True Happiness, Section 4
SECTION IIII.
Of happinesse it selfe.
That I may dwell.
WE have heard the first three parts of this doctrine:And 1. Of our dwelling with God. That one thing; The Authour of it, Jehovah; The way to finde it, by prayer, and searching: Followeth the fourth, to wit, happinesse it selfe, expressed in a dwelling, or remaining, and that not every where, but in Gods house: Not for a short time, but all the dayes of his life: And for this end, to see the beautie of the Lord, and partake that happinesse, that God there offereth to the Saints: And because of our imperfection here, to be still inquiring more and more for happinesse.
The notion of dwelling or mansion, Happinesse is in our dwelling with God.expresseth happinesse well; because it is the end of the inclinations, intentions, and worke of all creatures: For the senselesse creatures incline to a rest in their places; the reasonable intend and labour for it, Christ calleth it the place of*Joh. 14. 2. our Mansions, the Apostle our *Heb. 13. 14.biding Citie, and S. John*Revel. 14. 13. A rest from our labours. God provided the earth, a dwelling place for the creatures; and a paradise in the midst of it, a dwelling place for man, and it was Cains punishment,Gen. 4. 12. that he found no rest, but was a vagabond. This dwelling we consider in peace and rest.
Peace with God, Peace with God is a great part of it.is the speciall part of our happinesse, and the first whereof we are sensible: For albeit we be in God from eternall, and his merciemercy secretly, (yet strongly) doth follow us from the womb in our adoption, baptismall regeneration, &c. yet we are never sensible of that happinesse, till our effectuall calling; wherein repenting our sinnes, we finde remission, and so peace with God:*Rom. 5. 1. Being justified by faith, we have peace with God; he is our chief good, and our union with him, maketh us happy. *Psal. 30. 5.In his favour is life, *Psal. 63. 3.yea it is better than life; and a separation from him, is our miserie; wee may flee from the anger of men,Phil. 4. 7. but whither can we flee from the anger of God?1. King. 19. 12. This is the peace that passeth all understanding, for even the mindes that have it, cannot expresse the sweetnesse of it: And God hath wisely so provided, that he shaketh the conscience with some feare and terrour, ere he powre this peace into it, and that not only as a fruit of our sin, but for two other ends: The one, to make the change more sensible to us: For if we be translated from nature to grace, without any griefe for sin, or feare of wrath, wee could not so well know our translating; but when wee are even now swallowed up in sorrow and feare: and repenting, and beleeving in Christ, feele our selves perswaded of remission: and the tormenting conscience turning a comforter, and the joyes of the spirit filling the heart in the sense of that peace, then wee are sensible of a change. The next cause is for proportion, that as the measure of our griefe is, so shall the measure of our peace and joy be; so that they who are most grieved at their conversion, afterward are usually acquainted with greatest joyes. What ever our condition be in the world, wee are but miserable without this peace, but what ever be our condition, wee are happie with it, and may say;*Psal. 32. 1. Blessed is the man, whose sinnes are forgiven him.
This peace of God hath two fruits: Peace with our selves,Peace with our selves. and with the creatures: Peace with our selves floweth from Gods peace. So soone as God is offended with our sinnes, and setteth us against him, as marks of his wrath:aPostquam posuisti me contrarium tibi, factus sum contrarius mihi. Bernard. 130. 2. Col. 2. Then wee are contrary to our selves, and revenge his quarell on us.
This is that holy*2. Cor. 7. 11. indignation, arising of the sorrow, according to God; when we seeke a sithment and revenge on our selves for angring him we take Gods part against our selfe, and eat up our owne heart, and make our flesh to pine away for his displeasure, and our*Psal. 39. 12. beautie to consume like a moth: But when he pardoneth us, and sealeth that pardon with his peace, then wee turne to peace with our selves: So long as we feele sinne, wee are as an house on fire;*Heb. 12. 29. God is a consuming fire: *Esay 33. 14.and who can dwell with devouring fire, and who can abide with everlasting burnings? The conscience terrified of God, doth terrifie us, and all the powers of the soul are in confusion: The spirit so wounded, woundeth the body in all the naturall powers; weake appetite, worse digestion, troubled sleepe, and an universall ineptnesse, both in soul and bodie to any good office: The flesh evanishing, the bones consuming, and the moisture turning in the drought of summer,Psal. 32. 4. Charbone Kaïtz siccitates aestatu. wherein the Prophet possibly alludeth to mount Horeb, which had the name from burning; the Law was given on it in fire and thunder, and every heart in some measure, must be shaken with the terrours of the Lord, that it may come to the peace of God. But the sight of a reconciled God in Christ, changeth all to the contrary; the testimonie of conscience is stronger in her judiciall acts, than in other: For when God is directing, informing, and simply proponing things, she hath but a weake testimonie, but when God judicially dealeth with us, accusing, reproving, and terrifying, her testimonie is strong; because the hand of God is powerfull in it; and therefore, there is no denying of her accusation, no shifting of her torture: On the other part, her comforting is as certaine, when shee assureth us of Gods pardon, because the hand of God is in her to comfort us, and in us, to be as sweetly comforted, as we were formerly grievously tormented.
The combat betwixt the flesh and the spirit seemeth to trouble this peace,The spirituall combat troubleth not our peace. and consequently our happinesse; but it doeth rather confirme, and increase it: For it is not a power of God pursuing us, but our owne corruption molesting us. The parties are flesh and spirit, nature and grace, the new and the old man: And though it be grievous that we have corruption either passively, to receave Sathans temptations by consent: or actively, of it selfe to breed the worke of sinne: Yet this is joyfull, that we have a partie within us against Sathan: And that not only a conscience or reason, or care of publick honestie, &c. which are in the wicked, but the new man, and the new spirit, assisted by the holy spirit. The Apostle finding that combat, cried out;*Rom. 7. 24. miserable man that I am, yet feeling the spirit a contrary party making resistance, thanked God in Christ for his deliverie; and though Rebecca was grieved,*Gen. 25. 22. to finde the two children strive in her belly; yet she was glad for having children. This spirituall combat, is a seal that we are at peace with God, and our selves, so long as wee abhorre our flesh, strive against, and *Habac. 1. 2.complaine to God of violence, and implore his helpe to his owne spirit against it.
Our peace with the creatures commeth not so neere to our happinesse:Peace with the creatures. God hath the fabrick of the world in his hand, as a mounter; so long as we please him, he maketh all creatures go in their order; but when wee offend him, he distempereth it that nothing goe right, till we returne to him by repentance, and then *Job 5. 23.he maketh the stone of the field at covenant with us. But we are to inquire of the peace of the reasonable creature. The good angels are ever at peace with us, for though sometimes God giveth them hard commissions of punishment against us, yet they love us still: The evill angels will never be at peace with us, but their warre is our peace: Better to have Sathan without us, than within us; and to have him tempting us to sinne, rather than tormenting us for sinne. If we were*Luc. 11. 21. his possession, he would not trouble us; but his tentation argueth that God hath*Job 1. 10. hedged us about, and we are free of his tyrannie: He troubleth none of his owne, but keepeth them in peace: A mastive dog barketh at none of the houshold, but at strangers; and Sathans tentations are not against his owne, but the Saints.
As for men,Peace with men. their peace is various: We should not looke for peace at the hand of the wicked, for wee are called out of the world, therefore the*Joh. 15. 19. world hateth us; Gen. 3. 19.and the old denounced warre betwixt the woman and the serpent, hath neither truce nor peace; therefore their injuries are our peace. But the wrongs wee receave from the godly are more grievous, for Gods grace in them coloureth their cause, and perplexeth our minde more, than the wrongs of the wicked: And Sathan craftily setteth the godly against the godly,Gen. 37. 4. as Jacobs sonnes against Joseph, and Davids brethren against him, &c.1. Sam. 17. 28. But though these things may trouble the peace of our body, yet they should not trouble the peace of our breast. The equitie of our cause; Our patience in suffering; No desire of revenge, but seeking occasions to do good to our injurers, and that neither of hypocrisie, nor policie, nor a naturall softnesse, but a conscience, and that because God commandeth it: Christ hath done so, and commandeth us to follow him. These worke greater peace than injuries can make trouble:Gen. 50. 19. Joseph rejoyced more in Gods grace, making him meek and beneficiall to his brethren, than in the outward power he had so to doe: In the second, he overcame them, but in the first, he overcame himselfe.
The second part of this habitation is Rest, Spirituall Rest, a part of happinesse. 1. Rest of Resolution.the most desireable end of our appetites, and that of resolution, refreshment, and securitie. The rest of Resolution, keepeth us at home with God: For when wee are searching what is happinesse, where, and how it is to be found, perplexitie holdeth us from home; but being resolved that all is in God, that as*Joh. 1. 41. Andrew said to Peter, We have found the Messias, so that we may say, We have found happinesse in God, we rest from these first perplexities. Our labours after that (though painfull) are sweet and pleasant, because they are about the chiefe good; yea we have not such rest in any thing, as when we are most busied about happinesse: These very labours are our rest, and we goe to bed most contentedly that night, when wee have spent the day most painfully with God about happinesse.
Next the Rest of refreshment, 2. Rest of refreshment.when God refresheth with his grace in that habitation. So the Church calleth to Christ;*Cant. 1. 7. Tell me where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noone. And David professeth; *Psal. 23. 2. 3.That God led him by the still waters, and made him lie downe in greene pastures. God hath provided convenient meanes for every life, and the spirituall as excellent in the actions, as in the kinde, is ever set on the grace of Christ, as the only convenient food. The body turneth food to the owne substance, but the food of our soule turneth us to its own nature. When the heat of the holy spirit boyleth and burneth up our earthly thoughts, and turneth them into heavenly. There is no dwelling like this, and it hath the owne convenient diet; the house of God hath its owne fat things, wherewith the godly are fed abundantly.
The third is the Rest of securitie: 3. Rest of securitie.For what availeth quiet and refreshment, if the next houre wee might lose them? This securitie is seene in Gods protection, and our conscience of it. God is like that loving sheepheard,*Ezech. 34. 16. guarding his sheepe from their owne wandrings, and the violence of the wolfe: And like the*Mat. 23. 37. Hen warming the birds shee hath brought forth: whom ever he loveth, he hath them all in his heart, and preserveth them *1. Pet. 1. 4.by his power to that immortall kingdome. He giveth us also the conscience of this securitie, when as wee know the certaintie of the matter in him, so wee finde the confidence of it in our selves. He hath promised to preserve*John 13. 1. us to the end; and when wee feele our selves to beleeve that promise, our confidence of security riseth. So the faithfull soule concludeth the owne securitie formally; *Ps. 91. 1, 2, 3.Who so dwelleth in the secret of the most high, shall abide in the shadow of the Almightie. Then from the conscience of faith it assumeth; I will say unto the Lord, O my hope, and my fortresse, he is my God, in him will I trust. Lastly, from both it inferreth that God would preserve it; Surely he will deliver thee, &c. But the committing of our selves to him cleareth it most,*2. Tim. 1. 12. I know whom I have beleeved, and am perswaded, that he will render to me, that I have committed to him. This is not so much life eternall, as our soule and body, which are every houre in hazard. Therefore when in the conscience of our weaknesse, and malice of our enemies, we take our soule and body, as things, which we can neither preserve from ignorance, nor rebellion, from sinne and fearefull accidents, &c. and lay them over in his hand to bee preserved to the last day, with expresse indenting for restitution; we cannot but be sensible of such a work, and confident both of his taking us in keeping, and of his restoring of us in the last day:Arrhae perditae damnum pateretur. Chrysost. hom. 1. 2. Col. If God brought us not to the possession of the inheritance, he would suffer the losse of the earnest.
This then is the power of true happinesse, that maugre all the miseries of this life, it provideth a peaceable habitation to us. Christ reigneth in the midst of his enemies *Psal. 110. 2.: and maketh all his owne to possesse happinesse in the mids of miseries. This is our heaven on earth, without which, it were better to dwell in hell, than in the world.
False religions know no settled dwelling,False religions teach no happinesse. but are ever restlesse: restlesse in intending, restlesse in working; and most in their fruitlesse end.Vera religio est via ad faelicitatem. Aug. ver. Rel. 1. The Pagans doctrine in this point may be found in three of their sentences. The first was, that in any miserie they should returne to the beginnings of nature. Fessa laborat. Aug. Mor. Ecc, cap. 7.This telleth they acknowledge no miserie in nature, but like the declining of a common-wealth,Ad prima naturae redeundum. for which there was sufficient remedy in nature to returne to the beginnings, as politicks doe in reforming their republicks: Our first naturals, are our worst naturals: Prima naturae pessima naturae.wee are conceaved*Psal. 51. 5. and borne in sinne, and except wee be borne againe *Joh. 3. 3.wee cannot enter into the kingdome of God.
Their next sentence was:Debet homo sibi reconciliari. That a man should be carefull to bee reconciled to himselfe: They acknowledged a discord, but placed it wrong: They knew no other, but the discord betweene their will and the conscience: Of their minde and heart: Of their reason and passion: Of their contrary affections, And extreames of vice; And most of their predominant sinne against all the rest. These vexed them sometimes with such anxietie, that it cut their life. But they knew nothing of the*Rom. 7. 23. Combat betwixt the flesh and the spirit, nor of the offence of God, in breaking his Law: And therefore they neither knew peace with God,Naturae convenienter vivere. nor themselves.
Thirdly, they affirmed, that it was mans happinesse, to live agreeably to nature: This was nothing, but to loose the raines to their fleshly lusts, that they might sinne with greedinesse, they found the check of conscience mar the pleasure of their sin, and where they should have reduced their humour to reason, they threw reason to humour, and of a grave counsellour, they turned it into a base flatterer, to applaud their greatest villanies. So their pretended conveniencie with nature was not only a discord with grace, but with nature it selfe, and that dedolencie or senselesnesse, whereof the Apostle speaketh,*Ephes. 4. 19. That they were past feeling.
Papists also prejudge themselves greatly of this dwelling,Papists will not reconcile with God. and that both in generall and particular. In generall: Their Church will not reconcile with God: When they were first challenged, they past two parts of their owne penance, contrition, and confession. For Hadrian. 6. professed his griefe for the abuses of the Church: And he confessed they began at Rome. He promised also reformation, (the third part of their penance,) but the world hath not seene it as yet: But contrary, that whorish Church in the councell of Trent hath damned divine truths with Anathems, and bound her selfe by oath to beleeve and maintaine their greatest heresies, and so hath sent word to God, that she will not returne to the husband of her youth.*Jer. 3. 4. It is time for us to speake for reconciling with Rome, when Rome hath reconciled her selfe to God.
In the particular they cut off their reconciliation,They stay this peace. for Scripture placeth it in the*Rom. 3. 25. bloud of Christ, but they take in the merits and satisfactions of men and Angels, which rather separateth, than reconcileth them to God. And this habitation, or rest of securitie, they know not, but chuse rather to dwell in the doubtings of their owne heart, than with God, in the assurance of his protection. Albeit they confesse that it isaTutissimum tamen est, &c. Bellar. surest to put all their trust in the merciemercy of God, and merit of Christ, and that because of the uncertaintie of their owne merit, and perill of vaine glorie; yet they will forsake that, that is most sure, and be tossed in their owne uncertainties, God raised up in the Councell of Trent one to plead openly for this truth, who affirmed,bHoc est sincerae pietatis—si homo ab inani propriae dignitatis confidentia abhorrens, omnino à Dei misericordia pendeat—nec unquam patiatur ex animo suo persu fionem illam excuti, &c. Ant. Marin. Concil. Trident. We should dwell in God. That this is sincere pietie, yea the ground of absolute obedience, if a man, abhorring from all vaine confidence of his owne worthinesse, depend wholly on the merciemercy of God,—And if he be perswaded that God is with him, as a mercifull Father, —and never suffer that perswasion to be shaken out of his minde.
Our dutie then is, to seeke this habitation in God, what ever be our lot in the world; forcNihil potest quietare voluntatem hominis nisi solus Deus. Th…m. 1. 2ae. 8. 12. 4. 3. nothing can quiet the will of man but God. He hath prepared us *Joh. 14. 2. Aug. de Ord. 1.Mansions: and to assure us thereof, hath promised to make us his mansions. If he dwell in us, assuredly wee dwell in him. One made frequent meditation in the night, a token of this dwelling, but Christ giveth us a surer: If any man love mee, *Joh. 14. 23.and keepe my Commandements, the Father and I will come and dwell with him. It is not his shadow will content us, nor his wings, nor his bosome, but his heart, where all our happinesse was bred: Wee will not be content with the dove, to be taken in the arke *Gen. 8. 9. August. Tract. 76., except he take us in the affection that bred the covenant: Our superficiall thoughts of his love suffer not our hearts to warme in it; it is neither the garment nor the skirt, but the heart that was pierced for us, that we should touch. When God made the world, he stayed not till he came to man, and then came the sabbath, after which no day is numbred, Genes. 2. 2.to tell that man is for eternitie. This dwelling in God is our spirituall sabbathizing, the type of the eternall: wee prescribe no measure to God, but thirst the fulnesse; but with the casting in of the bucket of our desires, let us cast in our heart also in the fountaine. The outbreaking of the fountaine is according to our straitnesse, and not according to the fulnesse it selfe. God hath made us to himselfe, and our heart is restlesse, till it rest on him: For if wee shall go through the world, wee shall not finde a sure place to our soule but in him: Things naturall are carried to their place by their weight: aFecisti nos ad te, & inquietum est cor nostrum donec requiescat in te. Confess. 1. 1.And the weight of our soule, is our love bPondus meum, amor meus. Confess. 13. 9.: Thereby we are carried whithersoever we go. And by the grace of God it is kindled in us, and carrieth us upward. This is our rest and life, that cannot be troubled: For who so entereth in God, entreth in his masters joy, cEt habebit se optimè in optimo. Conf. 2. 10.and shall be most happy in him, who is most happy. Therefore O the vertue of our soule; enter in her, and fit her to thy selfe, that thou mayest possesse her. dDa mihi qui huc pervenerit & fateor quiescentem. Bern. Can. 52.He who is come to this, is in his rest, and may justly say: Returne my soule to thy rest.Psal. 116. 7.