Ordained and whereof he hath given us assurance in that he hath raised him from the Dead Tho' we are not certain when the day of Judgment will come that we may be alwayes preparing for it yet you see it is certain that there will be such a day and that Christ our Mediator is ordained Judge A happy day for all that are truly pious they need not fear this Judge who is no other than their Merciful Saviour But it will be a day of darkness and gloominess unto the Wicked these will then mourn when they shall see this Son of Man coming with great Power and Glory so much we are told in the Text Then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in Heaven and then shall all the Tribes of the Earth Mourn and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the Clouds of Heaven with Power and great Glory For the better understanding of these words we will enquire First Why Christ is called the Son of Man Secondly What is here meant by the Sign of the Son of Man Thirdly That this Son of Man will come to Judge the World Fourthly That he will come with great Power and Glory Fifthly That all the wicked of the Earth will then have just cause to Mourn First Let us briefly enquire why Christ is called the Son of Man Some learned Men observe that he is called so in the Scriptures more than forty times and there are two reasons of the Name 1st He is called the Son of Man in token of his Humanity Christ our Blessed Mediator was both God and Man and therefore as he is often called the Son of God to denote his Divinity so he is as often called the Son of Man to denote his Humanity 2ly He is called the Son of Man to denote that state of Humiliation to which he condescended for our sakes It was usual for the Jews to style Princes and Potentates 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Sons of strong Men but such as were poor they styl'd Beni-Adam Sons of Men. Christ therefore aspired to no higher title than that of Son of Man He was pleased to humble himself for us He as the Apostle speaks became poor that we might become rich Born he was of the poorest Parents such as neither had an House of their own to lay him in when he was born nor able to procure any place besides a Stable for his reception into this World And as he was born in this poor condition so tho' the Birds of the Air have Nests as he speaks yet whilst he lived he had not of his own where to lay his Head Nay further yet when he came to die we know he was beholding to the Charity of Ioseph of Arimathea for a room in his Sepulchre No wonder then if Christ be ambitious of no more Honourable Title than this of Son of Man since he made himself so vile so mean so contemptible for our sakes Thus I have briefly shewn why Christ is called so often the Son of Man it denotes the truth of his Humanity as also that state of Humiliation to which he condescended for our sakes I come now in the second place to enquire Secondly What is here meant by the sign of the Son of Man It would spend too much of our time to mention all those conjectures which learned Men have made concerning this Sign since it is a matter we may be safely ignorant of I shall only set down two of the best interpretaions I have met with 1st Very many learned Men both Antient and Modern do by the Sign of the Son of Man understand the Cross. St. Ierom St. Chrysostom and Venerable Bede upon this place affirm this Sign to be no other than that of the Cross. The Ethiopian Church is so peremptory in this matter that it is put into the Articles of their Creed as the Learned Gregory informs us There is hardly any thing the Antient Fathers are more unanimous in than this And to say the truth there is some tolerable Reason for this Antient Opinion For what can be more Honourable to our Lord and Saviour or more full of Terror to his Enemies than that the Cross of Christ which they counted foolishness and more than so esteemed the greatest reproach of the Christian Faith should at that day be made the Herald to Proclaim his Coming and call all Nations of the World to appear before him But tho' this interpretation be backt both with Reason and great Authorities Yet 2ly There is another interpretation that seems as plausible if not more plausible than it For the learned Vossius Mede Twisse Millet and several others do understand by the Sign of the Son of Man who is a Sign This kind of Dialect this manner of Speaking is frequent in the Scripture thus the Law of Faith is all one with Faith that is a Law the Law of Sin that is Sin it self which dwelling in unregenerate Persons reigns as it were by Law So the Sign of the Son of Man that is the Son of Man who is a Sign And that which gives the greatest Authority to this Opinion is that St. Luke in the parallel place interprets it so Chap. 21. 27. where the word Sign is left out and the Verse runs thus Then shall they see the Son of Man coming in a Cloud with Power and great Glory And St. Mark renders the words the same way Chap. 13. 26. If therefore St. Mark and St. Luke may be allowed to be as good interpreters of St. Matthew as any other by the Sign of the Son of Man we may understand the Son of Man himself whose Glorious appearance in the Clouds will be a certain infallible sign that the day of Judgment is come Thus I have shewn you what Conjectures learned Men have made concerning this Sign of the Son of Man Some understand the Cross others Christ himself whose Glorious appearance will be a certain sign of the approaching Judgment I come now in the third place to shew you Thirdly That this Son of Man will come to judge the World None but that God who made us has any right to judge us As we have received all things from him so as Stewards must we render an account of all things to him Indeed this Judgment belongs originally to the whole Trinity but the outward administration of it shall be committed to the Son of Man So we are told expresly in the Text Then shall ye see the Son of Man coming in the Clouds of Heaven Thus you see the Judgment of the last Day is committed to the Son of Man and indeed it is committed to him because he is the Son of Man our Saviour tells us so expresly John 5. 20 27. As the Father has life in himself so hath he given unto the Son to have life in himself and has given him Authority to execute Iudgment also because he is the Son of Man Ye see the Son of Man will come as
to dye sooner being prest with Arguments on both sides If I consult my self and my own good it is doubtless better for me to dye and enter presently into Happiness But then if I consult your Convenience it were better I should live longer in the World to be serviceable unto your Edification Now I think it is evident that if the Apostle could have supposed that his Soul should have slept after death and not presently have enter'd into the fruition of Bliss there could have been no strait in the case nor any dispute but that it was better to live still in the World to continue in the Comforts of a good Conscience and of doing good to others rather than to be in a constant sleep or in a sensless state of stupidity and inactivity From all which Places of Scripture it is most plain that the Souls of good Men do not sleep after their separation from the Body as some among us fancy but are immediately received into Bliss as Lazarus was into Abrahams Bosom and the Thief here in the Text into Paradise Vse And we learn from hence the Reason why the Primitive Christians did celebrate their Funerals with Joy and Feasting We use to rejoyce at the Happiness of our Friends in this World and they much more at their happiness in a better They did not therefore as we do now hang their Houses and Churches with Mourning but as Prudentius tells us with White the Emblem of Ioy For they looked upon the day of their Deaths as their Birth-day to an Eternal life and their going out of this World as an entrance upon the incomprehensible Happiness of a better And indeed we shall find they had Cause enough to rejoyce if we consider the greatness of the Happiness they were possess'd of and this I told you was exprest in the Text by these two things 1st They shall be with Christ. 2dly They shall be in Paradise 1st The Godly after death are said to be with Christ. Now how great is the Happiness which lies couched in these Words We cannot be with Christ but we must be with all the Saints and Angels of Heaven Nay farther we must enjoy the sweet and ravishing Communion of all the Persons of the Ever Blessed Trinity And sure such Company cannot but enhaunce the happiness of Heaven Society is ordinarily styled Sal vitae the Salt of Life without this the Life of Man would be most unsavoury and unpleasant We know God said at the Creation of the World It is not good for Man to be alone It seems Paradise it self would have been a Valley of Bacha little less than a Comfortless Solitude without the refreshments of Society That therefore nothing may be wanting to compleat the happiness of the Paradise above St. Paul Heb. 12. 22. gives us a large Catalogue of that Glorious Company we shall converse with in Heaven We shall come saith he to the General Assembly of the First born to the Spirits of Iust Men made Perfect to an innumerable Company of Angels and to God the Iudge of all and to Iesus the Mediator of the New Covenant From which place it is most plain that we cannot be with Christ but we must also be with God with Angels and with the Spirits of Just Men made Perfect Now such Glorious Company cannot but make the Happiness of Paradise exceeding great as will appear more at large by considering in particular what it is to be First With all the Saints of Heaven Secondly What it is to be with the Angels And Thirdly What it is to be with God and Christ. 1st Let us enquire what it is to be with all the Saints of Heaven and how the happiness of Paradise is inhaunced by such Glorious Company It is the unhappiness of the Godly here below that with Daniel they are forced sometimes to dwell in the same Den with Lions or else converse as St. Paul did at Ephesus with Men that did more truly deserve the name of Beasts How was righteous Lot vexed daily with the filthy Conversation of the Sodomites How does David mourn that he was forced to dwell in Mesech and sojourn in the Tents of Kedar The good Man whilst he lives in this World has his Eyes daily bloodshot with Murders his Ears unhallowed with Oaths and Blasphemies his Nostrils offended with the Drunkards Vomits and his Memory made too often the Cabinet of vain frothy or obscene Discourses so that with good Lucullus in Tully he frequently desires his Memory were worse or that he could learn the Art of Oblivion But in Heaven the Godly shall be free from all such vile and troublesom Company Here there will be no Murderers no Whoremongers no Drunkards no Dogs to molest them Rev. 22. 15. In the Heavenly Canaan there will be no Canaanites to be pricks in their Eyes and Thorns in their Sides But they shall converse for ever with all the Saints of Heaven and live in the general Assembly of the First-born Now what it is thus to live with all the Saints of Heaven I shall shew you more distinctly in these following Particulars 1st The Godly shall know all the Blessed Saints that are in Heaven It is a wonder it should be disputed by any Divines whether the Saints in Glory shall know one another But sure there can be little comfort in Society where there is not a particular Knowledge and a familiar Acquaintance St. Austin therefore tells us In Caelo a singulis omnes ab omnibus singuli cognoscentur In Heaven saith he all Men shall be known of every Man and every Man shall be known of all Men. It is reported of Luther that being reasonable well the night before he died he sate at Table with his Friends and the matter of their Discourse hapned to be Whether they should know one another in Heaven Whether the Father should know his Child a Husband his Wife and a Friend his Friend Luther resolv'd the point in the Affirmative and gave this Reason among others for it Adam saith he knew Eve as soon as he saw her and be sure our Knowledge in the Heavenly Paradise shall be much greater than his was in the Earthly Paradise none will be stranggers there but every Glorified Saint shall know all the Patriarchs Prophets Apostles Martyrs and all the Servants of God We find Mat. 17. 4. Peter Iames and Iohn who were allowed to see Christs Transfiguration knew Moses and Elias whom they had never seen before how much more shall we being fully illuminated and perfectly Glorified in Heaven know exactly all the blessed Ones tho' never acquainted with them upon Earth This therefore is one part of the Happiness of the Godly in Heaven they shall see Abraham Isaac and Iacob in the Kingdom of God as our Saviour speaks Luke 13. 28. They shall know all those Worthies and Heroes that have gone to Heaven before or shall come thither after them but this is not all For 2ly We
Gold the Walls and Foundations all of Precious Stones Such incredible lustre and glory is in it that the Sun shall not need to give his Light nor the Moon to shine in it for the Glory of God shall inlighten it and the Lamb shall be the light thereof for ever Thus happy shall the Godly be after they depart this Life they shall be with Christ and which is more they shall be with Christ in Paradise I come now to draw some practical Inferences from what has been delivered Application 1st Has the Holy Ghost in Scripture made such discoveries of Paradise and our future happiness then certainly they ought to fill our Souls with earnest Longings and vehement Pursuits after them When King Hezekiah had shewn to the Ambassador of Baladan King of Babylon the House of his Precious things his Silver and his Gold and all his Treasures we read these finite perishing Treasures proved Load-stones powerful enough to draw these Babylonians to War against Iudah How much more ought the infinite Glories of Heaven which God has revealed in the Scripture raise such violent Desires in us as may make us resemble the Spouse in the Canticles who is compared to a Pillar of Smoak mounting continually towards Heaven or them who lived in the dayes of Iohn the Baptist who are said to have taken the Kingdom of Heaven by violence Such a temper of Spirit as this we find in the Saints of God My Soul fainteth for thy Salvation I have longed for it saith Holy David Psal. 119. 81 It is a remarkable Passage of Cornelius a Lapide upon Gen. 47. where enquiring why the Patriarchs of old were so passionately desirous to have their bones buried in the Land of Canaan he gives this Reason God saith he had revealed unto these Holy men the Day of Christ they all as well as Abraham saw Christ Day and rejoyced Not only the Day of his Nativity but that more glorious Day of his Resurrection In which not only Christ himself should rise but others that slept should rise with him and attend upon him into Heaven at his Ascension These hopes of Rising with Christ and getting sooner to Heaven both in their Bodies and Souls than others made them thus careful and solicitous to be buried near the place where Christ was to rise How unlike these Holy Patriarchs are many amongst us whose heavy Souls move down to Earth as to their Center Neither God nor Heaven does ever so much trouble their Thoughts as to make them breath forth their desires after them But such as are true Believers and sincere Christians are in Scripture described by this known Periphrasis of being such as love the appearing of Christ such as desire to be dissolved that they may be with him such as earnestly groan to be cloathed upon with their House which is from Heaven and therefore pray often with the Bride in the Revelations Come Lord Iesus come quickly 2dly If we do earnestly and seriously desire this exceeding great happiness of Paradise we must be willing to use the Means which will bring us to it It is a known Maxim in the Schools Qui vult finem vult media ad finem He that effectually desires the End desires also the Means which lead unto that End If with the Thief upon the Cross we expect after Death to enjoy Christ in Paradise we must labour to imitate him and give such demonstrations of our Humility Faith in Christ and sincere Repentance as he did Our Saviour tells us that the wise Merchant in the Gospel had no sooner found a Pearl of great Price but he presently sold all he had and purchas'd it It is reported of Camillus that Famous French Commander that when he had tasted some of the pleasant Grapes of Italy he could never be at rest till he had raised a great Army and Conquer'd that pleasant Country God has been pleased in Scripture to present us with some of the Grapes of Canaan to give us some taste of the Heavenly gift and the Powers of the World to come How should this make us restless and unquiet till we arrive at this happy Country Should we not now raise all the Forces that we can to fight our Spiritual Enemies and conquer those Lusts which oppose our happiness Should we now spare any Sin tho' it were as dear to us as a beloved Ionathan Sure Heaven will recompence the loss of a right Eye and a right Hand should we pluck them off and sacrifice them to our Saviour And indeed we must thus forsake sin every sin the most darling sin if ever we hope to get to Paradise The Young man in the Gospel lacked but one thing and yet fell short of Heaven And if thou wilt still indulge thy self in thy Covetousness Uncleanness Swearing Drunkenness or any other known sin thou canst never expect to be with Christ in Paradise For Christ has told us plainly Mat. 19. 17. that if we will enter into Life we must keep the Commandments Which that we may all do God of his Infinite Mercy grant c. SERMON X. Matt. xxiv 3â— And then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in Heaven and then shall all the Tribes of the Earth mourn and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the Clouds of Heaven with Power and great Glory THE Office of our Blessed Saviours Mediatorship consists chiefly in three Parts his Satisfaction Intercession and Judging the World at the Last Day The First of these he performed here on Earth the Second he is still performing in Heaven and the Third he will perform in the Air When he shall come in the Clouds of Heaven with Power and great Glory We know he satisfied infinite Justice when he offered up himself a propitiatory Sacrifice on the Cross and he is still interceeding in Heaven at the Right Hand of God As he purchased Salvation for sinners by dying for them so he interceeds that this Salvation may be applied unto such as repent sincerely of their sins and believe on his Name The third part of his Mediatorship is still to be performed for he is not as Mediator to judge the World till the time appointed by his Father and then he will for certain Judge both the Quick and the Dead Indeed the Father himself Iudgeth no Man but hath committed all Iudgment unto the Son as our Saviour speaks Iohn 5. 22. and he gives the reason of it vers 27. because he is the Son of Man As he became the Son of Man that he might be in a capacity to save the Penitent So God has appointed the same Son of Man to judge the World that he may be able to punish the Impenitent Such as before would not accept him for a Saviour will now be forced to admit him as a Judge Hence we are told Act. 17. 31. That God has appointed a Day in which he will Iudge the World in Righteousness by that Man whom he hath
Judge at the last Day and he comes because he is the Son of Man It will not be amiss to enquire briefly into the Reasons of it 1st God has committed the Judgment of the last Day to the Son of Man because he has appointed it should be Visible This is fairly hinted in the Text where it is said they shall see the Son of Man coming in the Clouds of Heaven God himself is a Spirit and consequently invisible but the Son of Man is Visible and therefore he is appointed to Ride the Circuit that he may be seen of all his Enemies And that we might take the more notice of this Reason it is repeated again Chap. 26. 64. where Christ tells his Enemies that hereafter they shall see the Son of Man sitting on the Right hand of Power and coming in the Clouds of Heaven It seems the Son of Man shall come and his Enemies shall see him and be confounded at the sight of him This may be farther confirm'd from Act. 1. 11. where you 'l find the Angels preaching this Doctrin This same Iesus who is taken up from you into Heaven shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into Heaven The Comparison is here made between our Saviour's Ascending into Heaven and his returning again to Judgment Ascendit visibiliter descendit visibiliter He Ascended saith Gerhard in a visible manner and he shall descend to Iudgment in a visible manner too 2ly God has committed the Judgment of the last Day to the Son of Man for the reward of his Obedience and greater exaltation of his Human Nature It is but Justice in God to make this Son of Man Judge the World seeing he came into the World and was judged by it It is but equal to invest Christ with a power of Absolution and Condemnation seeing he was Condemned by us to dye and dyed that he might be in a capacity to Absolve us It is but reasonable that all the Sons of Men should bow before his Throne and submit to his Judgment who disdain'd not for our sakes to stand before the Tribunal of wicked Men and receive the Sentence of Condemnation To this purpose are those Expressions of St. Paul Phil. 2. 8 9. Being found in fashion as a man he humbled himself and became obedient unto the Death even the death of the Cross Wherefore God also has highly exalted him and given him a name which is above every name that at the Name of Iesus every knee should bow He that came at first to save us must it seems come at last Judge us And it is but just that he who before carried a Reed in his hand and was derided by his Enemies should hereafter sway a Scepter of Righteousness and break his Enemies in peices with a Rod of Iron But 3ly God has committed the Judgment of the last Day to the Son of Man for the greater Comfort and Consolation of the Godly What a joyful sight will it be unto all sincere Penitents when they shall see the Advocate become their Judge and none but their Saviour siting on the Throne of Glory For he knows all the Frailties and Infirmities of our Natures He knoweth our frame and remembreth that we are but Dust Yea he will be yet more ready to pity us seeing he was pleased to assume our Natures bear our Infirmities and to be tempted in all things like as we are Well then may the Godly be said in Scripture to long for this glorious appearance of the Lord Iesus Well may the Bride in the Revelations cry Come Lord Iesus come quickly seeing this Day of Judgment will be to her no other than the Day of Nuptuals A Day in which Christ will be married to his People and admit them unto the nearest Union and Communion with himself and that unto all Eternity 4thly God has committed the Judgment of the last Day to the Son of Man for the greater Terror and Confusion of the Wicked The Angels who were present at our Saviours Ascention tell his Disciples Act. 1. 11. that the same Iesus who then ascended into Heaven should descend in like manner as he then ascended up into Haeven Now we know our Saviour when he ascended into Heaven carried along with him the print of the Spear and all those Scars that were made by the Nails and Thorns And these it seems he will bring along with him when he returns to Judgment How then will the wicked mourn as we are told in the Text when they look upon him whom they had formerly pierced Those Wounds which were at first opened to heal their Souls will now open their Mouths and call for Vengeance on them Christ's Eyes saith St. Iohn will now become flames of Fire and such as will certainly consume them his Feet like fine Brass burning in a Furnance and cannot but destroy them Well may the wicked call then upon the Rocks to cover and the Mountains to hide them since the presence of the Lamb will be infinitely more dreadful than the presence of the fiercest Lion For unto such as have trampled this Son of God and Man under foot unto such as have counted the Blood of the Covenant an unholy thing unto such I say there will now remain nothing but a certain fearful looking for of Iudgment and fiery Indignation which shall devour these Adversaries Thus I have dispatch'd the Third General and shewn you that this Son of Man must come at the last Day to judge the World and the Reason of it I come now Fourthly In the Fourth place to shew you that He will come with great Power and Glory This is plainly deliver'd in the Text Then shall they see the Son of Man coming in the Clouds of Heaven with Power and great Glory And 1st He will come with great Glory And 2dly He shall come with Power 1st Let us consider the greatness of that Glory with which this Son of Man shall come to Judge the World Tho' his first coming into the World was mean and contemptible clouded with Poverty and Grief and such other humble Circumstances as were proper for his state of Humiliation yet his second Coming will be splendid and glorious as will appear from these following Particulars 1st Let us consider the immediate Fore-runners and Harbingers of our Saviour's Second coming Kings and Princes have their Harbingers and so has this King of Kings too St Ierome tells us of an Antient Tradition of the Iewish Doctors namely that for fifteen Days together before the great Day of Judgment there shall be transacted upon the Stage of Nature a continued scene of fearful Signs and Wonders The Sea shall lift up his mountainous billows and make a fearful noise with its rouling Waves The Heaven shall crack night and day with loud and roaring Thunders The Earth shall groan under hidious Convulsions and quotidian Earthquakes The Air shall blaze with portentous Comets The Moon shall shed forth purple streams of
come now Fourthly In the fourth place to shew you what Reasons and Encouragements we have to endeavour after the highest degrees of Grace And 1st Our serious endeavours after the highest degrees of Grace will be an excellent means to preserve that saving growth in Grace the pious Christian has already attain'd to There is a dangerous Opinion in the World that a man cannot totally and finally fall away from Grace According to these mens sentiments he that is once sincerely Righteous will infallibly hold on and persevere unto the end Now if this Opinion were true this exhortation would be vain But certainly nothing can be more contrary to the plain Doctrine of the Scripture Hear what St. Peter saith Chap. 1. of this Epistle vers 10. Give all dilligence saith he to make your Calling and Election sure for if you do these things you shall never fall You see he puts an if in the case such as fairly implies that we may neglect our Duty and fall from our own stedfastness For the same reason St. Paul gives this necessary Caution Rom. 11. 20. c. Be not high-minded but fear for if God spared not the natural branches take heed lest he also spare not thee Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God on them which fall severity but towards thee goodness if thou continue in his goodness otherwise thou also shalt be cut off But a fuller confutation of this dangerous Opinion we cannot desire than what may be gathered from the words of the Prophet Ezek. 18. 24. VVhen the righteous man turneth away from his righteousness and committeth iniquity and doth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doth shall he live saith the Lord No All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned in his trespass that he hath trespassed and in his sin that he hath sinned in them shall he die Thus plain it is that a Christian may fall away from that saving state of Grace he has attained to And what I pray is more likely to secure his steadfastness than serious endeavours after the highest degrees of Holiness Our Apostle it seems thought so for having in the foregoing Verse given this necessary Caution Beware Brethren lest you fall from your own steadfastness he presently subjoins in the Text as the properest means to secure them from falling but grow in Grace It is the same in spiritual growths that it is in naturals For as a man by eating and drinking and other natural Actions preserves his natural Life so the Christian by serious endeavours after higher degrees of Holiness preserves his spiritual Life The Musician screws up his Peg to an higher pitch that he may be sure it will not fall lower than the true Note Even so the higher degrees of Perfection we aspire to the less danger shall we be in of falling lower than what is absolutely necessary And this certainly is sufficient encouragement to continue these our serious endeavours 2ly These serious endeavours after a further growth in Grace than what is absolutely necessary to Salvation will give the pious Christian a more comfortable assurance of Eternal Happiness It is no doubt a kind of Heaven upon Earth to be assured of Heaven whilst we are here upon Earth This is that hidden Manna mentioned in the Revelations which fills the Soul with all variety of Delights Now nothing besides a particular Revelation from Heaven can be more likely to create this full assurance in the Soul than these Heroick attainments of Grace and Vertue Grace is that Seal of the Spirit by which we are marked and sealed unto the day of Redemption And certainly the brighter and more evident that Grace is the more evident will it be to our own selves and the fuller our assurance of Heaven and Eternal Happiness Many good Christians are in a safe condition and yet their condition is not so comfortable by reason of those fears and doubtings which do often accompany these lower degrees of Grace But the more we abound in good Works and the more eminently our Graces shine the more comfortable will our Assurance be and the clearer our Title to Heaven and Eternal Happiness Read St. Paul's 11 Chap. to the Hebrews where he sets down a large Calendar of God's eminent Saints such as advanc't into the highest form of Piety and Vertue and you 'l find their Faith as great as was their growth in Grace and their assurance of Heaven bearing a just proportion to their improvements in Holiness For St. Paul describing their Faith ver 1. calls it the substance or subsistence of things hoped for the evidence or clear demonstration of things not seen 3ly These serious endeavours after the highest degrees of Grace as they will secure our Title to Heaven and give us a more comfortable assurance of it for the present so they will hereafter advance us to higher degrees of Glory in Heaven We know there are different degrees of Glory in Heaven even as one Star differeth from another Star in Glory so also saith St. Paul shall be the Resurrection of the Iust As St. Austin speaks Splendor dispar Caelum commune the Saints shall dwell together in the same Heaven but yet like Stars they shall shine with different Rays of Glory Now these higher degrees of Glory will be conferred on such who arrived at higher degrees of Grace Hence when our Saviour tells his Disciples John 14. 2. In my Fathers House are many Mansions Tertullian remarks thus upon the place Quomodo multae Mansiones si non pro varietate Meritorum Wherefore saith he should our Saviour mention many Mansions in his Fathers House if there were not several Rooms of different Size and Glory provided for his Saints according to the variety of their deserts Indeed Heaven has room enough to lodge all the Godly but as in other Magnificent Palaces so in this of Heaven there are higher and lower larger and lesser Mansions in which God's Saints shall be disposed of according to those Services they have performed upon Earth Their Rewards hereafter shall be answerable to their Obedience here See then what incouragement there is to endeavour after the highest degrees of Glory These it seems will create an Heaven in our Souls whilst we live here on Earth These will at our Deaths carry our Souls as high as Heaven nay which is more they will lodge them in the best Mansions there Hence is that of our Apostle Chap. 1. 11. If these things be in you and abound then shall an entrance be ministred unto you abundantly into the everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Iesus Christ. Having therefore these Promises Dearly Beloved let us cleanse our selves from all Filthiness both of Flesh and Spirit perfecting Holiness in the fear of the Lord. Let us go from Strength to Strength and grow from one degree of Grace unto another until we appear before our God in Sion I shall conclude all with St. Pauls Exhortation
Text for it seems he believed Christ to have been both able and willing to save him which is in effect to own him for a Mediatour Hence we find him making solemn and earnest Addresses to him for Mercy Lord saith he remember me when thou comest into thy Kingdom One would think these Circumstances which I have mention'd namely his deep Sense of his Sins his humble Confession of them his Charity to the Soul of his Fellow Thief and his strange and prodigious Faith I say one would think these Circumstances so wonderful and so extraordinary that they were sufficient of themselves to evidence the sincerity of his Repentance how short soever it was and yet by way of Overplus we have the Testimony of our Saviour himself concerning it This day saith our Saviour thou shalt be with me in Paradise Sure that Repentance must be sincere and perfect which enters into Heaven passeth into Paradise and makes so notorious a Thief all on a sudden so fit a Companion for the Holy Jesus And now let us enquire what matter of Comfort here can be for the bold Daring Sinners of the Times Have they any reason to expect such a lively vigorous and extraordinary Faith Or is it possible they should be so well assured of the sincerity of their Repentance The Age of Miracles did expire long ago and God having abundantly confirmed the Truths of the Gospel by mighty Signs and Wonders did resolve to leave the succeeding Ages of the Church to the ordinary Means of Grace How then can we expect at the Hour of Death to find such a wonderful Faith wrought in those profligate Wretches who have all their Life time despised Gods Ministers quenched all the Motions of his Holy Spirit trampled on the Blood of the New Covenant and shamefully abused all the ordinary Methods and Dispensations of the Gospel And as we cannot expect to find in the Clinicks of the Age such a prodigious and extraordinary Faith as was in this penitent Thief so neither is it possible they should be so well assur'd of the sincerity of their Repentance as he was I am willing to be as Charitable to these Penitents as the Salvation of their Souls will allow me to be And therefore let us suppose such Presumptuous sinners to be deeply sensible of their sins and willing to Confess them Let us suppose them sending for their Debauch'd Companions to remind them of Eternity and the great danger of delaying their Repentance Nay farther let us suppose them watering their Couches with their Tears and making most solemn Protestations of better Obedience if God should restore them to their former Health Supposing all this be done by the Clinicks of the Age is it possible for a Minister to afford them a Cordial or any solid Comfort from this Example of the Text For my part I must declare that I think it impossible We may hope well in the Judgment of Charity but to give them any such Assurance as this penitent Thief is beyond the power and skill of the wisest Minister for the Heart is deceitful above all things and since Ministers are not Omniscious as our Saviour was they cannot pass an infallible Judgment upon the sincerity of such a late Repentance When Esau had lost his Birth-right for a Mess of Pottage did not he shed as hearty and unfeigned Tears as these supposed Penitents can do and yet it is said found no place for Repentance Did not Iudas run to the Scribes and Pharisees Did he not confess publickly that he had betrayed the Innocent Blood Nay did he not throw down the Thirty peices of Silver And sure if he had not been in earnest such a Covetous Wretch would never have parted with his Mony and yet we know his Repentance was not right Alas the Horrours of Conscience and the ghastly Apparitions of Death will force men to do many things which God will not accept of because they proceed from fear of Punishment and not from the Love of him Nay let me add yet farther that sad Experience has set its Seal to this Observation That many such Penitents who have made the most solemn Protestations of better Obedience in the time of their Sickness when God has restored them in Mercy to their former Health they have with the Dog return'd to their Vomits and with the Sow to their wallowings in the Mire Thus you see that Repentance of the Thief in the Text was so remarkable so wonderful so extraordinary in all the parts of it as will afford little solid Comfort to repenting Sinners at the Hour of Death 4ly This Repentance of the Thief will be found yet farther extraordinary and such as can afford little Comfort to the Clinicks of the Age if we consider those great and extraordinary Temptations he had to grapple with Christ was now in his worst Estate in the very lowest degree of his Humiliation there was no Beauty no Form no Comeliness in him that he should be desired The Chief Priests the Scribes and the Elders mocked him all that passed by reviled him wagging their Heads Of his own Disciples some denied him and all of them shamefully and most ungratefully forsook him This poor penitent Thief was the only Confessor he had And what Inducements had he at this time to own him He could expect no Wordly Advantages all that he could promise himself was only this that as he was now Crucified as a Malefactor only so for such his Confession his Torments would have been enhanced and he persecuted as a Martyr And can now the Clinicks of the Age shew us any such extraordinary Repentance Is Christ now under the same Circumstances of Pain and Ignominy that he was then Do not all our Creeds tell us that he is now at the Right Hand of God That He is made the Head of all things both in Heaven and in Earth And will it be any such heroick Act of Faith now to seek unto such a Glorious and Triumphant Saviour Sure there is a vast difference between the case of the Thief and the case of the presumptuous Sinners The Thief had no inducements to fly to Christ for succour and these have none to fly to but their Saviour There is therefore but little solid comfort for such Penitents in the Example of the Text. 5ly The case of the Thief will yet further be found extraordinary if we consider the time when he obtained Mercy it was no ordinary time but a time when God was shewing a publick Act of Grace and Mercy to the World God at this time was giving his own Son out of great love to Mankind And therefore it might seem proper and well becoming so solemn a time that there should be some Monument of this Infinite Mercy It may possibly deserve your serious observation that God Almighty did always something extraordinary to grace the several Passages of our Saviours Mediatorship We know at his Nativity a Glorious Star shone in the Air
shall not only know all God's Saints in Heaven but we shall have more sweet and ravishing Communion with them Here a Nazianzin shall repeat the embraces of his beloved Basil a David for ever enjoy his Dearest Ionathan and the Pious Soul possess what Socrates could of old but wish for namely the intimate converses of all those Brave Heroes who have gone thither before him And you 'l easily believe there shall be most sweet Communion among the Saints in Heaven when you have considered the important Phrase by which it is exprest Mat. 8. 11. And I say unto you that many shall come from the East and West and shall sit down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the Kingdom of Heaven In our Translation it is shall sit down but in the Greek it is shall lie down upon Beds as they used to do at their greatest Feasts So that there shall be much sweet and pleasant Communion among the Saints in Heaven as uses to be among Friends at their most solemn Feasts Hence also we read Luke 16. 22. That Lazarus was carried by the Angels into Abrahams Bosom It was the manner of the Iews when they feasted to lean in the Bosom one of another Thus St. Iohn when he sat to eat with Christ is said to lean in his Bosom So here Lazarus being laid in Abrahams Bosom denotes they have a continual Feast of Joy in Heaven they are constantly entertained with the Supper of the Lamb and consequently must needs have sweet and ravishing Society and Communion each with other And how does this inhance the Happiness of Paradise above Ask your own experience what sweetness you have found in their Conversation here below Did not King David account them the most excellent Persons upon Earth and delight exceedingly in the society of God's Saints And if so much delight be to be found if so much Sweetness be to be tasted in the Society of the Saints here on Earth How much more abundantly shall we be satisfied with their Company and Conversation in Heaven Alas here the very best of men have so many Imperfections and are subject to so many Misfortunes as do often make their Acquaintance troublesome and unpleasant to us Hence it was good Advice which was given by Aristotle namely that we should not greatly multiply Friends because their frequent falling into Miseries and Misfortunes would imbitter our Lives and make our Condition wretched and miserable But in Heaven we are told to our Comfort that we shall converse with the Spirits of just men made Perfect The Saints in Heaven will have no infirmities no imperfections to abate and allay the solaces of their Conversation But on the other hand they will have all those Excellencies and Advantages which are requisite to make their Company Sweet and Desirable and how great must this Happiness needs be When Christs Disciples at the Transfiguration enjoyed the Company only of Moses and Elias they were so well satisfied with it that they cried out bonum est nobis esse hic it is good for us to be here How much greater will their Happiness be who shall be with Christ in Paradise For they cannot be with him but they must be with all his Saints As soon as this Penitent Thief entred the gates of Heaven he was joyfully received with all the Honourable Companies and Troops above There did the Patriarch meet him the Prophets hug'd him and the Martys struck up their Harps and bid him welcome to the Celestial Regions such joy as this did enter his Soul when he did enter into the joy of his Master But 2ly To be with Christ is not only to be with all the Saints but also with all the Angels of Heaven St. Paul tells us Heb. 12. 22. That when we come to the Heavenly Ierusalem we shall come to an innumerable Company of Angels How great must the pleasure be of being acquainted with such Glorious Creatures How great the Happiness of hearing their ravishing Musick The Seraphims and Cherubims are continually Blessing and Praising God and their Heavenly Harmony consists of ten thousand times ten thousand various Voices So we read Rev. 5. 11. I heard saith St. Iohn the Voice of many Angels round about the Throne and the number of them was ten thousand times ten Thousand yea even thousands of thousands This is the true Musick of the Sphears and it will certainly be most ravishing since it is performed by such vast numbers of such Glorious Choristers This is the great Happiness of the Godly in Heaven they shall live with the General Assembly of the First-born and with an innumerable company of Angels crying out continually with them Thou art worthy O Lord to receive Honour and Glory and Power But this is not all for the Godly shall not only be with Christs Saints and Angels But 3ly They shall be with Christ himself Now the Godly in Heaven shall be with Christ. First In respect of his Humility Secondly In respect of his Divinity First The Godly shall be with Christ in respect of his Humility This day saith Christ shalt thou be with me As soon as Christ's Soul was separated from his Body it went to Heaven and the poor Thiefs went along with it But the Godly that die now they see not only the Soul but also the Body of Christ. Hence St. Paul describing the Happiness of the Godly in Heaven tells us That they shall come to Iesus the Mediator of the New Covenant Now Christ as Mediator was Man as well as God And it will be part of our Happiness to be with him as Man It was one of St. Austins three wishes that he might see Christ in the Flesh But in Heaven we shall not only see Christs Body but we shall see all that Glory God has bestowed upon it there To this purpose is our Saviours Prayer John 17. 24. Father I will that they also whom thou hast given me may be with me where I am that they may behold my Glory which thou hast given me How great will our Happiness be when we shall behold all Christs Glory When we shall see him sitting at the Right Hand of Power highly exalted above every Name yea even above the most Glorious Cherubims and Seraphims And this Glory of Christ will rejoyce us the more because our Nature is Glorified in him As a Queen that sees the Prince in his Glory delights the more in it because she looks upon it as her own So when the Church Triumphant shall see Christ her Husband in all his Glory she will rejoyce in it because it is her own Glory Who can express this part of our Happiness Blessed are the Eyes saith Christ which see those things that you see here If it were such a blessed thing to see Christ in his state of Humiliation How great will that Blessedness be when we shall see him in his State of Glory and Exaltation It will be the business of God's Saints in Heaven
the Patriarchs Prophets Apostles Saints and Martyrs and therefore our Saviour says expresly Luke 13. 28. That the Godly hereafter shall see Abraham Isaac and Jacob in the Kingdom of God Thus we shall see and know all the Blessed Inhabitants of Heaven Nor shall we only know them but we shall have sweet Converse and Communion with them To this purpose is that Matt. 8. 11. Many shall come from the East and from the West and shall sit down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the Kingdom of Heaven Sit down that is as the Original imports they shall feast with them And this sure does not only denote their mutual Knowledge each of other but also the highest Caresses of Love and Friendship such as this Metaphor of feasting is used in Scripture to denote And this sure cannot but mightily inhance the Happiness of Paradise David accounted the Saints of God the most excellent Persons here upon Earth and delighted in nothing so much as in their Society But in Heaven they shall be made perfect there they shall be freed from all those Human Infirmities and Imperfections which use to allay the solaces of their Conversation Yea on the contray they shall be adorned with all those Excellencies and Advantages which are requisite to make their Society most pleasant and desirable And indeed we find the Disciples at the Transfiguration were so satisfied with the Company of Moses and Elias two of these Glorious Inhabitants of Heaven that they presently cry out it is good for us to be here and would have built Tabernacles and have been content to have taken their rest on this side of Heaven How much greater will their Happiness be who shall enjoy the most ravishing Society of all the Blessed Inhabitants of Heaven But 2. We shall not only enjoy the Society of Saints but of Angels too So I have shewn you already from Heb. 12. 22. where it is said We shall come to an innumerable Company of Angels Angels are far more glorious Creatures than the Saints and therefore the enjoyment of them must needs be a farther addition to our happiness 3dly We shall also in Paradise be with Christ in respect of his Humanity To day shalt thou be with me in Paradise With me whom thou now seest hanging on the Cross. It was one of St. Austin's three famous Wishes to see Christ in the Body but it shall be our happiness in Paradise not barely to see Christ's Body but also to see that Glory God has adorn'd it with there To this purpose is that Prayer of our Saviour Ioh. 17. 24. Father I will that they also whom thou hast given me be with me where I am that they may behold my Glory which thou hast given me We shall there see Christ sitting on the Right hand of Power highly exalted above Seraphims and Cherubims and the sight of all this Glory will rejoyce us the more because our Human Nature is glorified in him 4thly The Godly by being with Christ in Paradise shall also be with God himself St. Paul therefore giving a full Catalogue of that glorious Company we shall enjoy in Heaven tells us Heb. 12. 22 23. that we shall not only come to the General Assembly of the First-born and to an innumerable Company of Angels and to Iesus the Mediatour of the New-Covenant but he adds to God the Iudge of all To enjoy the Company of Saints Angels and Christ as Man is Happiness great beyond our utmost Imagination But yet they are but as little Drops if compared to that Ocean of Bliss which will flow into the Soul upon the enjoyment of God himself It was a Noble Saying of Luthers That he had rather be in Hell with Gods presence than in Heaven without it Now if this Presence of God be able to convert even Hell it self into a kind of Heaven the enjoyment of this must certainly make Heaven become what it is styled in Scripture an Heaven of Heavens This therefore is the Flower of our Joy the Crown of Blessedness and the very Soul of Heaven For whilst we enjoy God we must needs enjoy all things All that is good did at first flow from him and is therefore certainly more eminently to be found in Him as in its Fountain and Original All that can delight our Souls or ravish our Hearts all that is lovely and desirable are here to be found in their greatest perfections Well then might the Psalmist say Psal. 16. 11. In thy presence O God there is fulness of Ioy and at thy right hand there are Pleasures for evermore But because this will be the Quintessence of our happiness in Heaven we will enquire wherein it will consist But 1. Give me leave to premise this Caution That in this Vale of Misery we cannot fully understand those Joys which God has prepared for us in Heaven They are such saith St. Paul as Eye hath not seen nor Ear heard neither hath it entred into the heart of Man to conceive You 'l find also St. Iohn speaking the same Truth 1. Ioh. 3. 2. Beloved now are we the Sons of God and it doth not yet appear what we shall be but we know that when he shall appear we shall be like him As God gave Moses the sight of the Land of Canaan only from Mount Nebo so he gives us a prospect of the Heavenly but it is at a distance So that we do not fully here understand the greatness of our happiness and it is some honour and advantage to it that it is so great as that we cannot fully comprehend it But so far as God in Scripture has revealed the happiness of Paradise to us it will chiefly consist in these two Observations 1st A clear and perfect Knowledge of God and his Infinite Perfections 2dly In the enjoyment of him to all Eternity 1st Our happiness in Paradise will chiefly consist in a clear and perfect Knowledge of God and his Infinite Perfections Knowledge was the fairest Fruit that ever grew in the Earthly Paradise and we cannot imagin the Paradise above should be compleat and perfect without it Knowledge is so sweet and pleasant to the Soul that the Roman Oratour calls it Naturale Animâ— pabulum the most grateful and palatable Food of the Soul It is dearer to us saith Aristotle than our Eyes which are usually wasted and worn away in pursuits after it Now as Knowledge in the general is thus sweet and pleasant to the Soul so the nobler the Objects are which we know the sweeter and more pleasant must the Knowledge be Now there can be no Object so noble and excellent as Almighty God He is Infinite in Perfections and therefore to have a clear and perfect Knowledge of his Infinite and Divine Perfections must needs make a considerable part of our future happiness Now it is plain from Scripture that we shall have a clear and perfect knowledge of God in Heaven Here it is that as the Prophet Esay speaks we
Saviour is to have a bright shining Cloud for his Throne and is said accordingly in the Text to Come in the Clouds of Heaven To the same purpose is what we read 1 Thess. 4. 17. where we are told that the Righteous shall be caught up in the Clouds and meet the Lord in the Air And indeed the Air is a most proper place for our Saviour to keep his great Assizes For being here advanced some distance above the Earth he will more easily be seen by all the Inhabitants of it Nay farther yet this is now the Seat of the Devils Empire Satan we know is called the Prince of the Air and the Infernal Fiends are styled Spiritual Wickednesses in high places Here therefore will the Son of Man fix his Judgment Seat here he will place his Throne That all the World may know that he has now spoiled Principalities and Powers and got a compleat and perfect Victory over these his malicious Enemies Then is the time when he will trample Satan under his Feet and put a full Period to that Tyranny which he has exercised so long over the Sons of Men. Secondly We may infer from hence what deep Impressions such Doctrins as these ought to make upon us The News of our Saviours coming to Judgment with all this Glory should cause us to take the greatest Care imaginable to fit and prepare our selves to meet him at this great Day We have a remarkable Instance to this purpose in Ecclesiastical History which is attested by many and great Authors It seems about Four hundred years after our Saviours Ascension one Gregentius a Bishop endeavour'd the Conversion of those Iews which liv'd in Arabia Felix after a tedious Disputation of three days continuance some of the Iews desired the Bishop to shew them Jesus alive and it would convince them Immediately upon this the Earth began to tremble and the Sky to shine and eccho with Lightnings and Thunder After these ceased the Gates of the Celestial Palace open'd and a bright serene Cloud appear'd darting forth Beams of an extraordinary lustre At last our Blessed Saviour shewed himself walking on this bright Cloud and a Voice was heard from this Excellent Glory saying I am he who was Crucified by your Fathers This glorious Appearance cast all the Iews prostrate on the ground and beating their Breasts they cried with a loud Voice Lord have mercy on us and afterwards were Baptized into the Faith of Christ. A like account we have of the Conversion of St. Paul Act. 9. 3 c. where we read that as he journied towards Damascus breathing forth nothing but Rage and Malice against Christians suddenly there shined round about him a Light from Heaven and he heard a Voice saying unto him Saul Saul why persecutest thou me Upon which he trembling and astonished said Lord what wilt thou have me to do Such effects as these are the Natural Attendants of such great and glorious Appearances as these And ought they not to have the same influence upon us What tho' they are not made to the Eye of our Sense yet in Scripture they are made to the Eye of our Faith If we are sincere Christians and do heartily believe the Gospel we have no more reason to doubt of this Coming of our Saviour with great power and glory than if we were actual Spectators of it Let us therefore bethink our selves what manner of persons we ought to be in all holy and godly Conversation If we were certain this great Day were near at hand I am confident we would walk more circumspectly not as fools but as wise We would then soon be perswaded to break off our League with Sin and endeavour by a sincere and speedy Repentance to make a firm Peace with our God and Saviour I shall not pretend to tell you the precise time of this Day of Judgment but this I can assure you that several Learned and Pious Divines who have lately enquired into the Scripture Prophesies with great accuracy and diligence do tell us that this great Day is even at the door and that we may expect this glorious Appearance of the Son of Man in a very short time But tho' they should be mistaken in their Conjectures yet this is most certain that it will come at last and that the time of our Life which is all the time we have to prepare for it is exceeding short Let us therefore beseech Almighty God that we all may be found such wise and faithful Servants as are described v. 46. then shall we with joy meet our Saviour in the Air and make a part of his glorious Train when he returns to the highest Heaven giving as is most due all Honour and Glory unto him that sitteth on the Throne and unto the Lamb for evermore Let us therefore beseech Almighty God to give us Grace so to redeem our time that we may be found in the number of his wise and faithful Servants then shall we at the Day of Iudgment meet our Saviour in the Air and return with him to the Highest Heavens singing Praises and Hallelujahs unto him that sits upon the Throne and to the Lamb for evermore Amen Amen SERMON XI Prov. xvi 9. A mans heart deviseth his way but the Lord directeth his steps WHat great Esteem and Veneration the Ancient World entertain'd of Proverbs may easily be learned from the Writings of Aristotle He tells in his Rhetorick that they always allowed them the next place to Oracles And in other parts of his Writings he gives them the noble Epithet of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as if they were the very Extract and Quintessence of Refined Wisdom The Divine Solomon sets them yet higher and thinks them worthy to be placed in the very Throne for Prov. 86. he styles them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which tho' our Translation renders only Excellent words Gejerus and other Learned Criticks translate them more agreeably to the Hebrew Princes of Words Intimating thus much to us That these Divine Sentences which are called Proverbs excel as much other Schemes of Speech as Kings and Princes do their ordinary Subjects But tho' Proverbs in the general have so much of Majesty in them and have always challenged a particular veneration from the Sons of Men Yet the Proverbs of Holy Writ are farther commended to us from the very Inscription and Title Page of the Book It is a known Observation of Learned Men that neither the Books of Moses Ioshua nor other Pen-men of Sacred Writ are recommended to the World by the Name of the Author till we come to this Book of Proverbs as if the Holy Ghost had designed some extraordinary advantage to this Heavenly Book when in the very Front of it was prefix'd the most August Name of Solomon Son of David King of Israel and we may be sure the Queen of the South will rise up in Judgment against us at the last Day if we do not give our best Attention to these