The Beatitudes, Discourse · Chapter 17
MATTH. 5.8.
They ſhall ſee God.
CHAP. XVII.
The bleſſed priviledge of ſeeing God explained.
THESE words are linked to the former, and they are a great incentive to heart-purity; the pure heart ſhall ſee the pure God. There is a double-ſight which the Saints have of God.
1. In this life; that is ſpiritually, by the eye of faith. Faith ſees Gods glorious Attributes in the glaſs of his Word; faith beholds him ſhewing forth himſelf through the Lattice of his Ordinances. Thus Moſes did ſee him who was inviſible, Hebr. 11.27. Believers ſee Gods glory as it were vailed over, they behold his back-parts, Exod. 23.33.
2. In the life to come; and this glorious ſight of God is meant in the Text, foreign, they ſhall ſee God: A pleaſant proſpect! this Divines call the beatifical viſion *Inſpectio ſola divinitatis efficit, ut beatius nihil eſſe poteſt. Caſſiodor.; at that day the Vail will be pull'd off, and God will ſhew himſelf in all his glory to the ſoul; as a King on a day of Coronation ſhews himſelf in all his Royalty and Magnificence: This ſight of God will be the heaven of heaven; we ſhall indeed have a ſight of Angels, and that will be ſweet; but the quinteſſence of happineſs, and the Diamond in the Ring will be this, we ſhall ſee God. If the Sun be abſent, it is night for all the Stars. The Angels are called Stars, Job 38.7. But it would be night in heaven if the Sun of righteouſneſs did not ſhine there; it is the Kings preſence makes the Court; Abſalom counted himſelf but half alive, unleſs he might ſee the Kings face*2 Sam. 14.32: — Bleſſed are the pure in heart, for they ſhall ſee God. — This ſight of God in glory, is 1. Partly mental and intellectual; we ſhall ſee him with the eyes of our mind. If there be not an intellectual ſight of God, how do the ſpirits of juſt men made perfect ſee him? 2. Partly corporeal; not that we can with bodily eyes behold the bright eſſence of God. Indeed the Anthromorphites and Vorſtians erroneouſly held that God had a viſible ſhape and figure; as man was made Gods image, ſo they thought God was made in made in mans image; but God is a ſpirit, John 4.24. and being a Spirit, is foreign, inviſible, 1 Tim. 1.17. He cannot be beheld by bodily eyes; whom no man hath ſeen, foreign, nor can ſee, 1 Tim. 6.16. A ſight of his glory would overwhelme us; this wine is too ſtrong for our weak heads.
But when I ſay our ſeeing of God in heaven, is corporeal, my meaning is, we ſhall with bodily eyes behold Jeſus Chriſt, through whom the glory of God, his wiſdom, holineſs, mercy ſhall ſhine forth to the ſoul. Put a back of ſteel to the glaſs, and you may ſee a face in it; ſo the humane nature of Chriſt is as it were a back of ſteel, through which we may ſee the glory of God*2 Cor. 4.6.; in this ſenſe that Scripture is to be underſtood, Job 19.26. with theſe eyes ſhall I ſee God.
SECT. 1.
Setting forth the excellency of the Beatifical viſion.
NOW concerning this bleſſed ſight of God, it is ſo ſublime and ſweet, that I can but draw a dark ſhadow of it; we ſhall better underſtand it when we come to heaven; only at preſent I ſhall lay down theſe nine Aphoriſms or Maxims.
1. Our ſight of God in heaven ſhall be a tranſparent ſight; here we ſee him per aenigma, through a glaſs darkly, 1 Cor. 13.12. But through Chriſt we ſhall behold God in a very illuſtrious manner; God will ſo far unvail himſelf, and ſhew forth his glory, as the ſoul is capable to receive; if Adam had not ſinned, yet it is probable he ſhould never have had ſuch a clear ſight of God as the Saints in glory ſhall. 1 John 3.2. We ſhall ſee him as he is; now we ſee him as he is not; he is not mutable, not mortal; there we ſhall ſee him as he is, in a very tranſparent manner; then ſhall I know, even as alſo I am known, 1 Cor. 13.12. that is, clearly: Doth not God know us clearly and fully? then ſhall the Saints know him (according to their capacity) as they are known; as their love to God, ſo their ſight of God ſhall be perfect.
2. This ſight of God will be a tranſcendent ſight, it will ſurpaſs in glory; ſuch glittering beams ſhall ſparkle forth from the Lord Jeſus, as ſhall infinitely amaze and delight the eys of the beholders. Imagine what a bleſſed ſight it will be to ſee Chriſt wearing the Robe of our humane nature, and to ſee that nature ſitting in glory above the Angels. If God be ſo beautiful here in his Ordinances, Word, Prayer, Sacraments; if there be ſuch excellency in him when we ſee him by the eye of faith through the proſpective glaſs of a promiſe, O what will it be when we ſhall ſee him face to face! when Chriſt was transfigured on the Mount, he was full of glory, Matth. 17.2. If his transfiguration were ſo glorious, what will his inauguration be? what a glorious time will it be, when as it was ſaid of Mordecai, we ſhall ſee him in the preſence of his Father, arrayed in Royal apparel, and with a great Crown of gold upon his head, Eſth. 8.15.*foreign. There will be glory beyond Hyperbole; if the Sun were ten thouſand times brighter than it is, it could not ſo much as ſhadow out this glory; in the heavenly Horizon we ſhall behold beauty in its firſt magnitude and higheſt elevation; there we ſhall ſee the King in his glory *Iſa. 33.17.. All lights are but Eclipſes, compared with that glorious Viſion; Appelles penſil would blot, Angels tongues would but diſparage it.
3. This ſight of God will be a transforming ſight: 1 John 3.2. We ſhall be like him: The Saints ſhall be changed into glory; as when the light ſprings into a dark Room, the Room may be ſaid to be changed from what it was. The Saints ſhall ſo ſee God, as to be changed into his image. Pſal. 17. ult. Here Gods people are black'd and ſullied with infirmities, but in heaven they ſhall be as the Dove, covered with ſilver wings; they ſhall have ſome rayes and beams of Gods glory ſhining in them; as a man that rowles himſelf in the Snow, is of a Snow-like whiteneſs; as the Chryſtal by having the Sun ſhine on it, ſparkles and looks like the Sun; ſo the Saints by beholding the brightneſs of Gods glory, ſhall have a tincture of that glory upon them; not that they ſhall partake of Gods very eſſence; for as the iron in the fire becomes fire, yet remains iron ſtill; ſo the Saints by beholding the luſtre of Gods Majeſty ſhall be glorious creatures, but yet creatures ſtill.
4. This ſight of God will be a joyful ſight. Acts 2.28. Thou ſhalt make me glad with the light of thy countenance. After a ſharp Winter, how pleaſant will it be to ſee the Sun of righteouſneſs diſplaying himſelf in all his glory! Doth faith breed joy? 1 Pet. 1.8. In whom though now you ſee him not, yet believing ye rejoyce with joy unſpeakable. If the joy of FAITH be ſuch, what will the joy of viſion be? the ſight of Chriſt will amaze the eye with wonder, and raviſh the heart with joy. If the face of a friend whom we intirely love doth ſo affect us and drive away ſorrow; O how chearing will the ſight of God be to the Saints in heaven! then indeed it may be ſaid, foreign, your heart ſhall rejoyce, John 16.22. And there are two things which will make the Saints viſion of God in heaven joyful.
1. Through Jeſus Chriſt the dread and terror of the Divine Eſſence ſhall be taken away. Majeſty ſhall appear in God to preſerve reverence, but withal Majeſty cloathed with beauty, and tempered with ſweetneſs to excite joy in the Saints. We ſhall ſee God as a friend, not as guilty Adam did, who was afraid, and hid himſelf *Gen. 3.10.; but as Queen Eſther looked upon King Ahaſhuerus, holding forth the golden Scepter *Eſth. 5.2.; ſurely this ſight of God will not be formidable, but comfortable.
2. The Saints ſhall not only have viſion, but fruition; they ſhall ſo ſee God, as to enjoy him. Aquinas and Scotus diſpute the caſe whether the formalis ratio, the very formality and eſſence of bleſſedneſs be an act of the underſtanding or the will. Aquinas ſaith, Happineſs conſiſts in the intellectual part, the bare ſeeing of God. Scotus ſaith, Happineſs is an act of the will, the enjoying of God; but certainly true bleſſedneſs comprehends both*Illi acu rem tangunt, qui in viſione & amore Dei ſimul conſiſtere volunt beatitudinem. Dr. Arrowſ.; it lies partly in the underſtanding, by ſeeing the glory of God richly diſplayed; and partly in the will, by a ſweet delicious taſte of it, and acquieſcence of the ſoul in it; we ſhall ſo ſee God as to love him*foreign., and ſo love him as to be filled with him; the ſeeing of God implies fruition. Matth. 25.21. Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord; not only behold it, but*Non tantum aderit gloria, ſed incrit. Bern. enter into it. Pſal. 36.9. In thy light we ſhall ſee light, there is viſion. Pſal. 16. ult. At thy right hand there are pleaſures for evermore, there is fruition. So great is the joy which flows from the ſight of God, as will make the Saints break forth into triumphant Praiſes and Hallelujahs.
5. This ſight of God will be a ſatisfying ſight: Caſt three worlds into the heart, and they will not fill it; but the ſight of God ſatisfies, Pſal. 17.15. I ſhall be ſatisfied when I awake with thy likeneſs. Solomon ſaith, the eye is not ſatisfied with ſeeing, Eccleſ. 1.8. But there the eye will be ſatisfied with ſeeing; God and nothing but God can ſatisfie. The Saints ſhall have their heads ſo full of knowledge, and their hearts ſo full of joy, that they ſhall find no want.
6. It will be an unweariable ſight: Let a man ſee the ra…eſt ſight that is, he will ſoon be cloyed; when he comes into a Garden and ſees delicious walks, fair Arbours, pleaſant Flowers, within a little while he grows weary; but it is not ſo in heaven, there is no ſurfet*Ibi nec fames nec faſtidium. Bern.; we ſhall never be weary of ſeeing God; for the Divine Eſſence being infinite, there ſhall be every moment new and freſh delights ſpringing forth from God into the glorified ſoul; the ſoul ſhall not ſo deſire God, but it ſhall ſtill be full; nor ſhall it be ſo full, but it ſhall ſtill deſire; ſo ſweet will God be, that the more the Saints behold God, the more they will be raviſhed with deſire and delight.
7. It will be a beneficial ſight, it will tend to the bettering and advantaging of the ſoul; ſome colours while they delight the eyes, they hurt them; but this intuition and viſion of God ſhall better the ſoul, and tend to its infinite happineſs. Eves looking upon the Tree of knowledge did prejudice her ſight; ſhe afterwards grew blind upon it; but the Saints can receive no detriment from the inſpection of glory, this ſight will be beatifical: The ſoul will never be in its perfection till it comes to ſee God, this will be the crowning bleſſing.
8. This ſight of God ſhall be perpetuated; here we ſee objects awhile, and then our eyes grow dim, and we need Spectacles; but the Saints ſhall always behold God; as there ſhall be no cloud upon Gods face, ſo the Saints ſhall have no Mote in their eye; their ſight ſhall never grow dim, but they ſhall be to all Eternity looking on God, that beautiful and beatifical object. O what a ſoul-raviſhing ſight will this be! God muſt make us able to bear it; we can no more endure a ſight of glory, than a ſight of wrath*Senſibile forte deſtruit ſenſum.; but the Saints after this life ſhall have their capacities enlarged, and they ſhall be qualified, and made fit to receive the penetrating beams of glory.
9. It will be a ſpeedy ſight. There are ſome who deny that the ſoul is immediately after death admitted to the ſight of God; but I ſhall make good this Aſſertion, that the Saints ſhall have an immediate tranſition and paſſage from death to glory; aſſoon as death hath cloſed their eyes, they ſhall ſee God; if the ſoul be not preſently after death tranſlated to the beatifical Viſion, then what becomes of the ſoul in that juncture of time till the Reſurrection?
1. Doth the ſoul go into torment? That cannot be; for the ſoul of a believer is a member of Chriſts body myſtical; and if this ſoul ſhould go to hell, then ſomething of Chriſt ſhould go to hell; a member of Chriſt might be for a time damned; but that is impoſſible.
2. Doth the ſoul ſleep in the body as ſome drowſily imagine? How then ſhall we make good ſenſe of that Scripture? 2 Cor. 5.8. We are willing rather to be abſent from the body, and to be preſent with the Lord. If the ſoul at death be abſent from the body, then it cannot ſleep in the body.
3. Doth the ſoul dye? ſo the Lucianiſts held that the ſoul was mortal, and did dye with the body; but as Scaliger obſerves, it is impoſſible that the ſoul being of a ſpiritual uncompounded nature ſhould be ſubject to corruptibility*Luke 12.….. Such as ſay the ſoul dies, I would demand of them wherein the ſoul of a man then differs at death from the ſoul of a brute? By all which it appears that the ſoul of a believer after death goes immediatly to God: Luk. 23.43. This day ſhalt thou be with me in Paradiſe. That word foreign, with me, ſhews clearly that the Thief on the Croſs was tranſlated to heaven, for there Chriſt was, Epheſ. 4.10. And the other word foreign, this day, ſhews that the Thief on the Croſs had an immediate paſſage from the Croſs to Paradiſe; ſo that the ſouls of believers have a ſpeedy Viſion of God after death; it is but winking, and they ſhall ſee God.
SECT. 2.
The ſinners miſery that he ſhall not ſee God.
Uſe 1 1. SEE the miſery of an impure ſinner, he ſhall not be admitted to the ſight of God; the pure in heart only ſhall ſee God. Such as live in ſin, whoſe ſouls are dyed black with the filth of hell, they ſhall never come where God is; they ſhall have an affrighting Viſion of God, but not a beatifical Viſion; they ſhall ſee the flaming Sword, and the burning Lake, but not the Mercy-ſeat; God in Scripture is ſometimes called a conſuming fire, ſometimes the Father of lights; the wicked ſhall feel the fire, but not ſee the light: Impure ſouls ſhall be covered with ſhame and darkneſs, as with a Mantle; and ſhall never ſee the Kings face; they who would not ſee God in his Ordinances, ſhall not ſee him in his glory.
SECT. 3.
That we ſhould labour to be rightly qualified for this Viſion.
Uſe 2 2. IS there ſuch a bleſſed priviledge after this life? then let me perſwade all who hear me this day, 1. To get into Chriſt; We cannot come to God but by Chriſt; we cannot ſee God but through Chriſt. Moſes when he was in the Rock did ſee God, Exod. 33.32. In this bleſſed Rock Chriſt we ſhall ſee God. 2. Be purified perſons; it is only the pure in heart who ſhall ſee God; it is only a clear eye can behold a bright tranſparent object; thoſe only who have their hearts cleanſed from ſin, can have this bleſſed ſight of God; ſin is ſuch a cloud, as if it be not removed, will for ever hinder us from ſeeing the Sun of righteouſneſs. Chriſtian, Haſt thou upon thy heart holineſs to the Lord? then thou ſhalt ſee God; there are many ſaith Saint Auſtin, could be content to go to heaven, but they are loth to take the way that leads thither; they would have the glorious Viſion, but neglect the gracious Union.
There are ſeveral ſorts of eyes which ſhall never ſee God; the ignorant eye, the unchaſte eye, the ſcornful eye, the malicious eye, the covetous eye; if you would ſee God when you dye, you muſt be purified perſons while you live. 1 John 3.2, 3. We ſhall ſee him as he is; and every man that hath this hope in him, purifieth himſelf.
SECT. 4.
A Cordial for the pure in heart.
3. LET me turn my ſelf to the pure in heart. Uſe 3 1. Stand amazed at this priviledge, that you who are worms crept out of the duſt, ſhould be admitted to the bleſſed ſight of God to all Eternity; it was Moſes his prayer, I beſeech thee ſhew me thy glory, Exod. 33.18. The Saints ſhall behold Gods glory; the pure in heart ſhall have the ſame bleſſedneſs that God himſelf hath; for what is the bleſſedneſs of God, but the contemplating his own infinite beauty.
2. Begin your ſight of God here; let the eye of your faith be ſtill upon God. Moſes by faith ſaw him who is inviſible, Hebr. 11.27. Oft look upon him with believing eyes, whom you hope to ſee with glorified eyes: Pſal. 25. Mine eyes are ever towards the Lord; while others are looking towards the Earth, as if they would fetch all their comforts thence, let us look up to heaven; there is the beſt proſpect; the ſight of God by faith would let in much joy to the ſoul. 1 Pet. 1.8. Though now ye ſee him not, yet believing, ye rejoyce with joy unſpeakable.
3. Let this be as Cordial-water to revive the pure in heart; Be comforted with this, you ſhall ſhortly ſee God. The godly have many ſights here that they would not ſee; they ſee a body of death, they ſee the Sword unſheath'd, they ſee Rebellion wearing the Mask of Religion; they ſee the white Divel, theſe ſights occaſion ſorrow; but there is a bleſſed ſight a coming, they ſhall ſee God; and in him are all ſparkling beauties, and raviſhing joyes to be found.
4. Be not diſcouraged at ſufferings; all the hurt affliction and death can do, is to give you a ſight of God; as he ſaid to his Fellow-Martyr, One half houre in glory will make us forget our pain; the Sun ariſing, all the dark ſhadows of the night flie away: When the pleaſant beams of Gods countenance ſhall begin to ſhine upon the ſoul in heaven, then ſorrows and ſ…fferings ſhall be no more; the dark ſhadows of the night ſhall flie away; the thoughts of this beatifical Viſion ſhould carry a Chriſtian full ſail with joy through the waters of affliction; this made Job ſo willing to embrace death, Job 19.25, 26. I know that my Redeemer liveth, and though worms devoure this body, yet in my fleſh ſhall I ſee God.