The Saints Everlasting Rest, Treatise 1 · Chapter 7 · Section 7
SECT. VII.§ 7.
SEventhly.7It will be a Rest suitable. A further excellency of this Rest is this; As it will be a seasonable, so a suitable Rest: Suited, 1. To the Natures. 2. To the desires. 3. To the necessities of the Saints.
1. To their Natures.1To our Natures. If sutableness concur not with excellency, the best things may be bad to us: For it is that which makes things good in themselves to be good to us. In our choice of friends we oft pass by the more excellent, to chuse the more suitable. Every good agrees not with every nature. To live in a free and open air, under the warming Rayes of the Sun, is excellent to man, because suitable: But the flesh which is of another nature, doth rather chuse another element; and that which is to us so excellent, would quickly be to it destructive. The choicest dainties which we feed upon our selves, would be to our Beast, as an unpleasing, so an insufficient sustenance. The Iron which the Ostrich well digests, would be but hard food for man: Even among men, contrary appetites delight in contrary objects. You know the Proverb, One mans meat, is another mans poyson. Now here is suitableness and excellency conjoyned. The new nature of the Saints, doth suit their Spirits to this Rest: And indeed their holiness is nothing else, but a sparke taken from this Element, and by the Spirit of Christ kindled in their hearts, the flame whereof as mindful of its own Divine original, doth ever mount the soul aloft, and tend to the place from whence it comes: It worketh towards its own Center, and makes us Restless, till there we Rest. Gold and earthly Glory, temporal Crowns and Kingdoms could not make a rest for Saints.1 Pet. 1.18, 23. As they were not Redeemed with so low a price, so neither are they indued with so low a nature. These might be a portion for lower spirits, and fit those whose natures they suit with; but so they cannot a Saint-like nature. As God will have from them a Spiritual VVorship, suitable to his own Spiritual Being; so will he provide them a spiritual Rest, suitable to his peoples spiritual nature. As Spirits have not fleshly substances, so neither delight they in fleshly pleasures: These are too gross and vile for them. When carnal persons think of Heaven, their conceivings of it are also carnal; and their notions answerable to their own natures: And were it possible for such to enjoy it, it would sure be their trouble, and not their Rest, because so contrary to their dispositions. A Heaven of good-fellowship, of wine and wantonness, of gluttony and all voluptuousness, would far better please them, as being more agreeing to their natures. But a heaven of the knowledg of God and his Christ; a delightful complacency in that mutual love: an everlasting rejoycing in the fruition of our God; a perpetual singing of his high praises; this is a heaven for a Saint, a spiritual Rest, suitable to a spiritual nature. Then, dear friends, we shall live in our own element. We are now as the fish in some small vessel of water, that hath only so much as will keep him alive; but what is that to the full Ocean? we have a little Air let in to us, to afford us breathing; but what is that to the sweet and fresh gales upon Mount Sion? we have a beam of the Sun to lighten our darkness, and a warm Ray to keep us from freezing; but then we shall live in its light, and be revived by its heat for ever. O blessed be that hand which fetcht a coal, and kindled a fire in our dead hearts, from that same Altar, where we must offer our Sacrifice everlastingly. To be lockt up in Gold and in Pearl, would be but a wealthy starving; to have our Tables with Plate and ornament richly furnished without meat, is but to be richly famished; to be lifted up with humane applause, is but a very airy felicity; to be advanced to the Soveraignty of all the Earth, would be but to wear a Crown of Thorns; to be filled with the knowledg of Arts and Sciences, would be but to further the conviction of our unhappiness: But to have a nature like God, his very Image, holy as he is holy, and to have God himself to be our happiness, how well do these agree? Whether that in 2 Pet. 1.4. be meant (as is commonly understood) of our own inherent renewed nature, figuratively called Divine, or rather of Christs Divine Nature without us, properly so called; wherof we are also made partakers, I know not: But certainly were not our own in some sort Divine, the enjoyment of the true Divine Nature could not be to us a suitable Rest.
2. It is suitable also to the desires of the Saints:2To our Desires. For such as their natures, such be their desires; and such as their desires, such will be their Rest. Indeed, we have now a mixed Nature; and from contrary principles, do arise contrary desires: As they are flesh, they have desires of flesh, and as they are sinful, so they have sinful desires. Perhaps they could be too willing whilest these are stirring, to have delights and riches, and honor, and sin it self. But these are not their prevailing Desires, nor such as in their deliberate choice they will stand too; therefore is it not they, but sin and flesh. These are not the desires that this Rest is suited to, for they will not accompany them to their Rest. To provide contents to satisfie these, were to provide food for them that are dead. For they that are in Christ, Gal. 5.24.have crucified the flesh, with the affections and lusts thereof. But it is the Desires of our renewed Nature, and those which the Christian will ordinarily own, which this Rest suited too. Whilest our desires remain corrupted and misguided, it is a far greater Mercy to deny them, yea, to destroy them, then to satisfie them: But those which are Spiritual, are of his own planting, and he will surely water them, and give the increase. Is it so great a work to raise them in us; and shall they after all this, vanish and fail? To send the Word and Spirit, Mercies and Judgments, to raise the sinners desires from the Creature to God, and then to suffer them so raised, all to perish without success; this were to multiply the Creatures misery: And then were the work of Sanctification, a designed preparative to our torment and tantalizing; but no way conducible to our happy Rest. He quickened our hungering and thirst for Righteousness, that he might make us happy in a full satisfaction. Christian, this is a Rest after thine own heart; it containeth all that thy heart can wish; that which thou longest for, prayest for, laborest for, there thou shalt finde it all. Thou hadst rather have God in Christ, then all the world; why there thou shalt have him. O what wouldst thou not give for assurance of his love? why there thou shalt have assurance beyond suspicion; Nay, thy desires cannot now extend to the height of what thou shalt there obtain. Was it not an high favor of God to Solomon, to promise to give him whatsoever he would ask? why every Christian hath such a promise. Desire what thou canst, and ask what thou wilt as a Christian, and it shall be given thee; not onelyonly to half of the Kingdom, but to the enjoyment both of Kingdom and King. This is a life of desire and prayer; but that is a life of satisfaction and enjoyment. O therefore, that we were but so wise, as to limit those desires, which we know shall not be satisfied; and those which we know not, whether or no they will be satisfied, and especially those which we know should not be satisfied; and to keep up continually in heat and life, those desires which we are sure shall have full satisfaction. And O that sinners would also consider, That seeing God will not give them a felicity suitable to their sensual desires, it is therefore their wisdom, to endevor for desires suitable to the true felicity, and to direct their Ship to the right Harbor, seeing they cannot bring the Harbor to their Ship.
3To our necessities.3. This Rest is very suitable to the Saints necessities also, as well as to their natures and desires. It contains whatsoever they truly wanted; not supplying them with the grosse created comforts, which now they are forced to make use of; which like Sauls Armor on David, are more burden then benefit: But they shall there have the benefit without the burden; and the pure Spirits extracted (as it were) shall make up their Cordial, without the mixture of any drossie or earthly substance. It was Christ, and perfect Holiness, which they most needed, and with these shall they here be principally supplied. Their other necessities are far better removed, then supplied in the present carnal way. It is better to have no need of meat, and drink, and cloathing, and creatures, then to have both the need, and the Creature continued. Their Plaister will be fitted to the quality of the sore. The Rain which Elias prayer procured, was not more seasonable after the three yeers drought, then this Rest will be to this thirsty Soul. It will be with us,Luke 8.43. as with the diseased man, who had lien at the waters, and continued diseased thirty eight yeers, when Christ did fully cure him in a moment;Mark 5.25. or with the woman, who having had the issue of blood, and spent all she had upon Physicians, and suffered the space of twelve yeers, was healed by one touch of Christ. So when we have lien at Ordinances, and Duties, and Creatures, all our life time, and spent all, and suffered much, we shall have all done by Christ in a moment. But we shall see more of this under the next head.