A Complete Body of Divinity, Sermons · 14 (Question 4 cont.)
SERMON XIV.
III. THIS Incomprehenſible Being hath made ſuch diſcoveries▪ of himſelf in his Back-Parts, as preſent him a ſuitable Object for Faith to reſt upon. There are ſome precious rays of the Divinity, that irradiate us by way of reflection; by which we may ſo far acquaint our ſelves with God, as may make us happy. God is called a Sun, (Pſal. 84.11.) Now if we fix our eyes directly on the body of the Sun, it will wholly dazzle us; but if we look on the reflected light or beams of it, we are ſafe, and it is comfortable; and ſo it is here. The Divine perfections are irradiated upon our Underſtanding through a dark glaſs; they are held forth Aenigmatically: which diſplays of himſelf to his Creatures, God is pleaſed to call his back parts, which he promiſed he would eminently make known to Moſes, Exod. 33. ult. Now they are ſo called,
1. BECAUSE they fall ſhort of the plenary diſcovery of his Native Excellency, in the immediate unreflected manifeſtations of it. As when we ſee only the backparts of a man, we ſee but very little of his beauty, and comlineſs, whereof his face is the principal ſeat. They are but part of his ways, yea, a very little portion of him, that is thus underſtood by us. (Job 26.14.) His knowledge of himſelf, and that knowledge of him which … imparts to us, are infinitely diſproportionable.
2. BECAUSE they are but dark repreſentations of him, in compariſon with the glory which he poſſeſſeth in the light unapproachable. They are but as the refracted or broken rays of the bright Sun, or like the ruddineſs which its beams leave behind it, when the Body of it is gone below our Horizon; but as the ſparks of a great fire; glimpſes, and glimmerings in reſpect of that tranſcendent glory, which he enjoys in himſelf everlaſtingly.
3. BECAUSE they are, as it were Garments, which cloud, hide, or obſcure his Oriental Brightneſs. They are as a vail, which the great God puts upon him, thereby to diſcover himſelf in a more obſcure way; that ſo theſe manifeſtations do not over-power the faculties of our Nature: as a man's backparts are cloathed, and we know him by and through his garment, which hath not that clearneſs in it, which may be diſcerned in his face.
IN the further purſuit of this Propoſition, we may conſider,
(1.) What is this diſcovery?
(2.) Wherein it preſents him as a ſuitable Object of our Faith?
Q. I. WHAT is the Diſcovery, which the firſt being makes of himſelf, in his Backparts?
A. IN ſum, It is that whereby he reveals his communicable glory unto us, according to our manner and meaſure of receiving it. It is his ſpeaking to us about himſelf in our own language, & according to our capacity of receiving and apprehending any thing of him. Here two things are conſiderable, viz. What he reveals of himſelf, and the way in which he reveals it.
1. THAT which God reveals to us, is his communicable Glory. The diſtinction of the Incommunicable & Communicable Perfections of God is known and received among Chriſtians. What this communicable glory is, in particular, will afterwards be conſidered. In general, it is that which (in other terms) we call his Declarative glory, as the former is called his Eſſential glory: and it contains in it all thoſe divine perfections, which God doth intereſt the creature in, and influence it withal; of which he hath given us the intimations in his word & works: whatſoever of God we may be any ways partakers in, or whereby he may have glory by or from us, belongs to this head; and this is that which the Apoſtle calls, That which may be known of God, (Rom. 1.19.) and is called his Name, (Exod. 33.19.) intimating that there is ſomething that may not be known of him; nor yet could this, if he had not revealed it, either by the impreſſion of it upon the creature, or by the Teſtimony he hath given of it by his holy Spirit?
2. THE way, in which God reveals himſelf to us, comes under a double Conſideration.
1. HE doth it according to our manner of receiving it. Becauſe Heaven's mode and way is not known unto us, therefore he ſpeaks to us in the language or manner of Earth; (Joh 3.12.) and that is in the way of created humane Reaſon. God's face is only knowable by divine & increa…ed reaſon, which infinitely exceeds our capacity; but his backparts are the accommodation of the diſcoveries of himſelf to our reaſon. It is impoſſible for us to know or underſtand things, but by ſome rule of reaſon or other. Reaſon is nothing elſe but the manner of a Being, whereby it is acted upon our Underſtanding. We know nothing of God but by putting ſome Logical Notion upon him. All things are conveyed to us in a Logical way, and bear ſome ſtamp of reaſon upon them, or elſe we ſhould know nothing of them. Hence God, to fit his diſcovery of himſelf to our manner of entertaining it, takes the Rational or Logical Arguments upon himſelf, admits of a Diſtinction or a Deſcription, utters Sentences or Actions about himſelf, ſpeak: of himſelf as if he were an Effect & had Cauſes; a Subject, and had Adjuncts: and by ſuch a way we come to ſee ſomething concerning him, who is in himſelf inviſible: and this tells us how uſeful & neceſſary …aſon is to Faith; it being an inſtrument which is uſed to convey the diſcoveries of God unto it; and therefore Faith doth not relinquiſh or caſt off reaſon; for there is nothing in Religion contrary to it, tho' there are many things that do tranſcend, and muſt captivate it. Religion is the wiſdom of God, which cannot croſs it ſelf, & reaſon liſps out ſomething to Faith, though this entertains more than reaſon is able to expreſs.
2. HE doth it alſo according to our meaſure of receiving it i. e. according to the latitude of our Underſtanding it. As our apprehenſion hath its proper way, ſo it hath its circumſcribed limits: it is a finite thing: ours are created faculties, and they are narrow & ſhallow, and can take in but a little. They are but a few drops of this great Ocean, that our little veſſels can take into them. God's diſcoveries of himſelf to us are therefore ſome ſmall part of his great excellencies, and when we have ſaid all that we can to ſet him forth, how little will it be in compariſon of himſelf! It will not bear the proportion that one drop doth to the Sea. And the reaſon of it is, becauſe our limited knowledge, the ſtraitned faculty of our Underſtanding, can entertain no more. It may be ſwallowed up in the glory of God: it may ſwim in the Ocean of Everlaſting bliſs: it may be contained, but it can contain no more than its own meaſure. A veſſel that is full, cannot be more full. The great things of God are able to ſwallow up the Underſtandings of men & Angels: but God is ſo condeſcending to us, as to accommodate his revelations to our Capacities.
Q. II. WHEREIN doth this diſcovery preſent God to us, as a ſuitable Object of our Faith?
A. THERE are two Aſſertions, which Divines do uſually reſolve this Caſe withal, viz.
1. WE cannot know more of God, and live. It is impoſſible that the created faculty ſhould receive more into it. It was in kindneſs to Moſes, that God refuſed to gratify him in his requeſt; and he gives this reaſon for it, Exod. 33.20. And he ſaid, Thou canſt not ſee my face: for there ſhall no man ſee me, and live. If Moſes had ſeen … face, it muſt have been with the eye of his Underſtanding; but that being finite, and God infinite, it muſt have been extended beyond its capacity, and ſo have been broken and deſtroyed, and ſo the Object would have been ſo far from being an Happifying Object, that it would have been altogether Deſtructive to him. It is true, there are different Degrees of the Knowlege of God, that Men attain unto in this life. Some know but a little: others a great deal comparatively: and there is a growth in Knowlege as well as in Grace incumbent on us as a Duty. 2 Pet. 3.18. But grow in grace, and in the kmowlege of our Lord and Saviour Jeſus Chriſt. And thoſe that have the higheſt attainments in this Life, do know but in part; have but Childiſh apprehenſions, and do ſee but through a glaſs darkly (1 Cor. 13.9, &c) There is therefore a more full & perfect knowlege that we ſhall have in Heaven, when we ſhall be grown Men, and ſee without a glaſs, know as we are known; and in his light ſhall ſee light: but ſtill all this is limited and circumſcibed to the manner and meaſure of a created underſtanding. It differs not from the other in nature, but in degree: it is God in his Backparts ſtill; God as revealed in the face of Chriſt.
2. WE need to know no more of God, that we may Live. There is happineſs enough for a Creature comprized in this diſcovery. Here is that which is ſufficient to fill up and ſatisfy the moſt extended deſires, and make the man Bleſſed forever. To ſee and enjoy God in his Backparts, is enough to bound the vaſteſt reachings of Men or Angels. For,
1. THESE are all that is revealed of God. This is as much as his Infinite Wiſdom judgeth meet to diſcover to the Creature: hence it is all that we have to ſeek or enquire after. Deut. 29.29. The ſecret things belong unto the Lord our God: but thoſe things which are revealed, belong unto us, and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law. Out of doubt, God hath manifeſted himſelf ſufficiently for the bleſſedneſs of his people, whom he hath his heart upon, and whom he intends to make Bleſſed in communion with, and fruition of himſelf. Moſes was a bleſſed man, and yet he might ſee no more. And our Saviour declares this knowlege to be life eternal, (Joh. 17.3.) and what can we need more for ourſelves than Life eternal! He that hath that, is ſufficiently laid in, and may triumph.
2. THESE are the portion of God's Children. Jehovah, i. e. God in his Backparts, is the Believers Inheritance. Lam. 3.24. The Lord is my Portion. God in His Face cannot be ſeen; and therefore not inherited or poſſeſſed: for what fruition can we have of that which we know not? But God hath given or made over to every Believer an happifying Portion. It is his intereſt in this God, thus diſcovered, that David makes that boaſt of, Pſal. 16.5, &c. The Lord is the portion of mine Inheritance, and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot. The lines are fallen unto me in pleaſant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage. I will bleſs the Lord, &c. If there were any thing wanting to full felicity in the Saints Portion, God were not ſo good as his Word. When he had called Abraham to forſake all for him, he gives him that encouragement, Gen. 17.1, 7. I am the Almighty God; — I will eſtabliſh my Covenant between me and thee, to be a God unto thee.
3. IN theſe Backparts is contained all that we can ſtand in need of. Let us but read over all thoſe Glorious Golden Letters, in which the Name of God is diſplayed, in his Word and Works, and lay by them the ſtate of the Believer, lay all of his …nts open, take the full account of all that can be thought of, requiſite to his everlaſting Beatitude, & we ſhall find that nothing is here wanting to anſwer it to the outſide, and beyond that: Pſal. 34.9, 10. O fear the Lord, ye his ſaints: for there is no want to them that fear him. The young lions do lack and ſuffer hunger: but they that ſeek the Lord ſhall not want any good thing. Pſal. 84.11. For the Lord God is a ſun and ſhield: the Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will be withhold from them that walk uprightly. Pſal. 63.5. My ſoul ſhall be ſatisfied as with marrow and fatneſs; and my mouth ſhall praiſe thee with joyful lips. See how God did diſplay his Backparts to Moſes, Exod. 34 6, 7. And the Lord paſſed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, the Lord, God, merciful and gracious, long ſuffering, and abundant in goodneſs and truth. Keeping mercy for thouſands, forgiving iniquity, & tranſgreſſion, & ſin; and that will by no means clear the guilty; viſiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the childrens children, unto the third and to the fourth generation. And what cannot all this do for us? But this will be better ſeen in the ſequel.
USE 1. THE conſideration of this Concluſion, will afford us Direction, how to regulate our Conceptions, and Expreſſions about GOD; and how to expound them. It tells us that all is to be underſtood after the manner of men, according to our conception, and not according to the Nature of God properly. Though the things concerning God, which are revealed in the Scriptures, are not falſe, but true, yet they are infinitely ſhort of expreſſing his ſublimity, and they are very improper. We muſt always remember that God is inconceivably more, and better, than all that is or can be ſaid of him. And it may alſo teach us to have a care how far we ſtrein the humane expreſſions of Scripture, in drawing of Concluſions from them, concerning the Nature of God. Our vain minds will ſoon grow wanton here, and caſt reproach upon the glorious Firſt Being, and provoke his juſt diſpleaſure. It is good to be cautious how we approach too near to him that is a conſuming Fire.
USE 2. WE are here taught, what is the infinite Diſproportion between the happineſs of GOD, and that of his People. God as he is in himſelf, his Eſſence, his Face, his Light unapproachable, is his own portion and felicity; But God in his Backparts, his Attributes, his Communicable glory, is the heritage and happineſs of his Children. He is happy in himſelf, and therefore called God bleſſed for ever. He knows, loves, embraceth, enjoys himſelf, and that in his glory. The beams of his perfections are enough to fill us with good; whereas the fountain of it is but Adequate for him. It ſhould then invite us all to get a ſure intereſt in this God; and having obtained it, let it ſatisfy us; ſay, it is enough. Let it bound the …eachings of our Souls, and let us be able to ſay in truth as the Pſalmiſt, Pſal. 73.25, 26. Whom have I in heaven but thee? and th… is none upon earth that I deſire beſides thee. My fleſh and my heart fa…le…: but God is the ſtrength of my heart, and my portion for ever.
USE 3. LEARN hence what is the great Duty of Chriſtians. Hath God condeſcended to make himſelf thus known to us; it is then our intereſt to make it our buſineſs to contemplate him in theſe glorious excellencies, which he hath ſo diſplayed to us: theſe are the things that belong to us and our Children. Leaving then the abſtruſe ſecrets, that are above our reach, to him who alone can comprehend them, let us ſet our ſelves in ſearch after theſe manifeſtations of himſelf, which he hath made in his word and works: and think not, becauſe you are here ſtinted that you may therefore be remiſs in this ſearch. Here is enough, to fill up Time and Eternity, in the Contemplation of: here are Myſteries that the very Angels of light are ſtill Students in. And remember it is your life, your happineſs. This is the knowledge which points directly to eternal bleſſedneſs. A little of this knowledge, though obſcure, yet if ſaving, is better than all the skill that can be gotten in the moſt abſtruſe points of Humane Arts & Sciences. We know all that can be worth the knowing, if we know God in thoſe excellent perfections of his. Let it then put Young Ones upon this ſtudy, and perſwade you to begin early in this Inquiry. It will never repent you that you ſought after acquainting your ſelves with God betimes. This is the Knowledge, that will make you truly Wiſe; all other without it will not advance you above Fools, and this only will be able to make you happy; you ſee nothing at all that will truly do you any good, till you ſee God in thoſe revelations of himſelf to you. — And let us all bleſs God for this wonderful condeſcenſion of his to us, that he will make known the great Myſteries & ſacred Riddles of his Deity to us, in a way that is ſo accommodated to our capacity, which muſt elſe have lain hid from us for ever. And let us therein teſtify our thankfulneſs, in ſtudying every day more to know; and knowing to love; and loving to ſerve him: ſo ſhall we be made Everlaſtingly happy in our acquaintance with him.
JANUARY 29. 1688.