The Excellency of the Gospel Above the Law, Treatise · Part 19
From glory to glory.
Grace is glory in regard of the state before,The least degree of grace glory in respect of the state of nature. the least degree of grace is glory in regard of the state of nature; but grace is not glory properly till it come to a growth, grace is not glorious so in comparison to other Christians, that are growne, in regard of the state of nature, grace is glory take it in the lowest, for is not this a glory for a man to be taken into the fellowship of Christ? to be the Sonne of God, and an heire of heaven, to have Angels for his attendants, to be begotten by the glorious Gospell, the Word of God that imortall seede, whatsoever thing is about a Christian it is glorious, is not he glorious that hath God the Father, and God the Son the Lord of glory, and the holy Ghost the Spirit of glory, and the glorious Gospell, and glorious Angels for his attendants? every thing is glorious in a Christian, in every Christian there is this, so grace is a kinde of glory, but notwithstanding wee must not content our selves with that, grace is then especially glory when it comes to growth, we must labour that grace may appeare, what is glory? properly glory is excellency, and victory over the contrary with manifestation, excellency manifested; Now a man is sayd to bee glorious in grace, when his grace comes to be excellent in view, and victorious over the contrary with publick manifestation.
Vse. 1 Now this we ought to labour for, though grace be glory in respect of the former estate,To labour for strength of grace. yet in the ranke of Christians, wee ought to be glorious, that is, more and more gracious, both
In regard of God,Priviledges of growth in grace. that God may have the more glory from us, the more grace, the more esteeme from him, because we resemble him,
And in regard of Christ Iesus, the more glorious we are, the more wee resemble him. Let us labour to be more and more glorious, in regard likewise of the Church, whom we shall benefit more, the more we grow in grace, the more we shall prevaile with God by our prayers, who prevayled more with their prayers than Moses, and such men? Againe when grace is glorious, that is, with victory and full manifestation, the more we are fit to give a luster, and light, that others seeing it may glorifie God, to draw others to the love of grace, when they see grace glorious; now grace is then glorious in us, that others may be incouraged, when wee can resist strong temptations, when we are not like children carried away with the winde of every doctrine, this is a glorious thing, when a Christian can hold his owne in the worst times, when it is a witty thing to be a Christian, as Hillary sayd in a time of schisme, it required a great deale of wit to be a Christian, it requires a great deale of wit and studdy, to hold a man on in Christianity.
And for a man to bee strong against temptations and the world whether it frowne or fawne, that hee cares for neither, but holds his owne, is not this a glorious thing? when a man shall carry himselfe as a Lyon, breake through oppositions in ill times, and fall square, cast him as you will, in all conditions, here is a glorious Christian, therefore though grace be glory, that must not content us, but wee must labour to have such a measure of glory as that we may be glorious in our owne ranke: is it not a glorious thing when a man can breake through doubts, and feares, that trouble other folke too much? as the sunne is sayd to be in glory when he is gotten on high, there are many clouds in the morning, but when the funne is gotten to his height at noone day hee scatters all, so a Christian is in his glory, and exaltation, when he can scatter doubts and feares and terrours, that trouble other weake, beginning Christians; therefore when we are troubled with scruples, with this, and that, we should labour to get out of them, that grace may be glorious, to shew that we have gotten such a light, and such a convincing knowledge, and that wee are so rooted in fa…th, and grace, that the Spirit of Christ in us, hath broken through all these clouds, and mists, and made us glorious.