may draw exact maps of countries, and yet never see them, nor travel toward them; so you may describe to others the joys of heaven, and yet never come near it in your own hearts. A blind man, by learning, may dispute of light and colours; so may you set forth to others that heavenly light, which never enlightened your own souls, and bring that fire from the hearts of your people, which never warmed your own hearts. What heavenly passages had Balaam in his prophecies, yet how little of it in his spirit! Nay, we are under a more subtle temptation, than any other men, to draw us from this heavenly life. Studying and preaching of heaven more resembles a heavenly life, than thinking and talking of the world does; and the resemblance is apt to deceive us. This is to die the most miserable death, even to famish ourselves, because we have bread on our tables; and to die for thirst, while we draw water for others, thinking it enough that we have daily to do with it, though we never drink for the refreshment of our own souls. § 9. (II.) Having thus showed thee what hinderances will resist thee in the work, I expect that thou resolve against them, consider them seriously, and avoid them faithfully, or else thy labour will be in vain. I must also tell thee, that I here expect thy promise, as thou valuest the delights of these foretastes of heaven, to make conscience of performing the following duties; the reading of which, without their constant practice, will not bring heaven unto thy heart. Particularly,— be convinced that heaven is the only treasure and happiness; labour to know that it is thy own,-and how near it is frequently and seriously talk of it;-endeavour to raise thy affections nearer to it in every duty; to the same purpose improve every object and event; be much in the angelical work of praise ;possess thy soul with believing thoughts of the infinite love of God;-carefully observe and cherish the motions of the Spirit of God;-nor even neglect the due care of thy bodily health. 10. (1) Be convinced that heaven is the only trea sure and happiness, and labour to know what a treasure and happiness it is. If thou do not believe it to be the chief good, thou wilt never set thy heart upon it; and this conviction must sink into thy affections; for if it be only a notion, it will have little efficacy. If Eve once supposes she sees more worth in the forbidden fruit, than in the love and enjoyment of God, no wonder if it have more of her heart than God. If your judgment once prefer the delights of the flesh before the delights of the presence of God, it is impossible your heart should be in heaven. As it is ignorance of the emptiness of the things below that makes men so overvalue them; so it is ignorance of the high delights above, which is the cause that men so little mind them. If you see a purse of gold, and believe it to be but counters, it will not entice your affections to it. It is not the real excellence of a thing itself, but its known excellence, that excites desire. If an ignorant man see a book containing the secrets of arts or sciences, he values it no more than a common piece, because he knows not what is in it; but he that knows it, highly values it, and can even forbear his meat, drink, and sleep, to read it. As the Jews killed the Messiah, while they waited for him, because they did not know him; so the world cries out for rest, and busily seeks for delight and happiness, because they know it not; for did they thoroughly know what it is, they could not so slight the everlasting treasure. § 11. (2) Labour also to know that heaven is thy own happiness. We may confess heaven to be the best condition, though we despair of enjoying it; and we may desire and seek it, if we see the attainment but probable; but we can never delightfully rejoice in it, till we are in some measure persuaded of our title to it. What comfort is it to a man that is naked to see the rich attire of others! What delight is it for a man that hath not a house to put his head in, to see the sumptuous buildings of others! Would not all this rather increase his anguish, and make him more sensible of his own misery? So for a man to know the excellencies of heaven, and not know whether ever he shall enjoy them, may raise desire and urge pursuit, but he will have little joy. Who will set his heart on another man's possessions? If your houses, your goods, your cattle, your children, were not your own, you would less mind them, and less delight in them. O Christian! rest not, therefore, till you can call this rest your own: bring thy heart to the bar of trial: set the qualifications of the saints on one side, and of thy soul on the other, and then judge how near they resemble. Thou hast the same word to judge thyself by now, as thou must be judged by at the great day. Mistake not the scripture's description of a saint, that thou neither acquit nor condemn thyself upon mistakes. For as groundless hopes tend to confusion, and are the greatest cause of most men's damnation; so groundless doubts tend to and are the great cause of the saint's perplexity and distress. Therefore lay thy foundation for trial safely, and proceed in the work deliberately and resolutely, nor give over till thou canst say, either thou hast, or hast not yet, a title to this rest. O! if men did truly know, that God is their own Father, and Christ their own Redeemer and Head, and that those are their own everlasting habitations, and that there they must abide and be happy for ever; how could they choose but be transported with the fore-thoughts thereof! If a Christian could but look upon sun, moon, or stars, and reckon all his own in Christ, and say, These are the blessings that my Lord hath procured me, and things incompa rably greater than these; what holy raptures would his 'spirit feel! § 12. The more do they sin against their own comforts, as well as against the grace of the gospel, who plead for their unbelief, and cherish distrustful thoughts of God, and injurious thoughts of their Redeemer; who represent the covenant, as if it were of works, and not of grace; and Christ as an enemy, rather than a Saviour; as if he were willing they should die in their unbelief, when he hath invited them so often, and so affectionately, and suffered the "gonies that they should suffer. Wretches that we are! to be keeping up jealousies of our Lord, when we should be rejoicing in his love. As if any man could choose Christ, before Christ hath chosen him; or any man were more willing to be happy, than Christ is to make him happy. Away with these injurious, if not blasphemous, thoughts! If ever thou hast harboured such thoughts in thy breast, cast them from thee, and take heed how thou ever entertainest them more. God hath written the names of his people in heaven, as you use to write your names or marks on your goods; and shall we be attempting to raze them out, and to write our names on the doors of hell? But blessed be God, whose foundation standeth sure;(h) and who keepeth us by his power through faith unto salvation.(i) §13. (3) Labour to apprehend how near thy rest is. What we think near at hand, we are more sensible of than that which we behold at a distance. When judgments or mercies are afar off, we talk of them with little concern, but when they draw close to us, we tremble at or rejoice in them. This makes men think I on heaven so insensibly, because they conceit it at too - great a distance; they look on it as twenty, thirty, or forty years off. How much better were it to receive the sentence of death in ourselves,(k) and to look on eternity as near at hand! While I am thinking and writing of it, it hasteth near, and I am even entering into it before I am aware. While thou art reading this, whoever thou art, time posteth on, and thy life will be gone as a tale that is told. If you verily believed you should die to-morrow, how seriously would you think of heaven to-night! When Samuel this had told Saul, To-morrow shalt thou be with me; struck him to the heart. And if Christ should say to a believing soul, To-morrow shalt thou be with me this would bring him in spirit to heaven before-hand. Do but suppose that you are still entering into heaven, and it will greatly help you more seriously to mind it. § 14. (4) Let thy eternal rest be the subject of thy frequent serious discourse; especially with those that can speak from their hearts, and are seasoned them (h) 2 Tim. ii. 19. (i) Pet. i. 5. (k) 2 Cor. i. 9. Gg selves with a heavenly nature. It is pity Christians should ever meet together, without some talk of their meeting in heaven, or of the way to it, before they part. It is pity so much time is spent in vain conversation, and useless disputes, and not a serious word of heaven among them. Methinks we should meet together on purpose to warm our spirits with discoursing of our rest. To hear a Christian set forth that blessed glorious state, with life and power, from the promises of the gospel, methinks should make us say, Did not our hearts burn within us, while he opened to us the scripture?(1) If a Felix will tremble, when he hears his judgment powerfully represented, why should not the believer be revived, when he hears his eternal rest described? Wicked men can be delighted in talking together of their wickedness; and should not Christians then be delighted in talking of Christ; and the heirs of heaven, in talking of their inheritance? This may make our hearts revive, as it did Jacob's to hear the message that called him to Goshen, and to see the chariots that should bring him to Joseph. O that we were furnished with skill and resolution, to turn the stream of men's common discourse to these more sublime and precious things! and, when men begin to talk of things unprofitable, that we could tell how to put in a word for heaven, and say, as Peter of his bodily food, Not so, for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean! O the good that we might both do and receive by this course! Had it not been to deter us from unprofitable conversation, Christ would not have talked of our giving an account of every idle word in the day of judgment.(m) Say then as the Psalmist, when you are in company, Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy.(n) Then you shall find it true, that a wholesome tongue is a tree of life.(0) § 15. (5) Endeavour in every duty to raise thy affections nearer to heaven. God's end in the institution of his ordinances, was, that they should be as so many (Luke xxiv. 32. (m) Matt. xii. 36. |