Lord is pleased to condescend to our weakness to express his especial presence with his Church and therefore it is good to be with them these are the expressions of it But wherein does the presence of God with his people appear more then with other people In these two things especially First because there God makes himself known reveals himself there and makes his beauty to appear Psal 27. 4. One thing have I desired of the Lord that I will seek after that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord and to enquire in his Temple It is the glory of Heaven to see God in his beauty and this is one of the greatest promises of God to his Church that they shall see the King in his majesty We may see some glimmering light of God in the Heavens Sun Moon and Stars but in the Church there God shews his beauty there we may see the face of God and this is that which Moses did desire Lord-shew me thy glory It is much granted to us in the Church in enjoying his Ordinances and there is no way to see Gods face so clearly as this way Every childe of God that is in the Temple shall speak of Gods glory for they see God in his glory in a special maner Secondly the especial presence of God with his people is especially manifested in that he communicates to his people as namely First the choice mercies of God are communicated to his people If you would have any share in Gods choice mercies his peculiar mercies come amongst Gods people joyn with them as that place is observable in Psal 134. 3. The Lord that made Heaven and earth bless thee out of Sion He does not say the Lord that made Heaven and Earth bless thee out of Heaven and Earth but the Lord that made Heaven and Earth bless thee out of Sion as if he should say The blessings that come out of Sion are the choice blessings and the peculiar mercies of God even above any that come out of Heaven and Earth Secondly God communicates his mercies more fully then any where else Isa 25. 6. And in this mountain that is in the Church I will make a feast of fat things a feast of wines on the lees of fat things full of marrow c. and Psal 36. 8. They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures In a private way there may be some drops of pleasure from God but there is not that full communication from God as with his people in his Ordinances there is in the world in the creature drops in private communion there are ponds but in a pulique Church-communion there are rivers of pleasure and that is the height of all Thirdly God communicates his mercies more powerfully in the Church then any where else Psal 133. 3. For there the Lord commanded the blessing even life for evermore God did not onely speak and said there should be a blessing but spake in a commanding way There Where is that There in the Church amongst his people there God commanded the blessing even life for evermore Lastly God blesseth more universally with all kinde of blessing and therefore he is more present there and in that respect the Psalmist says Psalm 87. 7. All my springs are in thee This whole Psalm is to set out the excellent condition of the Church and he concludes the Psalm with this All my springs are in thee Now this expression is very emphatical Spring is taken two or three ways in Scripture The Law of God the Doctrine of Gods Law is compared to a spring and heavenly knowledge is compared to a spring and then it is thus All my springs All the truths I have all the knowledge I come to be made partaker of are all in the Church Again All my springs all the comforts of my heart and that good and joy my spirit receives and all the graces of the Spirit that I have and all the quickning and strengthning I have is communicated to me this way And upon this ground the Church is called the very perfection of all beauty Psal 50. 2. Out of Zion the perfection of all beauty God hath shined Out of Zion there is his glory wonderfully apparent The word that is translated the perfection of beauty is translated by some the universality of beauty all kinde of beauty all kinde of excellency as if the Psalmist should say Put all excellencies together that possibly you can imagine to make a thing comely and lovely they are all in the Church Thus you see it is good being with Gods people when as God is thus present with them in a special maner Eighthly it is good being with Gods people because there is Gods special protection others are but as the wilderness the Church is as a garden enclosed Cant. 4. 12. A man regards his garden that he hath enclosed and bestowed cost about more then a wilde field the fields have hedges to keep out the beasts but gardens have brick wals or wood walls Isa 27. 3. I the Lord do keep it I will water it every moment lest any hurt it I will keep it night and day How full is this his care over it is such as he threatens those which shall but touch it Jer. 12. 14. to pluck them out of their land Zach. 2. 5. God promiseth he will be a wall of fire round about his people alluding to the custom of travellers in the wilderness who used to make fires round about them in the night for their safety because then none of the wilde beasts durst come near them such a defence is God to his people There is nothing in the Book of God wherein God is so full in his expression as when he comes to this argument to manifest his affection to his Church Christ is the Shepherd and when sheep are together they are under the protection of the Shepherd when the sheep are scattered the Shepherds eye is not so over them And therefore in Hosea 4. 16. God threatens his people he would feed them as a Lamb in a large place as a Lamb getting from the fold goes up and down bleating so when Gods people are scattered they are as a Lamb in a large place and when God would threaten the sorest judgement against his people Ezekiel 34. he says He will scatter them and they shall become to be meat to the beasts of the field And hence it is that the condition of the Church is so stable a condition and therefore in Isaiah 60. 15. the Church is called an eternal excellency because it is under the Lords protection and is it not good being there to be under the wing of God Ninthly to be amongst Gods people is a blessed thing because they have so many
and so the melodious sound to the ear first we are ravished with it but when we are used to it it is nothing and so for the taste the taste of sweet things is mightily pleasant to us at first but afterward it is no more pleasing to us then the taste of ordinary mean fare is to poor people who have as much content in their mean fare as rich men in their delicious fare because rich men are used to such delicious things but this is the excellency of Gods maner of communication of himself to his people hereafter they shall be to all eternity as exactly and fully sensible of the glory of heaven as they were in the first moment they came into it The sixth difference between Gods communication of himself to us here and hereafter is here we have much good from God but much good is in the habits and is not always in action there are many habits of grace that are not always acting fully but sometime the act of one habit is called forth and sometime the act of another but here is the blessedness of Gods people there shall be no habits lying still no instant but every minute to all eternity they shall act to the utmost of them so far as may any way conduce to their happiness for the end of the habit it is action and in the enjoyment of our happiness we shall ever be enjoying to the full the highest and last ends and therefore there shall always be the utmost activity of the habits of grace There is a necessity here of cessation of actions because we grow weary quickly of any action though it be a gracious action we must unstring our bows and cease that some actions may give way to others for the heart to be always up it is not able to bear it but then there shall be no need of any cessation any moment Again here we are not able to exercise our selves in the works of God without some difficulty there is difficulty in raising our hearts unto any thing that is good and to keep our hearts up but hereafter there shall be that communication of God unto his people that they shall be exercised about the highest things in the highest maner without any difficulty but as freely and readily and fully as the Sun shines the Sun does shine without any difficulty and the fish draws in water without difficulty so there shall be that perfect working of the soul about the highest object without any difficulty or labor Again here in this world there cannot be an intention in one faculty but it does hinder the intention in another as if man speak to me and I be intent in looking upon an object I do not hear him that speaketh and so in all faculties the intention of one faculty does hinder the intention of another but in Heaven all the faculties of the soul shall be intens'd to the highest intention and the intention of the one shall not hinder the intention of the other Again the good we receive here is in the root in the promise in election in great part but that we shall have hereafter shall be in the fruit in the actual communication of God as before all our actings shall be acted upon God so all the good shall not be contained in the root of his electing love or in the promise but shall be in actual communication Again here we receive many mercies from God that we do not understand our selves that we know but little of we do not see into the large extent of the mercy that we have from God but there we shall have no mercy from God but we shall know it fully in all the circumstances of it in all the principles of it and in all the appertainances that do any way concern the mercy we have and we shall know the issue of it and the like Again here we receive great mercies from God and we know not how to manage them Gods mercies lie and sowre in us we turn our mercies many times into afflictions for want of skill but hereafter we shall have the full improvement of all mercy that we receive from God Again here we see and desire many good things that we do not enjoy and possess but hereafter we shall see no good nor desire any good nor will any good but we shall have it And as God said concerning the Land of Canaan unto the children of Israel in Deut. 11. 24. Every place whereon the soles of your feet shall tread shall be yours so in heaven whatsoever the Saints see they shall have Here we may will a thing and will it lawfully and yet it may be cross unto Gods secret will and it shall never come to pass the reason is because the rule of our wills is Gods Commandment and not his secret will as David did will to build God a house and God commends him for it and yet God did not will it And a childe may will the life of his parent and yet God may will his parent shall not live and yet he is not to be blamed because he wills according to the rule but hereafter God shall so far reveal his will to us and our wills shall be so fully united to God that there shall not be the least crossing between any thing that we will and that God wills Again here it is one especial excellency of the work of grace for us to keep in our hearts and affections to restrain them that they be not let out too far in that we do enjoy but hereafter when we come to the recompence of reward we shall not need keep in our hearts we shall have liberty to let them out Object But we may not let out our hearts too much upon the Saints to love them above God Ans Then we shall love nothing but in God all shall be swallowed up in God himself that we shal not need fear the letting out of our hearts to the utmost Though I may love the creature yet I may let out my heart fully upon it because I love it onely in God Here many times a thing is more prized before we have it and when we come to enjoy it we do not see so much excellency upon it and so do less prize it but though we may set a prize upon Heaven and say O the blessed time when we come there we shall infinitely more prize it and rejoyce in it then we can here Yet further here we can enjoy nothing that we can be so certain of but that we can lose it wholly or in some part but the Saints of God hereafter shall be so certain of that they have in enjoyment that they shall not lose any thing of it in the least degree Lastly that we have from God here is mediately conveyed through many Channels through the Pipes of Creatures and Ordinances but that we shall have hereafter shall be
Thirdly the presence of God in heaven shall be the accomplishing of all that sweet and good that ever they have had in Gods presence in this world they have had by pieces many sweet manifestations of God unto them but often God hath been absent and they have been fain to seek for their Beloved but now all those pieces as we may so speak which they have had some at one time and some at another shall be all joyned together and they shall have the accomplishment of all in one and the perfection of all in one and so for ever enjoy it Fourthly the presence of God must needs fill their souls and bodies with glory for it fills the heaven with glory much more it must needs fill an immortal soul with glory because that is more capable of glory then the heaven If the Sun can put a glory upon these poor dark creatures here below much more can the presence of God put glory upon the glorified bodies and souls of the Saints Further the presence of God must needs be very glorious unto the souls of the Saints in regard of the maner of the bringing into Gods presence for they shall be brought into it by the hand of Christ the Bridegroom he shall as it were take the Saints by the hand and lead them to the Father he shall say Come now I will shew you my Father that I have spoken so much of to you before to that end that the Father may delight in you As suppose the Prince were married to one and upon their marriage he takes his Spouse by the hand to lead her unto his father to that end his father may take notice of her and manifest respect unto her so this coming into the presence of God shall be by the hand of Christ There is a glorious leading of our souls into the presence of God in this world Eph. 3. 12. In whom we have boldness and access the word signifies A leading by the hand and in Canticles 1. 4. it is said of Christ That he brings the Spouse into the Chambers He brings the Church the souls of his people into the Presence-Chamber and that makes the presence of God sweet unto the Church but hereafter there shall be a more glorious leading of the Saints unto God by Christ how much more shall the presence of God be sweet unto them then Sixthly what a blessed security must there needs be to the souls of the Saints in the presence of God To be under the shadow of the Almighty is a secure condition to be hid in the secrets of Gods presence is a secure condition but to be in the glorious presence of the Almighty as it shall be in heaven O the happy security then A childe when it is gotten into the presence of his father or mother thinks it self safe the Saints then that shall always be in the presence of God must needs be in an happy security Lastly hence will follow an holy boldness the Saints of God shall stand in the presence of God with an holy boldness they shall have nothing whereof they shall be ashamed though the light of God shall shine most gloriously upon them yet it shall not discover any thing in them that shall cause any shame or fear in them It is the promise of God to the diligent They shall stand before Kings Those that are now diligent in making their calling and election sure in providing for their eternal estate this is the blessing of them they shal stand before the King of glory before the King of heaven with an holy boldness And this is the first thing which the Saints shall have in having God to be their portion The presence of God CHAP. XLVI The happiness of the beatifical vision discovered SEcondly they shall have the Beatifical Vision of God we shall be where he is and we shall see his face Says Christ Father I will that those which thou hast given me be where I am that is a blessing but in Rev. 22. 4. it is said They shall see his face and that is more They shall know as they are known 1 Cor. 13. 12. It is the promise of the pure in heart that they shall see God 1 Iohn 3. 2. Behold now we are 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 for we shall see him as he is It is the happiness of the Angels that they behold the face of God so it shall be the happiness of the Saints to behold the face of God in heaven As for me I will behold thy face in righteousness I shall be satisfied when I awake with thy likeness Psal 17. 15. and so we may have the help of divers Scriptures to shew that this is the happiness of the Saints The glory of this may appear in these particulars First to see God as the first being of all or the principle of all good is a most blessed thing to see Adam the first father or Eve the first mother of mankinde or for a childe to see his father or mother out of whose loyns and bowels he came whom he hath not seen in many years this is a joy and comfort but to see the Creator the first Principle of all things that must be a great an infinite contentment and to see him that hath done all the good in the world hath much satisfaction in it We would rejoyce to see a man that hath been an instrument to do great things in some Countrey as the King of Sweden or the like but to see God that hath done all the great things in the world what a blessed joy and contentment will that be The rational creature does naturally desire to know the causes and principles of things no other creature looks at the principles and causes of things but the rational creature If other creatures may have that which is suitable to sense they look no farther but a rational creature cannot be satisfied in whatsoever it hath unless it knows something of the principles and causes of the thing it hath and when it knows the cause of one thing it would know the cause of that and nothing will quiet it till it comes to see the cause of all and when it comes to know that it hath full contentment Shew us the Father and it sufficeth Secondly they shall see God in his unity whereas now we understand God onely according to his several Attributes as the manifestation of the Infinite Simple First being in one way we call Power in another way we call Mercy and Bounty in another way Justice and so we apprehend God according unto the several Attributes that God hath manifested himself in whereas there are not many things in God but all those several Attributes that we apprehend diversly are but one excellency in God as one beam of the Sun
such a glorious reward such blessed things as these reserved for the people of God hence then let us dwell a little in admiring at the goodness of God at the infinite treasures of the riches of the glory of the grace of God towards the children of men Certainly Brethren great are the thoughts of God towards mankinde wonderful are his ways to this poor creature of his What is man says the Psalmist nay what is man indeed when as we consider what God hath done for him In Rom. 8. 31. after the Apostle had spoke of glorification and of the blessed estate of Gods people hereafter says the Apostle What shall we say to these things So seeing these things are so that are revealed What shall we say to these things O the heighth and length and depth and breadth of the loving kindeness of the Lord how unsearchable are his judgements shall we say How unsearchable are his mercies and his mercies past finding out O how great is thy goodness which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee which thou hast wrought before the sons of men Psal 31. 19. If ever God wrought about any thing it was about the communication of his goodness to mankinde yea how great is it before the sons of men before us that have but a little made known to us How great is it before Angels then and before God himself In Psal 113. 6. it is said God humbleth to behold things that are done in heaven It is much that God should vouchsafe to behold any thing in heaven but now that God should vouchsafe to behold such a poor wretched creature as man is here upon earth and not to behold him onely but to work thus gloriously for him and that from all eternity to make it his great work to communicate himself to man O how does God humble himself here and how is his mercy and goodness to be admired and adored by the sons of men God is to be praised for the least of his mercies here but he is to be admired in the glory of his rich grace in heaven We read Psal 136. God is praised twenty five times for his mercies but the conclusion of all is Praise the God of Heaven for his mercies endure for ever his mercies as he is the God of heaven they are the glorious mercies indeed When the Scripture would set forth the excellency of a thing it expresseth it by heaven as the excellency of Christ He is the Lord from heaven 1 Cor. 15. 47. The excellency of God the God of heaven Jonah 1. 9. It is made the top of Christs glory that he is made higher then the heavens Heb. 7. 26. When Christ would shew the excellency of the bread of life he says It is bread from heaven the excellency of spiritual blessings is set out in this that they are blessings in heavenly places Eph. 1. Because gold is the most precious mettal therefore we lay it over other things not onely wood and cloth but silver it self so because heaven is so excellent the Lord gilds as it were his choicest blessings with this adjunct and all to shew the wonderful excellency there is in heaven it self Brethren God hath therefore revealed these things to us to that end that the glory of his grace might be great in the world God would have us have high and honorable and glorious thoughts of his goodness God would have the high praises of his grace to be in the hearts and in the mouthes of his Saints it is a great evil to have low and mean apprehensions of the glorious grace of God to mankinde you do not know what dishonor you bring to God in it If your hearts be not raised on high and enlarged in the thoughts of the free and glorious grace of God to mankinde it is an exceeding dishonor to him To see the riches of Gods glorious grace to the children of men it is a mighty work of faith and such a work as the soul is enabled to do onely by a mighty and glorious work of the holy Ghost in it indeed there is in the world a base and poor and mean apprehension of the grace of God in Christ such as does not work at all to raise and enlarge and glorifie the heart of a man but the true sight of the riches of Gods glorious grace it hath a mighty power to raise and enlarge and glorifie the hearts of the children of men while they are here as mark the expressions of the Apostle in his Prayer for the Ephesians 1 Ephes 17. 18. That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ the Father of glory may give unto you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him The eyes of your understanding being enlightned that ye may know what is the hope of his calling and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the Saints not the inheritance of the Saints but the inheritance in the Saints and the glory of the inheritance and the riches of the glory and they must not onely have understanding to know this but the eyes of their understanding must be enlightened and this must come from the knowledge of Christ from the Spirit of wisdom and Revelation and from the Father of glory the God of our Lord Jesus Christ The sight of the excellency and riches of Gods grace here it is that that is the work of God shining into the heart 2 Cor. 4. 6. For God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness hath shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ The unsearchable truths of the Gospel are in that which hath been revealed so far as we are able to wade into them The sight of Gods rich glory is that which the Princes of the world have not known it is that which requires a work of the Spirit of God Of that Spirit which searcheth the deep things of God O brethren if you had a true spiritual sight of the richness of the goodness of God in the way of his communication of happiness and glory to the children of men then you see into the great design of God into the deep counsels of his wisdom then God hath laid open his heart unto you God hath brought you into the treasures of his riches and given you a view of them the very secrets of Gods soul are imparted to you and blessed are your eyes that have seen these things if the sight of Gods glory in his grace towards mankinde be seen in true beauty and height and glory indeed there is no fear that they should do hurt to any soul it is true the apprehension of the grace of God in a natural way is the cause of security or presumption in many but there was never any in the world that was furthered in a way of security and presumption upon the spiritual sight and view they