of glory and eternal life Every work of grace in the heart and life of Gods people is a seed of glory and eternal life And these four considerations being put upon every gracious act do confirm that which was said in the opening of the point they must needs be full of pleasantness Be not satisfied in doing any thing in the ways of God till you do it pleasantly I hear the ways of God are pleasant I have gone on being haled by conscience but little have I understood of the pleasantness of them there is more to be looked after then I have attained to By this thou shalt come to be mightily strengthened and it wil be a marvellous help to make thee continue in the ways of godliness And as I said in handling that argument of the easiness of the ways of godliness those that are continually thinking of the hardness of Gods ways will fall off but by having them pleasant it will carry thee on against temptations and the current of all arguments The last Use of all is If the ways of wisdom be ways of pleasantness what is the end of wisdom If the neather springs be so sweet what will the upper be If the lower Jerusalem be paved with gold surely that upper Jerusalem is paved with pearls It is an excellent speech of Bernard Good art thou O Lord to the soul that seeks thee what art thou then to the soul that findes thee How sweet and pleasant are the ways of wisdom then How sweet and delightful is the end of wisdom If grace be pleasant how pleasant is glory therefore the Saints dye so pleasantly because there is a meeting of grace and glory Grace is delightful glory more delightful but when these both meet together what delight will there then be It is a speech of Jerome speaking of carnal delights None can go from delight to delight but it is not so spiritually the more delight we have here the more we shall have hereafter and therefore let this be all our prayer Lord give us evermore this pleasure satisfie our souls with this pleasure if the drops be sweet the rivers of pleasure and joy that are at Christs right hand how sweet are they Moses his Choice The second Part. CHAP. XVI A spiritual eye can see an excellency in Gods people though under great affliction THe fourth Doctrinal Conclusion that was raised from the words was That a spiritual eye can see an excellency in Gods people though under never so great affliction Moses chooses rather to suffer affliction with the people of God Who were this people A despised people an afflicted people Yet Moses could see an excellency in them while they were making their brick while they were whipped by their task-masters and contemptible in the eyes of all the Egyptians yet by the eye of faith Moses could look upon them as the most excellent of the earth as the most glorious people that lived in the world and desires rather to joyn with them though in the greatest afflictions then to abide Pharaoh's Court in the enjoyment of all worldly delights let the world cast what dirt they will upon them and darken their glory what they can yet they are precious and honorable in the Saints eyes The excellent of the earth and the glory of the world Job scraping his sores upon the dunghil and Jeremy sinking into the mire in the dungeon are more beautiful and glorious then the great men of the earth when they are crowned upon their Thrones Though you have lien
reproaches are the reproaches of Christ and we shall not need to depend upon any outward comfort for to comfort us much less have we need to help our selves by reviling again The comfort of a Christian is this That his reproaches are the reproaches of Christ this is enough to quiet his heart you need not comfort your selves in your parts or estates this is enough alone do but answer all your distractions and troublesome workings of your hearts with this and this will quiet them Quest But how shall I know that my reproaches are the reproaches of Christ Answ First if you be reproached for the sake of Christ though you be not a member of Christ yet if your adversaries reproach you because they take you for a member of Christ there is some comfort in this Secondly if you can under all reproaches bring your hearts in subjection unto Christ and quiet your hearts under reproaches in obedience unto him Thirdly if you finde the rule by which you are guided and acted in that condition to be the rule of Christ Fourthly if you finde the chiefest comfort that you gather in to help you to be the comfort of Christ Fifthly if you finde the end you do aim at in your bearing them is the honor of Christ and that you do desire rather that Christ may be in the conclusion honored then your selves cleared Sixthly take this as a special note if you make those reproaches that Christ suffers in his cause his truth his people yours then he makes yours his how does your hearts stand affected to the reproaches Christ suffers in others Zeph. 3. 17 18. God promises much mercy to such to whom the reproach of the solemn assemblies were a burthen That heart that is burthened with the reproaches of Gods ways shall finde ease in the comforts of Gods Spirit If these things be in you certainly these come from the Spirit of Christ and if from the Spirit of Christ then you are Christs and if you be Christs then your reproaches are Christs A third Use is this Seeing Christ suffers for us and all our reproaches are the reproaches of Christ Let us take heed that he do not suffer by us Now Christ may come to suffer by us two ways First if so be that we cause the name of Christ to be spoken evil of Secondly when we come to be actors our selves in speaking evil of Christ or of his people First if we cause Christ or his people to be spoken evil of by any sinful way of ours this is the reproach of Christ but not in that sense I spoke of before Christ does not onely suffer in you but he suffers by you This is the charge that the Apostles lays upon the Romans For your sake is the name of God blasphemed we had need look to our selves in this Mark what charge the Apostle lays upon women 1 Tim. 5. 13 14. that they should take heed of tatling and carrying themselves unchristianly and that they give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully That was the reason why Nehemiah was so careful in his business in Neh. 5. 9. Because of the reproach of the Heathen And so I say to you that are Gods people Is it not enough that Christ hath suffered for you and in you but must he suffer by you O that the fear of God might be upon you because of the reproach of your adversaries Is Christ dear to you did Christ ever do any thing for you Is it not better a thousand times that you were crost and your lives were taken away and you laid rotting in the grave if your names could wash away any stain that is upon the name of Christ know there are many that Christ have fuffered reproach by and you cannot clear your selves of it and know what an evil and bitter thing it is that after all the goodness and mercy of Christ to you and the near relation that he hath taken you into will you abuse all this mercy and this near relation if Christ had never taken you for his own had you been never so vile Christ had not suffered reproach by you but now in regard of your near relation to him he suffers reproach by you and is this the use you make of your near relation When therefore you finde your hearts begin to stir and corruption boil consider the name of Christ lies prostrate before you and will you trample upon the name of Jesus Christ if one were set upon going to a place to do mischief and his Father and Mother should throw themselves in the path that if he goes on he must tread upon them and they should say You shall tread upon the bowels out of which you came upon the loyns that begat you this would be a great stop and so you that are Professors of the Gospel if you have a temptation to a lust the name of Christ calls Stay and says If you go you shall trample upon me and my blood and bring reproach upon me will not this stop you Never think that gain that you get by the reproach of Christ It is true indeed if we be going on in our duty and do that we should though men say the name of Christ shall be reproached we are to go on and do our duty and let Christ vindicate his name if he will but if it be any thing that concern out selves and the satisfaction of our own wills and desires whereby Christ may be reproached this is a mighty argument to keep us from it the word hath scarce a stronger argument to keep us from an evil way then this The name of Christ shal suffer by it for the people of God to suffer reproach by you is an evil thing for a man to have but his kindred ashamed of him what an evil thing is it but that it may be said of one that is a Professor of Religion that he is not onely a reproach to the Church of God but a reproach to Jesus Christ if you have any ingenuity in you this might strike to your hearts It is reported of Alexander having a Soldier of his name and his Soldier being a coward he came to him and said Either leave off the name of Alexander or be a Soldier and so we have the name of Christians but when we are vile in our lives Christ says Either leave off your profession your name or be a Christian indeed do not come in amongst the number of Professors to let profession suffer by you And so Alexander Severus the Emperor seeing a company of Christians fighting together he commanded them to leave off the name of Christians for says he You profess your selves to be Christians and yet you are thus contending this is not the spirit of him whom you do profess It is a lamentable thing that we should profess such a glorious name as we do and that we should handle the
of grace be to take the hearts of the Saints from the things of the world and to settle them upon higher and better things then certainly there are glorious things to come The last demonstration is this because there are such glorious first fruits of that which is to come that Gods people do finde for the present those blessed rays of heavenly consolations and those beginnings of Heaven that they finde here if there were a thousand worlds filled with that glory that this is filled with they would not take it for one ray one beam that is made known unto them as the first fruits of that glory they shall have hereafter now put all these together and we may conclude Verily there is a reward for the righteous verily there is a glorious condition for Gods servants happy are they that shall be made partakers of these things certainly there are great things to come Before we go any further me thinks the thoughts of these should raise our hearts what do we here minding such poor empty things are these the things that God hath made us for are not the thoughrs of God concerning the children of men higher and more glorious then these outward things surely there is something else that God hath made mans immortal soul for above any thing that it hath seen in the world men do live for the present as if there were no other condition for them no greater good but onely to cat and drink and have money and brave cloathes and the like O know there are better things for us to look after but thus we pass from the first thing that there are blessed things for the children of men hereafter CHAP. XL. How far we may aym at the recompence of reward in what we do IT is true will some say there are glorious things prepared for some of the children of men but whether may we look after them may we have a respect to the reward Is not this a mercenary thing and hypocrisie we are not to serve God for reward but for himself and therefore how is this that Moses had a respect unto the recompence of reward and how is this a thing that should help us on in our way First this is granted that we are bound to serve the Lord and to walk with him and obey him if there were no reward to be expected hereafter God is infinitely worthy of himself of all our services of all that we are able to do in this world and whatsoever we have the Lord hath more interest in it then we have in it our selves and therefore we owe all that we are or have unto him and righteousness it self is sufficient to cause us to perform the works of it In the keeping of thy Commandments there is great reward Psalm 19. 11. Not onely for keeping them but in keeping them there is great reward and the excellency of our work would be sufficient reward for our work though there were no reward that were to come hereafter we are bound to do all we do But yet secondly notwithstanding this God is pleased to give leave unto us his poor creatures to help and encourage our selves in the expectation of that reward that is to come yea to make it our aim though I will not say the highest aim for so the word signifies in 2 Cor. 4. 18. While we look not at things which are seen but at the things which are not seen the word signifies While we make things that are not seen our scope and aym so that God gives us leave to have such respect unto them as to make them our aym and so the people of God have looked at the recompence of reward as a great encouragement to them in their way Psal 119. 112. I have enclined my heart to perform thy statutes alway even to the end the same word that signifies end signifies reward also because reward is to come at the end of all our works and therefore the same word is translated reward in Psal 19. 11. and so the word seems to carry more then to the end as if David should say I have enclined my heart to perform thy Statutes alway looking unto the reward In Heb. 12. 3. it is said of Christ himself That for the joy that was set before him he endured the Cross and despised the shame Now if Christ made use of the joy that was set before him and that was a help to him to endure the Cross and despise the shame much more may we make use of it and it may be a help to us so that we have leave to look at it Yea thirdly we have not onely leave to look at it but it is our duty to seek to help our selves in eying the reward we sin against God if we do it not and the reason is because we are bound to make use of the word in that way that God hath revealed it to us now God hath revealed the glorious things of the recompence of the reward in a way of encouragement and therefore we sin against God if we do not encourage our selves in it Some think why should we look at the reward we must look to the rule and see that our obedience be accordingly but know if you do not look to the reward you do not only hinder your selves of the good you might have but do sin against God in it Here you deceive your selves as Ahaz did deceive himself in Isaiah 7. 11. where God bid him ask a sign he was modest and bashful and would not ask a sign he would not tempt God he would believe the Lord without a sign see how the Lord is angry Is it a small thing to weary man but will you weary God also When as the Lord in favor towards you will vouchsafe you a sign and you refuse it as if you had no need why will you weary God so as when God for the help of our weakness will grant us an argument to help us in our way and we think it is modesty or what you will to leave it in this we sin against the Lord our God Fourthly I never finde that the Scripture does accuse any of Hypocrisie of unsoundness and not to have truth of grace meerly for this because that they did aym at the reward which is in Heaven for that they did you shall finde in Scripture many are discovered for hypocrites for looking at the glory of the world as their aym for seeking of riches and credit but give me an instance where any is accused for unsoundness for seeking of immortallity and eternity and happiness this is that which troubles many Christians that which they do is out of self-love and they aym at themselves God did never discover any to be unsound upon this ground and therefore we should be cautious in accusing our selves of this as many do because for the present they cannot see how they go further then seeking of
laid in water reserved till we shall come to be planted in Heaven and there to flourish There is much difference between Gods people what they are here and what they shall be in Heaven as there is between a plant that is bound up and laid in water to be kept alive and when it is in the Orchard green and flourishing and bringing forth fruit Fourthly to have communion with them when we shall know one another perfectly It is an opinion of Thomas as you heard That the bodies of the Saints shall be so transparent that they shall be able to see through one anothers bodies as through a glass Howsoever that be yet the souls of one another and the graces and goodness of one another shall be fully made known to one another If now we did converse with a company of people that we knew certainly had all true grace and were all elected from all eternity what an admirable comfort would this be our communion is comfortable because we have some hopes of their election and we see some signs of grace but if we were certain of this if God should speak from Heaven concerning the poorest member of a Church and say This man or woman is the man or woman that I have had thoughts upon from all eternity and have elected to everlasting glory would we not prize such a one and rejoyce to have such a one in our families and houses Now when we come to Heaven we shall certainly know every one was elected from all eternity and so shall live with us to eternity we shall never have any fears or suspitions of them lest they should be hypocrites as there are fears and suspitions given of one another now And then to have communion with them when there shall be perfect love and union of heart to one another that one shall love another as well as himself and rejoyce in the glory and prosperity of one another as well as his own If one have more glory then another he that hath least glory shall rejoyce in him that hath more glory as if it were his own and therefore there shall not be any want of glory to any says Anselm Every Saint shall love God above himself and love one another as himself and God shall love them all more then they either love themselves or one another and he gives the reason of it says he They love both themselves and one another for God and by God and God loves himself and them for himself and by himself and therefore as they shall love God above themselves so they shall love one another like themselves and rejoyce in the happiness of another as in their own happiness Now what an heaven upon earth is it to have brethren live together in unity if it be in family communion or in Church communion to have entire love without any breaches this is a blessing but howsoever while we are in this world there will be breaches yet there is an heavenly Jerusalem coming where we shall live without breaches And then likewise to have communion one with another always in holy exercises To have communion one with another in our civil converse to eat and drink at one anothers tables and in recreating our selves this is sweet but communion in holy ordinances and holy duties that is sweetest Men love communion and society here that they may play together and eat and drink together indeed if it be in a moderate Christian way there may be some delight in it but know it is an evident sign of a carnal heart when as thy chief affections shall be let out in the exercising thy self that way If the chief joy of your hearts be not in exercising your selves in holy duties your hearts are carnal There is a great deal of difference between that day in which a company of gracious men have communion with one another in recreating themselves and that day wherein they shall have communion with one another in exercising themselves in holy ordinances in praying together and hearing the Word together and therefore examine whether you finde a day of communion with Gods people in holy exercises better then a day of communion in outward society Again it is such a communion as we shall never part with such a communion as we shall always enjoy Here we have communion but it is often darkned because we are often in our dumps and many times there is an occasion of sorrow given but to have communion where there shall be always joy continual being at the feast the supper of the Lamb that must needs be sweet Therefore that Text you have of Lazarus in Abrahams bosom sets out the continual feast of the Lamb that the Saints shall have because that was the maner of the Jews feasting to lean in the bosom of one another and therefore John when he sate to eat with Christ he leaned in his bosom noting that the Saints shall be always as the children of the Bride-Chamber There is a question made by some of the knowing of one anoanother in heaven It is reported of Luther the night before he dyed he was reasonable well and sate with his friends at the Table and the matter of their discourse was Whether they should know one another in heaven or no whether the father should know the childe or the childe the father Luther held it affirmatively and this was one reason he gave As it was with Adam as soon as he saw Eve he knew what Eve was not by discourse but by the Spirit of God telling him what she was and so we being filled with the Spirit of God we shall come to know one another we shall sit down with Abraham Isaac and Iacob we shall have communion with them not onely as godly men but as with Abraham Isaac and Jacob and if with them why not with others This we have in Scripture that spiritual relations shall adde much to the glory of the people of God in Heaven though natural relations shall be taken away as the Father if he know the childe there shall not be that natural affection to the childe as is now yet the Scripture seems to speak of spiritual relations that they shall continue even in Heaven for the glory of the Saints and therefore St. Paul says to the Philippians You are our crown and our rejoycing in the day of Christ It shall be known who were converted by such a Ministery and it shall be a crown to a Minister that such were converted and edified and built up by him But we need not trouble our selves about this question because we have one thing that will satisfie us about all questions that are not clear Either we shall have all that happiness we do think in our thoughts or can think or else we shall have that we being our own judges and choosers that shall be as good or better so that if a Parent thinks what an happiness were it for me