The Godly Mans Journey to Heaven, Treatise 2 · Meditation 23
23. Man through sinne in Adam being made a foule puddle to Satan, to tyrannize in: through grace in Iesus Christ is made a faire palace to God to reigne in.
OH, ô my soule, when shall the eyes of men, hauing that blessed lanterne of Gods blessed word in their mother tongue presented before them, be enlightened to see that refreshing resolution, and singular consolation, offered to their eares by the 23. and 24. verses of the 3. of Genesis, compared with the 6. verse of the third to the Hebrewes? In the 23. and 24. verses of the 3. of Genesis, our blessed God is so iustly offended with Adam and Eue (infected, alas, through the manifest neglect, yea a vowed contempt of his word with sinne) that he will not suffer them so much as to lodge one night in that garden he planted richly for them, and graciously propined them with. Alwayes that 6. verse of the 3. to the Hebrewes tels me, ô my soule, that our God accounteth so much of man, being ingrafted in his blessed Sonne Iesus, and so through him hauing all his sinnes remitted, that he will hauehave man not onelyonly to hauehave an houfe, but to be a hou…e; but what an house, but to whom an house, will our God hauehave man in Christ to be, ô my soule? euen an house to his owne Maiestie, by his own good Spirit to dwell in. And wilt thou not reioyce when thou hearest and considerest this, ô my soule, sinfull Adam (before the Messiah is promised to him, by faith is griped by him) may not lodge so much as one houre in that earthly paradise wherin he lodged before? Alwayes Adam with his posteritie hauing this Messiah promised to him, by faith griped by them, must be a more glorious palace then euer that earthly paradise was, out of the which he, and in him, and with him, all his were cast, yea, he must be a palace no lesse glorious then that heauen of heauens is: for must not man ingrafted in Christ, be an house to receiue, and receiuing to keepe, and keeping to enioy that blessed Maiestie who hath his throne in the third heauens? But here I must aduise thee, ô my soule, (considering the subtiltie and strength of thy malicious aduersarie Satan) grauely to consider two things: first, vponupon what condition will thy holy God be content yt euen I (clogged, alas, with sinne) be an house to his Maiestie, clothed with vnspeakable, incomparable glorie: secondly, what is that I should endeuour my selfe to resemble, in respect of this more then high dignitie whereunto I am hereby aduanced. Hearken, ô my soule, to the Spirit, so shalt thou meet with that condition, whereupon my God will be content that I be an house to him, for be not these the Apostles words. For Christ is as the Sunne ouer his owne house, Hab. 3. 6.whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the reioycing of the hope vntounto the end. And so I must tell thee, ô my soule, if thou wouldst be an house to that onelyonly glorious King of kings Iesus; thou must alwayes be decked & trimmed with such tapistrie and furniture, as onelyonly is able to make such a Maiestie desire, yea, delight to come to thee, yea to dwell with thee, and in thee, that is with effectuall faith, patient hope, laborious louelove, and neuer wearying perseuerance and constancie. But how mayest thou know, ô my soule, that thou art thus deckt in any kinde of measure? Hearken, hearken vntounto that resolution giuen by Iohn: 1. Ioh. 3.Euerie man that hath this hope in him, purgeth himselfe euen as he is pure. Alwayes, euerie houre, in all places, trauelling to be more and more holy and iust, to the end that that holy & iust God may still dwell with him, yea in him. Beside this, if I would hauehave my selfe to be an house to my Lord and King Iesus on earth here: I must seriously studie to resemble that his house of glorie which is aboue. Now what is the nature of that holy house of thy God, ô my soule, the Spirit clearing this vntounto thee,Reuel. 21. 27. saith: There sball enter into it no vncleane thing, neither whatsoeuer worketh abhomination, and lies; but they which are written in the Lambes booke of life. Let me carrie my selfe herefore, ô my soule, in the feare of God so here, that I suffer nothing approch my bodie, or any member of my bodie, which is vncleane, and which is not recommended vntounto me by that cleane booke of the Lambe contained in holy Scripture, and that nothing enter within me, or come out of me, which may defile thee, ô my soule, or this my bodie: but that making Gods Booke a square to my affections, and a line to my life, I studie alwayes by the louelove and practise of holinesse, to keepe my holy God with me, and within me here, to the end that hereafter I may be kept with him, and by him in heauen for euer.