A Treatise of Self-Denial, Treatise · Chapter 39
CHAP. XXXIX. Anſwer to their doubts that fear death.
BUt becauſe this is the hardeſt part of ſelf-denial, and yet moſt neceſſary, and the particular ſubject of my Text, I ſhall ſtay upon it yet ſo much longer as to reſolve a queſtion of ſome doubting Chriſtians, and to give you ſome Directions for the furtherance of ſelfdenial herein.
Object. If it be a neceſſary part of ſelf-denial to deny our own lives; I am much afraid that I am no Diſciple of Chriſt, as having no true ſelf-denial? For I find that for all theſe Reaſons I cannot be willing to die, but when you have ſaid all that can be ſaid, death is the moſt terrible thing in the world to me. Anſw. I pray you lay together theſe following particulars for anſwer to this great and common doubt. 1. Death as death, is naturally dreadful to all, and the beſt men as men are naturally averſe to it and abhor it. No man can deſire death as death, nor ought to do it. If it had not been an evil to nature, it had not been fit to be the matter of Gods puniſhment, and to be Threatned to the world. Threatnings would not do their work if that which is threatned were not naturally evil, or hurtful and dreadful to the ſubject. To threaten men with a benefit is a contradiction, as much as to promiſe him a miſchief, and more. 2. It is not therefore a ſimple. Diſplacency or Averſeneſs to die, that God requireth you to lay by. Self-denial conſiſteth not in reconciling us to Death as death; For then he might as well perſwade us to become Angels, as to deny our ſelves, and Preachers had as hard a work to do as to perſwade men to ceaſe to be men. Death will be an enemy as long as it is death. Even the ſeparated ſoul hath ſo natural an inclination to union with its Body, that the ſeparation is part of the penalty to it: And though heaven be their joy, and Chriſt their life and fulneſs, yet the ſeparation from the body which they have even with Chriſt is a penalty; and they have not that perfect meaſure of Joy and Glory as they ſhall have when they are joyned in the body again. So that ſeparation as ſuch is penal to the ſoul in bleſſedneſs. And even the ſeparated ſoul of Jeſus Chriſt that was more bleſſed than ours, was, as ſeparated, in a ſtate of penalty, when his body was in the grave (Of which ſee my Appendix to the Reformed Paſtor, about the Deſcent into Hell.) 3. That which you have to look after therefore in your ſouls, is not a love to death, or willingneſs to death as death, which no man hath or ſhould have; but it is, 1. A Submiſſion to it as a leſs evil than ſin and Hell and the Diſpleaſure of God: and a chooſing rather to die than wilfully to ſin and forſake the Lord. 2. And a Love to that glory in the fruition of God, which death is the paſſage to. Seeing we cannot obtain the end of our faith and patience by any eaſier paſſage than death, you muſt rather be content to go this ſtrait and grievous way, than miſs of the ſtate of eternal bleſſedneſs: Let death be never ſo odious and dreadful to you, if you had but rather die than forſake Chriſt by ſin, or miſs of everlaſting life with God, you have that true ſelf-denial, even of life it ſelf, which is required in my Text. 4. And yet even a gracious ſoul may be ſo much unprepared as to deſire to ſtay yet longer on earth, though he be abſent from the Lord while he is preſent in the body; that ſo a better preparation may be made: And alſo the love of God may make a man deſire to ſtay yet longer for the ſervice of the Church, or to be with Paul in a ſtrait between two, Phil. 1. 21, 22, 23. 5. Have you not ſuch pleaſant apprehenſions of the New Jeruſalem, and the coming of Chriſt in glory, and the bleſſed ſtate of the Saints in heaven, as that you could moſt gladly enter into that bleſſed ſtate by any other way than death: And had you not rather die, than miſs of that felicity? At leaſt, when you know that die you muſt, had you not rather die ſooner, even a violent death by perſecution, than miſs of your eternal life, by ſaving your lives a little longer? 6. And for your unwillingneſs to die, as death is the laſt enemy to be conquered by Chriſt, at the Reſurrection, ſo the fears of death and the power of it, is the laſt evil that we ſhall be troubled with; and you muſt not expect to be fully freed from theſe fears, in this life: for death will be death, and man will be man. But yet let me tell you that before you die, God may very much abate your fears; and very ordinarily doth ſo with his ſervants; 1. By giving them that grace that is ſuited to a dying ſtate; and 2. By the help of ſickneſs and pain it ſelf: And that is one great reaſon why ſickneſs ſhall uſually go before death, that pain and miſery may make the fleſh even a weary of it ſelf, and make the ſoul a weary of its companion, and both a weary of this miſerable life.
And now I ſhall briefly name ſome few Directions which if you will practiſe, you will more eaſily ſubmit to death.