Exposition of Philippians 3, Part 51
VERS. 21. That wee may bee fashioned like unto his glorious bodie.
SO that Christ shall be the exemplary cause, as well as the efficient cause of our resurrection, for he is our head and our husband, and it is reason we should bee sutable to him, and be ruled by him, he came not to make himselfe like us, but us like him; he first must be a King, blessed and anointed, and a sonne, the head makes us like to him, Kings, blessed and glorious, and sonnes: Enoch and Elias, though before his reall incarnation, yet they ascended by vertue of his resurrection, and so shall we, they are glorious like to him, so shall wee in his good time and pleasure.Qu…st.
Answ.But how?
I answer, in these particulars:
First, as he is immortall never to die againe, so shall we, we shall bee freed from all sinne, and so consequently from all mortalitie.
Secondly, we shall be uncorruptible, wee shall have no corruption whithin us or without us; as it is 1 Cor. 15.53. We shall be embalmed with the spirit, that shall cause us to remaine for ever incorruptible.
Thirdly, we shall be unchangeable: alwayes the same, without sicknesse of bodie, or indisposednesse of minde.
Then in the fourth place, wee shall bee in perfect strength, here we contract to our selves weaknesse by every little thing, as alteration of …ire, study, and the like; there the body shall be inabled to every thing, but here we are weak unfit, and soone wearie of any dutie, soone tired in prayer, wearie of hearing, so as even Moses his armes must be supported.
Fifthly, we shall have beautie and comelinesse, the most lovely complexion and proportion of parts, there shall be no dregges in our body, all shall be spent by death, farre better than after Physicke, which notwithstanding brings the body into a quiet repose, all wants shall be supplyed, what is misplaced shall be reduced into right order: and therefore, what though we lose limbes for Christs …ake, he will not be indepted to us, none shall goe thither maimed.
But some will say,Obj. Christ himselfe retained wounds after his resurrection, and therefore much more shall we be imperfect.
I answer,Answ. this was a voluntarie dispensation, he suffered them to appeare for the faith of Thomas, not of necessitie.
Sixthly, these bodies of ours shall be spirituall, as it is 1 Cor. 15. a naturall bodie is upheld by naturall meanes, as meate, drinke, Physicke, but then shall there be no need of such things, Christ shall be al in all to us; and again, our body shal obey the spirit, now the body keeps the spirit in slavery, but thē shal it readily ye…ld to everie motion of the spirit. The Vbiquitaries when they speak of the spiritualitie of Christs body, they would have it in all places. But they may as well conclude, because wee shall have spirituall bodies, therefore our bodies also shall be in all places like to Christs bodie. The ground of the glorie of these our bodies, shall be the beatificall vision, and our union with Christ: if our beholding him here in his ordinances bee of such a power as to transforme us from glory to glory, 2 Cor. 3.18. What a change shall be wrought in us, when we shall see him as he is? and if his first comming had that power to make all things new (2 Cor. 5.17.) much more when hee commeth the second time in glory, shall he make all things new and glorious.
Vse. 1.This therefore in the first place, should incourage us, in all causes of dismay and trouble, rather than wee will offend God to lose our bodies, knowing that wee give them to God, and shall receive them againe with advantage.
Vse. 2.Secondly, labour wee to make our bodies instruments of his honour, that honours us, and let us honour our bodies wherein are the seeds of immortalitie, and glory in so using them, as that they bee carried to the grave with honour.
Vse. 3.Let us also honour the bodies of the deceased Saints of God, and the places of their sepulture: as Cabinets wherein the precions dust of the holy Saints are laid up in keeping.
Vse. 4.And let us not be like them without faith, that thinke the bodies are lost for ever, that are cast into the grave; like children that seeing the silver cast into the furnace, thinke it utterly cast away, till they see it come out againe a pure vessell. And when wee die, let us not trouble our mindes with the discomfortable thoughts of wormes,Vse: 5. rottennesse, darknesse, and the like; but with the eye of faith let us looke beyond these, on the haven whether wee are going, this made Iob though covered all over with ulcers, to say with a cheerfull heart, My redeemer liveth, Vse. 6.though after my skinne, wormes consume this flesh. If wee want limbes to our bodies, comfort our selves, the resurrection will restore all things.
Furthermore,Vse. 7. let us serve here with our best indeavours, it is but a while and it shall not be in vaine: is it not better thus to doe and partake of this blessed change, than to spare this vile body, and pamper it by sacrificing all, or to imploy all our time in the serving and pleasing others, and to that end not to care to prostitute our selves to all manner of filthinesse? what shall we get by these courses? but at the resurrection of the just when wee should lift up our heads because our redemption draweth nigh, then shall we be overcome with shame, griefe, terror, and horror of conscience. But happie are we therefore, if in a good course wee can so resigne up our selves, so as to bee resolute with Hester, If I perish I perish, if I live I live to Christ, if I die I die to him:: what I have committed to him, he will keepe I am assured thereof, and therefore I will not offend him for any pleasure or profit whatsoever: these resolutions had the Patriarches, and Gods Saints, and these made them die with comfort.