The Life of Faith, Part 3 · Chapter 27
CHAP. XXVII. How to receive the Sentence of Death; and how to die by Faith.
HAving ſaid ſo much of this elſewhere (in my Books called, A Believers laſt work: The laſt Enemy: My Chriſtian Directory: Treatiſe of Self-denyal, &c.) I ſhall be here but very brief.
I. For the firſt Caſe, before ſickneſs cometh:
Direct. 1. Be ſure that you ſettle your Belief of the life to come, that your Faith may not fail.
Direct. 2. Expect Death as ſeriouſly all your life, as wiſe Believers are obliged to do: That is, as men that are alwaies ſure to die; as men that are never ſure to live a moment longer; as men that are ſure that life will be ſhort, and death is not far off; and as foreſeeing what it is to die; of what eternal conſequence; and what will then appear to be neceſſary to your ſafe, and to your comfortable change.
Direct. 3. All your daies habituate your ſouls to believing, ſweet enlarged thoughts of the infinite Goodneſs and Love of God, to whom you go, and with whom you hope to live for ever.
Direct. 4. Dwell in the ſtudies of a crucified and glorified Chriſt, who is the way, the truth and life; who muſt be your hope in life and death, Epheſ. 3.17, 18, 19.
Direct. 5. Keep clear your evidences of your right to Chriſt, and all his Promiſes; by keeping grace or the heavenly nature, in life, activity and increaſe, 2 Pet. 1.10. 2 Cor. 13.5. John 15, 1, &c. 1 John 3.
Direct. 6. Conſider often of the poſſeſſion which your nature in Chriſt hath already of Heaven; and how highly it is advanced, and how near his relation is, and how dear his love is to his weakeſt members upon earth: And that as ſouls in Heaven have an inclination and deſire to communicate their own felicity to their bodies; ſo hath Chriſt as to his body the Church, John 17.24. Epheſ. 5.25, 27, &c.
Direct. 7. Look to the Heavenly Hoſt, and thoſe who have lived before you, or with you in the fleſh, to make the thoughts of Heaven the more familiar to you (as in the former chapter.)
Direct. 8. Improve all Afflictions, yea the plague of ſin it ſelf, to make you weary of this world, and willing to be gone to Chriſt, Rom. 7.
Direct. 9. Be much with God in Prayer, Meditation, and other heart-raiſing duties; that you may not by ſtrangeneſs to him be diſmayed.
Direct. 10. Live not in the guilt of any wilful ſin, nor in any ſlothful neglect of duty, leſt guilt breed terrour, and make you fly from God your Judge. But eſpecially ſtudy to redeem your time, and to do all the good you can i… the world, and to live as totally devoted to God, as conſcious that you live to no carnal intereſt, but deſire to ſerve him with all you have; and your conſciences teſtimony of this, will abundantly take off the terrours of death (whatever any erroneous ones may ſay to the contrary, for fear of being guilty of conceits of merit.) A fruitful life is a great preparative for death, 2 Tim. 4.8. 2 Cor. 1.12▪ &c.
Direct. 11. Fetch from Heaven the comforts which you live upon through all your life: And when you have truly learned to live more upon the comforts of believed glory, than upon any pictures or hopes below, then you will be able to die in and for thoſe comforts, Matth. 6.20, 21. Col. 3.1, 4. Phil. 3.20, 21. 1 Theſ. 4.18. Phil. 1.21, 23.
Direct. 12. The Knowledge and Love of God in Chriſt is the beginning or foretaſte of Heaven, (John 17.3. 1 Cor. 13. &c.) and the foretaſtes are excellent preparations: Therefore ſtill remember that all that you do in the world, for the getting and exerciſing the true Knowledge and Love of God in Chriſt; ſo much you do for the foretaſtes (and beſt preparations) for Heaven, 1 Cor. 8.3. If any man love God, the ſame is known of him (with approbation and love.)
II. In the time of ſickneſs, and near to death.
Direct. 1. Let your firſt work, when God ſeemeth to call you away, be, to renew a diligent ſearch of your hearts and lives, and to ſee leſt in either of them there ſhould be any ſin which is not truly hated and repented of.
Though this muſt be done through all your lives, yet with an extraordinary care and diligence when you are like to come ſo ſpeedily to your tryal. For it is only to Repenting Believers, that the Covenant of Grace doth pardon ſin: And the impenitent have no right to pardon. Though for ordinary failings which are forgotten, and for ſins which you are willing to know and remember, but cannot; a general Repentance will be accepted; (as when you pray God to ſhew you the ſins which you ſee not, and to forgive thoſe which you cannot remember or find out:) Yet thoſe which you know muſt be particularly repented of: And Repentance is a remembring duty, and will hardly forget any great and heinous ſins, which are known to be ſins indeed. If your Repentance be then to begin, alas it is high time to begin it: And though if it be ſound, it will be ſaving (that is, If it be ſuch as would ſettle you in a truly godly life, if you ſhould recover;) yet you will hardly have any aſſurance of ſalvation, or ſuch comfort in it as is deſirable to dying man: Becauſe you will very hardly know whether it come from true converſion, and contain a Love to God and Godlineſs; or whether it be only the fruit of fear, and would come to nothing if you were reſtored to health: But he that hath truly repented heretofore, and lived in uprightneſs towards God and man, and hath nothing to do, but to diſcern his ſincerity, and to exerciſe a ſpecial Repentance for ſome late or ſpecial ſins; or to do that again which he hath done unfeignedly before, will much more eaſily get the aſſurance and comfort of his forgiveneſs and ſalvation.
Direct. 2. Renew your ſenſe of the Vanity of this world: Which at ſuch a time one would think, ſhould be very eaſie to do. When you ſee that you are near an end of all your pleaſures, and have had all (except a grave to rot in) that ever this world willd o for you, may you not eaſily then ſee, whether the godly or the worldly be the wiſer and the happier man? And what it is that the life of man ſhould be ſpent in ſeeeking after? Matth. 6.33. Iſa. 55.1, 2, 3. Eccleſ. 7.3, 4, 5, 6.
Direct. 3. Remember what Fleſh is, and what it hath been to you, that you may not be too loth to lay it down.
Of the duſt it was made, and to the duſt it muſt return: Corruption is your Father, and the Worm is your Mother, and your Siſter, Job 17.14. Drought and beat conſume the Snow-waters; ſo doth the grave thoſe which have ſinned: The womb ſhall forget him; the Worm ſhall feed ſweetly on him, Job 24.20. Fleſh and blood ſhall not inherit the Kingdom of God; but this mortal muſt put on immortality, by being made a ſpiritual body, 1 Cor. 15.
And this fleſh hath coſt you ſo dear to carry it about; ſo much care and labour to provide it food, to repair that which daily vaniſheth away; and ſo many weary, painful hours; and ſo many fearful thoughts of dying, that methinks you ſhould quietly reſign it to the grave, which hath been ſo long calling for it.
Eſpecially conſidering what it hath done, by the temptations of a vitiated appetite and ſenſe, againſt your ſouls: into how many ſins it hath drawn you, and what grief and ſhame it hath procured you; and what aſſurance and heavenly pleaſures it hath hindered; and how many repentings, and purpoſes, and promiſes it hath fruſtrated, or undone: Methinks we ſhould conceive that we have long enough dwelt in ſuch an habitation.
Direct. 4. Foreſee by Faith the reſurrection of the body, when it ſhall be raiſed a ſpiritual body unto Glory; and ſhall be no more an enemy to the ſoul.
Direct. 5. Renew your familiarity with the bleſſed ones above. Remember that the great Army of God (the ſouls of the juſt from Adam till now) are all got ſafe through this Red Sea, and are triumphing in Heaven already; and that it is but a few ſtraglers in the end of the world that are left behind: And which part then ſhould you deſire to be with? And remember how ready thoſe Angels which rejoyced at your converſion, are to be your Convoy unto Chriſt, Luke 16.23.
Direct. 6. But eſpecially think with greateſt confidence and delight, that Jeſus your Head is entred into the Heavens before you, and is making interceſſion for you, and is preparing you a place, and loveth your company, and will not loſe it. You ſhall find him ready to receive your ſouls, and preſent them ſpotleſs unto God, as the fruit of his mediation: He will have you be with him to behold his glory; and none ſhall take you out of his hands. Let his Love therefore draw up your deſires, and ſtabliſh your hearts in confidence and reſt.
Direct. 7. Remember, that all that are living muſt come after you; and how quickly their turn will come; and would you wiſh to be exempt from death alone, which the whole world below muſt needs ſubmit to?
Direct. 8. Think ſtill of the Reſurrection of Chriſt your Head, that you may ſee that death is a conquered thing, and what a pledge you have of a life to come.
Direct. 9. Dwell ſtill in the believing fore thoughts of the bleſſedneſs of the life to which you go, as it is your perſonal perfection, and the perfect Love and fruition of God, with his perfect joyous praiſe.
Remember ſtill what it is to ſee and know the Lord, (and all things elſe in him, which are fit for us to know. And labour to revive your Love to God, and then you revive your deſires and preparations.
Direct. 10. Give up your ſelves wholly to the Will of God; and think how much better it is for upright Souls to be in Gods hand, than in your own. The Will of God is the firſt and laſt, the Original and End of all the creatures. Beſides the Will of Infinite Goodneſs, there is no final Reſt for humane ſouls. But mans will is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning or firſt efficient, and the ultimate end of all obliquity and ſin: Be bold then and thankful in your approach to God, remembring how much more ſafe and comfortable it is to be (for life and death) at Gods diſpoſal, than our own.
B…ſides theſe, read the Directions againſt the fear of death, in my Book of Self-denyal; and what is ſaid in my Saints Reſt, and other the Treatiſes before mentioned.