The Saints Everlasting Rest, Treatise 1 · Chapter 7 · Section 5
SECT. V.§ 5.
FIfthly,5It is Immediate from God, and in him. another excellent property of our Rest will be, That the Joyes of it are immediately from God. Nor doth this contradict the former, as I have before made plain. Whether Christ (who is God as well as man) shall be the Conveyor of all from the Divine Nature to us? And whether the giving up the Kingdom to the Father, do imply the ceasing of the Mediators Office? And consequently, the laying aside of the humane Nature? (though I believe the Negative in these last, yet) are Questions which I will not now attempt to handle. But this is sure; we shall God face to face; and stand continually in his presence; and consequently derive our life and comfort immediately from him. Whether God will make use of any Creatures for our service then? or if any, of what Creatures? and what use? is more then I yet know. It seems by that Rom. 8.21. that the Creature shall have a day of Deliverance, and that into the glorious Liberty of the sons of God: But whether this before, or at the great and full Deliverance? or whether to endure to Eternity? or to what particular imployment they shall be continued? are Questions yet too hard for me. When God speaks them plainer, and mine understanding is made clearer, then I may know these. But its certain that, at least, our most and great Joyes will be immediate, if not all. Now we have nothing at all immediately; but at the second, or third, or fourth, or fifth hand; or how many, who knows? From the Earth, from Man, from Sun and Moon, from the influence of the Planets, from the Ministration of Angels, and from the Spirit, and Christ; and doubtless the farther the Stream runs from the Fountain, the more impure it is. It gathers some defilement from every unclean Channel it passeth through▪ Though it savors not in the hand of Angels, of the imperfection of sinners, yet it doth of the imperfection of Creatures; and as it comes from man, it savors of both. How quick and piercing is the Word in it self? Yet many times it never enters, being managed by a feeble Arm. O what weight and worth is there in every passage of the Blessed Gospel? Enough, one would think, to enter and force the dullest Soul, and wholly possess its thoughts and affections; and yet how oft doth it fall as water upon a stone? And how easily can our hearers sleep out a Sermon time … and much, because these words of Life do die in the delivery, and the Fruit of our Conception is almost Still-born. Our peoples Spirits remain congealed, while we who are entrusted▪ with the Word that should melt them, do suffer it to freez between our Lips. We speak indeed of Soul-concerning Truths, and set before them Life and Death; But it is with such Self-seeking affectation, and in such a lazy, formal, customary strain, (like the pace the Spaniard rides) that the people little think we are in good sadness, or that our Hearts do mean as our Tongues do speak. I have heard of some Tongues that can lick a co…l of fire till it be cold. I fear these Tongues are in most of our Mouths, and that the Breath that is given us to blow up this fire, till it flame in our Peoples Souls, is rather used to blow it out. Such Preaching is it that hath brought the most to hear Sermons, as they say their Creed and Pater Nosters, even as a few good words of course. How many a cold and mean Sermon, that yet contains most precious Truths? The things of God which we handle are Divine; but our maner of handling too Humane: And there's little or none that ever we touch, but we leave the print of our fingers behinde us; but if God should speak this Word himself, it would be a piercing, melting Word indeed. How full of comfort are the Gospel Promises? yet do we oft so heartlesly declare them, that the broken, bleeding-hearted Saints, are much deprived of their Joyes. Christ is indeed a precious Pearl, but oft held forth in Leprous hands: And thus do we disgrace the Riches of the Gospel, when it is the Work of our Calling to make it honorable in the eyes of men; and we dim the glory of that Jewel, by our dull and low expressions, and dunghil conversations, whose lustre we do pretend to discover; while the hearers judg of it by our expressions, and not its proper, genuine worth. The truth is, the best of men do apprehend but little of what God in his Word expresseth, and what they do apprehend, they are unable to utter. Humane language is not so copious as the hearts conceivings are; and what we possibly might declare, yet through our own unbelief, stupidity, laziness, and other corruptions, we usually fail in; and what we do declare, yet the darkness of our peoples understandings, and the sad senslesness of their hearts, doth usually shut out, and make voyd. So that as all the Works of God are perfect in their season, as he is perfect; so are all the works of man as himself, imperfect: And those which God performeth by the hand of man, will too much savor of the instrument. If an Angel from Heaven should preach the Gospel, yet could he not deliver it according to its glory; muchless we who never saw what they have seen, and keep this Treasure in Earthen Vessels. The comforts that flow through Sermons, through Sacraments, through Reading, and Company, and Conference, and Creatures, are but half comforts; and the Life that comes by these, is but a half life, in comparison of those which the Almighty shall speak with his own mouth, and reach forth to us with his own hand. The Christian knows by experience now, that his most immediate Joyes are his sweetest Joyes; which have least of man, and are most directly from the Spirit. Thats one reason, as I conceive, why Christians who are much in secret prayer, and in meditation and contemplation (rather then they who are more in hearing, reading and conference) are men of greatest life and joy; because they are nearer the Well-head, and have all more immediately from God himself. And that I conceive the reason also, Why we are more undisposed to those secret duties, and can easilier bring our hearts to hear, and read, and confer, then to secret Prayer, Self-examination, and Meditation; because in the former is more of man, and in these we approach the Lord alone, and our Natures draw back from the most spiritual and fruitful Duties. Not that we should therefore cast off the other, and neglect any Ordinance of God: To live above them while we use them, is the way of a Christian: But so to live above Ordinances, as to live without them, is to live without the compass of the Gospel Lines, and so without the Government of Christ. Let such beware least while they would be higher then Christians, they prove in the end lower then men. We are not yet come to the time and state where we shall have all from Gods immediate hand. As God hath made all Creatures, and instituted all Ordinances for us; so will he continue our need of all. We must yet be contented with Love-tokens from him, till we come to receive our All in him. We must be thankful if Joseph sustain our lives, by relieving us in our Famine with his Provisions, till we come to see his own face. There's joy in these remote receivings; but the fulness is in his own presence. O Christians, you will then know the difference, betwixt the Creature and Creator, and the content that each of them affords. We shall then have Light without a Candle; and a perpetual day without the Sun: For the City hath no need of the Sun, neither of the Moon to shine in it; for the glory of God doth lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof, Revel. 21.23. Nay, There shall be no night there, and they need no candle, nor light of the Sun; for the Lord God giveth them light, and they shall reign for ever and ever, Revel. 22.5. We shall then have rest without sleep, and be kept from cold without our cloathing, and need no Fig-leaves to hide our shame: For God will be our Rest, and Christ our cloathing, and shame and sin will cease together. We shall then have health without Physick, and strength without the use of food; for the Lord God will be our strength, and the light of his countenance will be health to our souls, and marrow to our bones. We shall then (and never till then) have enlightened understandings without Scriptures, and be governed without a written Law: For the Lord will perfect his Law in our hearts, and we shall be all perfectly taught of God; his own will shall be our Law, and his own face shall be our light for ever. Then shall we have joy, which we drew not from the promises, nor was fetcht us home by Faith or Hope: Beholding and possessing, will exclude the most of these. We shall then have Communion without Sacraments, when Christ shall drink with us of the fruit of the Vine new, that is, Refresh us with the comforting Wine of immediate fruition, in the Kingdom of his Father. To have necessities, but no supply, is the case of them in Hell; to have necessity supplied by the means of Creatures, is the case of us on Earth; to have necessity supplied immediately from God, is the case of the Saints in Heaven; to have no necessity at all, is the prerogative of God himself. The more of God is seen and received with, and by the means, and Creature here, the neerer is our state like that in glory. In a word, We have now our Mercies, as Benjamin had Josephs cup;Gen. 44.12. we finde them at a distance from God, and scarcely know from whence they come, and understand not the good will intended in them, but are oft ready to fear they come in wrath, and think they will but work our ruine. But when we shall feed at Josephs own house, yea, receive our portion from his own hand; when he shall fully unbowel his love unto us, and take us to dwell in Goshen by him; when we shall live in our Fathers house and presence, and God shall be All, and in All; then are we indeed at home in Rest.