Moses Choice, Treatise · Part 3 · Chapter 49
CHAP. XLIX. The happineſs of the Saints in their fruition of God, and their perfect reſt in him.
THe fifth thing in the Saints having God to be their portion, is fruition of God, enjoyment 5.of God: Gods people ſhall not onelyonly be in his preſence, and ſee him, and have union with him, and communion with him, but they ſhall have fruition and enjoyment of him: The fruition of God conſiſts in theſe four things.
The firſt is, The reflect act of the ſoul, whereby it comes to know what it hath; it hath a God, and it 1.knows it, by a reflect act; and upon this it is, that there is no creature can be ſaid to enjoy a thing properly, but the rational creature; the beaſts and plants have many things communicated to them, but they have no reflect act to know what they have, this is proper to the rational creature. If one have never ſo great a good, if he were ignorant of it, and did not know it, he could not be ſaid to enjoy it: As one that hath an inheritance given him, if he knows not of it, he is far enough from the enjoyment of it. This will adde much to the happineſs of Gods people, they ſhall be filled with happineſs and glory, filled with God, and they ſhall know all their happineſs: There are many excellencies that other creatures have, but they know not of their excellency; and many of Gods people have abundance of mercy from God, God communicates much to them here, but they cannot be ſaid properly to enjoy it, becauſe they do not know it; but time will come, though God lets out himſelf fully, yet he ſhall let out himſelf no further then we ſhall know him.
Secondly, there is in fruition the having uſe of all 2.; if a man be never ſo rich, and have never ſo great poſſeſſions, if he have not the actual uſe of what Videbit Deum ad voluntatem, habebit ad voluptatem, fruetur ad jucunditatem, Ber. Serm. de Tripl. Gen. Bon.he hath, he cannot be ſaid to enjoy them; a man may have right to a thing, and yet for the preſent not enjoy the uſe of it. But now the people of God, as they ſhall have God to be their portion, ſo they ſhall enjoy God fully, to have what uſe they will of all the Attributes of God, and all that is in God: And this is an infinite good and happineſs to the people of God, that they ſhall have as much uſe of Gods infinite wiſdom, of the infinite power of God, and of the infinite mercy of God as they will; and they cannot will it ſo ſoon, but they ſhall have it, nor ſo eaſily, as they may enjoy it: Then we do enjoy the benefit of friendſhip, when one friend ſays to another, Make uſe of all I have as your own, as you will: So God ſhall come to his people, and bid them make uſe of all his riches, and glory, and excellency as they will: Hence it is, that God is not onelyonly the happineſs of his Saints, cauſally or effectually, but he is formally the happineſs of the Saints: He is not cauſally the happineſs of the Saints; that is, That he ſhould cauſe ſome good to come from him to the Saints; but he is formally the happineſs of the Saints, becauſe they have God himſelf to enjoy, and have the uſe of himſelf. The Sun is cauſally great good to the world, it cauſeth the herbs and plants to grow; but it is not formally the good of the creature here below: But God is not onelyonly cauſually good to the Saints, but formally: God is theirs, to be uſed unto the utmoſt that they are capable of.
The third thing in fruition, is to have the ſweet and comfort of all that we do uſe, or elſe we do not enjoy 3.that we have. If a man ſhould have the uſe of his eſtate, and meat, and drink, if he have not the ſweet and comfort of it, he cannot be ſaid to enjoy it; but when the comfort is let out, that the ſoul is ſenſible of it, then he may be ſaid to enjoy it: And hence it is that God is ſaid to give all things to us richly to enjoy, 1 Tim. 6. 17. There is no creature can give us to enjoy another; another may give a man ſuch and ſuch things in which may be comfort, but he cannot give him comfort in the thing, it muſt be God that muſt give to enjoy; no creature can properly give the enjoyment of another, becauſe though it gives the thing, it cannot give the comfort with it, but God gives the thing, and he gives the comfort with it, and ſo a man is ſaid to enjoy it.
Fourthly, it is ſuch an enjoyment, as the having of it does perfect that which does enjoy it, and by 4.that we ſhall underſtand the difference between other creatures attaining to their end, and the rational creature attaining his end; the other creatures, when they attain their end they periſh, ſo as they cannot be ſaid to enjoy their end; the plants and beaſts that God hath made for the uſe of man, when man comes to have the uſe of them, then they come to have their end, but they do not enjoy their end, becauſe in having their end, they are deſtroyed; but the rational creature, when he comes to have his end, then he comes to have the higheſt perfection; and ſo he may be ſaid to enjoy it, becauſe when he comes to have his end, he is made the more perfect; ſo take theſe four together, and you may know what I mean by fruition of God: and that is the fifth particular.
6. The ſixth particular, in having God to be their 6.portion, is the Reſt that the foul hath in God: The term of all motion is reſt, every thing that moves, moves that it may have reſt: Now here in this world the creature is altogether in motion, and eſpecially man, becauſe he is not here in his proper place; every thing moves to its center, till it comes to its place, Pſal. 38. 10. My heart panteth; the word in the Original ſignifies, ſuch a kinde of motion, running up and down, as Merchants run up and down, from one Countrey to another; and it is obſervable, there is the two laſt radical letters double; and that is to foreignnote, That it is more then an ordinary ſtirring and motion of the ſpirit, becauſe it is not come to its reſt; but when the foul comes to the term unto which it moves, then it comes to have reſt. God hath let out good things to other creatures, and they never return back again directly to him; but the good that God lets out to mankinde, and to his people, it returns back again to God: The Saints are made by God, and they come and return to the firſt fountain from whence they came, whereas other creatures do not: As the wicked, they come from God, but do not return to God again as their reſt: And therefore it is an expreſſion of Jeremy, Thoſe that ſeek onelyonly after the ſatisfying of their ſenſes, they go out from God like unto rivers that run from the fountain, but there is no regreſs of them, they do not return back again; but the godly come from God, and have their returns back again unto God, unto their fountain, there to reſt, and to have their happineſs, Pſal. 12. 9. The wicked walk on every ſide; the wicked move up and down in a circle, but never unto the center, onelyonly keep their round from one creature to another, but never have any direct motion unto God, to come to him as their center, and ſo to finde true reſt in him: Return, O my ſoul, unto thy reſt, Pſal. 116. 7. The word tranſlated Reſt, is in the plural number, Return, O my ſoul, unto thy reſts: God is the reſt of the ſouls of the Saints. Reſt and glory ſeldom meets in this world; they who are in glory have not the quieteſt life, and they who have moſt reſt, are furtheſt off from being glorious: Iſſachars condition likes ſome, Gen. 49. 14. Reſt was good to him, though under burthens; and if a man will have a name amongſt the great ones of the earth, farewel reſt; but in heaven reſt and glory do both happily and perfectly meet together.
The Rabbies have a note from the name Jehovah, that all the letters of that name are quieſcentes, and they ſay, There is a myſtery in it, to ſhew that all our reſt is in God. Some creatures God hath made ſo, as there is no other good they are capable of, but to continue in their beings; and therefore they onelyonly ſeek for their place, and no more, and there they reſt; as the Fire, and Ayr, and the Earth, theſe creatures have no other good, but to continue in their beings: and you ſhall obſerve, if they be out of their places, with what violence will they move to their proper place: As if there be fire or ayr got into the earth, it cauſeth earthquakes, it moves there with that violence, that it ſhakes the whole earth, that it may come to its proper place, becauſe it hath no other good but that. Then I would reaſon thus; If thoſe creatures that have no other good, but onelyonly to be in their proper place, if they be out, to get that good ſhall move with ſuch violence; then conſidering what a good mans ſoul is capable of, if he have not obtained that good, with what violence ſhould he move? how ſhould the kingdom of heaven ſuffer violence? how ſhould we work toward God, who is our proper place and center, in whom is ſo much good? But there are other creatures that have an higher good then being in their place; as the plants have a Vegetative place, and therefore they grow to it, and if they have attained that there, they reſt; then the ſenſitive creature hath an higher good, and that moves till it hath got its end; namely, to all things that are agreeable to ſenſe, and they go no further. The rational creature looks to that which is ſuitable to reaſon. And where there is grace, grace looks to attain that which is the proper perfection of the life Domine feciſti nos pro te, & inquietum eſt cor noſtrum donec veniat ad te. Auguſt.of grace, and there it reſts, and never elſe: Therefore it is the expreſſion of an Ancient: O Lord, thou haſt made us for thee, and our hearts are unquiet till they come to enjoy thee; and when the ſoul comes to reſt in God, that is glorious, and that is the Saints happineſs to attain the end of their motion, and the more glorious is the reſt, when the end is attained: and the glory of the end may be diſcovered much, by the glory of the means that tend to it: As if a man will beſtow a great deal of Coſt and Charges to get his Health, then he accounts health worth all thoſe charges; and the greater charges are laid out for health, argues his greater eſteem of it; and ſo if a man be at great charge about a Voyage, it is becauſe he accounts much of the excellency of the end of his Voyage: and if this be ſo, how excellent is the end of Gods people, if we conſider the moſt glorious means that are uſed to attain this end and reſt? as namely, the work of God in ſending the ſecond perſon in the Trinity to take mans nature upon him; and all the works of God in Election, in Redemption, in Adoption, in Juſtification, in Sanctification; yea, all the works of God in creation, in providence, the deſigning the Holy Ghoſt to that office he is deſigned to, and all the Ordinances of God; look what preciouſneſs is in all theſe works of God and means, it ſets out unto us the preciouſneſs, and excellency, and glory that there is in the laſt end, whereunto Gods people ſhall attain, and that reſt they ſhall have.
The ſeventh and laſt thing in having God to be their portion, is the enjoyment of themſelves in God: 7.as they ſhall enjoy God, and God in themſelves; ſo they ſhall enjoy themſelves in God, living in God continually: the fiſh does not more truly live in the water, and move in the water, then the ſouls of the Saints ſhall live in God, and move in God: Col. 3. 3. Your life is hid with Chriſt in God: the life of Saints here is an hidden life, and it is hidden in God, but then it ſhall be a revealed life, and revealed in God, and enjoyed in God. Hence is that Phraſe, Enter into your maſters joy; that enters not into you, but you muſt enter into it: it is your maſters joy, not onelyonly that joy that your maſter gives, but the ſame joy your maſter hath, that you ſhall enter into and live in. It is ſaid of Saint John, in Rev. 1. that he was on the Lords day in the Spirit; it is not ſaid that the Spirit was in him, but it is ſaid, he was in the Spirit; that was as a beginning of the glorious condition of the Saints of God, that they ſhall be in the Spirit of God, not onelyonly God in them, but they in God, as a drop of water in the Sea, ſwallowed up in it. Put a drop of wine into the Sea, it is changed into the nature of the Sea; and ſo though we cannot be changed into the Divine Nature, yet we ſhall be ſwallowed up in God, ſo as we ſhal not any further minde our ſelves, our own good as a created thing, nor our ſelves as creatures, but altogether God: our mindes ſhall be ſo wholly upon God, as if they were wholly emptyed of any created good, and had nothing to do but with an increated good; it ſhall not will any thing to it ſelf, nor to any other creature, but all to God, and ſo wholly taken upon with God, and upon that ground, becauſe they have that likeneſs unto God, and partake of the Divine Nature: Here we do good to others, becauſe of their likeneſs to our ſelves; But the Saints ſhall will all good to God, not becauſe God is like them, but becauſe they are like to God, ſo that they ſhall love themſelves for God.
There are three degrees of love to God, loving The diſcovery of our love to God.of God for our ſelves, and loving God for himſelf, and loving our ſelves for God: the one is but a natural love, the ſecond is a gracious love, the third is a love of the glorified Saints: Firſt, to love God for our ſelves, ſo an hypocrite may love God, becauſe he hath gifts and many bleſſings from God, this is but a natural love. But grace goes further then nature, that is to love God for himſelf; though we ſhould never have any thing, yet if we be gracious, we love God for himſelf: but the glorified Saints go further then grace, and that is to love themſelves for God, whereas heretofore we did onelyonly love God for our ſelves, or for himſelf, now we come to love our ſelves for God: and in this kinde of love of God, and enjoyment of our ſelves in him, the ſoul ſhall be raviſhed with God, and be in a kinde of extaſie eternally.
Now there is a twofold extaſie, one that is through the weakneſs of the inferior faculties of the ſoul; when the minde of a man is taken up about an high object ſeriouſly, the other faculties being weak they fail, and ſo men come to be in a trance and extaſie; many have had great joy, that they have even dyed Spiritual extaſic, how diſcerned.with it; the heart hath ſo dilated it ſelf, as the vital ſpirits have flown out. But there is an extaſie comes from the excellency of the object, that the minde is buſied about, but without any wearineſs of any inferior faculty. If then we put all together, that hath been ſaid about God, and the enjoyment of God, and having God to be the portion of the Saints, you ſee the principal part of Heaven, and the ſpiritual part of the glory of the Saints. Here is faith called for, and why ſhould not our faith go beyond reaſon to rectifie reaſon, as reaſon rectifies ſenſe? theſe things be high, and great myſteries. When as reaſon ſays, How can this be? as when Chriſt was ſpeaking of the new birth, ſays Nicodemus, How can this be? let but faith get as far above reaſon, as reaſon hath got above ſenſe, and we may eaſily ſee how they can be by ſenſe.
If a man look up to the Firmament, and ſee the Sun ſhine, he would think it were little bigger then a Buſhel, or the like, now reaſon will tell men otherwiſe; reaſon that tells men that this creature, that appears to be but in this bigneſs, it is many hundred times bigger then the Earth; now if reaſon can rectifie ſenſe ſo far, Why ſhould not faith go beyond reaſon as far? Now reaſon will tell us of much happineſs that may be had: We may conceive by reaſon, by underſtanding, that the rational creature is capable of abundance of glory: but when you hear things delivered by the word, which are more then reaſon can conceive, let us get faith to rectifie reaſon, and we ſhall not call thoſe truths into queſtion, and yet know that our glory will be beyond our faith, as our faith is beyond our reaſon.
Here you may ſee that moſt people in the world The great miſtake of Heaven, & whence it ariſes.miſtake Heaven, and look at Heaven in a ſenſual maner: when we ſpeak of Heaven, where have we a man or woman that looks at Heaven, in theſe ſpiritual excellencies, about enjoying God in this maner? As the Jews looked for a carnal Meſſiah, whoſe Kingdom ſhould be in the earth, and whoſe glory ſhould be external, not conſidering the Spiritual Kingdom of Chriſt: ſo moſt in the world look but for a carnal Heaven. It is a good evidence of the truth of grace, if you can look to Heaven with a right eye, in a right maner, to look at the ſpiritual part, and ſpiritual excellency in Heaven. But that which makes people to call theſe things in queſtion, is; firſt, becauſe they are not acquainted with God, but are ſenſual, their hearts are acquainted with nothing but ſenſual and earthly things, and therefore their hearts are not raiſed to theſe things, but they look at them as notions; but that ſoul that is acquainted with God, and the counſels of God, and knows the minde of God, that ſoul can know how to ſavor theſe things, and know the reality of them. Again, another reaſon why theſe things are above the reach of moſt people, is, becauſe 2.they are not acquainted with the myſteries of the Goſpel, and what in them is revealed concerning mankinde: If we were acquainted with the myſteries of the Goſpel, we would not think theſe things ſtrange that are revealed. Thirdly, becauſe mens hearts are not enlarged with Gods image for the preſent, therefore 3.they cannot ſavor any thing, but that which hath ſome ſavor of the creature. Fourthly, becauſe they are not acquainted with the firſt-fruits of Heaven; 4.whereas thoſe that are godly, have ſome beginnings of eternal life wrought in them here, and upon that, theſe things are not ſo ſtrange to them, their hearts can cloſe with them, and ſuck out abundance of comfort from them. And thus we have finiſhed the fourth thing of the reward, namely, To have God for their portion.