out of fight but they fhall be raised beautiful and glorious, as different from what they were before, as the heavenly manfions, in which they are to dwell for ever, are from that dark cell of the grave, out of which they are raised; and they, that before were only fit company for duft and worms, fhall be admitted into the reviving prefence of God, and the bleffed fociety of Angels.

It is fown in weakness, it shall be raised in power. Our bodies now fall to the ground through their own frailty, and drop into the grave through the weakness and infirmity of nature to fupport and bear them up any longer: but though they fall through weakness, they fhall at the refurrection be endowed with fuch a life, and ftrength and vigour, as to be able, without any change or decay, to abide and continue for ever in the fame ftate.

It is fown a natural body, fuxinov, an animal body, an earthly cottage or tabernacle fitted for the foul to lodge in for a little while, but it is raised a fpiritual body. And this is the fum of all the rest. Our bodies in this world are grofs flesh and blood, liable to be affected with natural and fenfual pleafures, and to be afflicted with natural pains and diseases, to be preffed with natural neceffities of hunger and thirst, and obnoxious to all those changes and accidents to which natural things are fubject: but it fhall be raised a fpiritual body, pure and refined from the dregs of matter; it fhall not hunger nor thirst, be difeafed or in pain any more. Thefe houfes of clay, whofe foundation is in the duft, are continually decaying, and therefore they ftand in need of perpetual reparation by food and phyfick: but our house which hall be from heaven, fhall be of fuch lafting and durable matter, as not only time, but even eternity itself shall make no impreffion upon it, or caufe the leaft decay in it. They who shall be accounted worthy, fays our Saviour, to obtain that world, and the refurrection from the dead, cannot die any more; but shall be like the Angels, and are the children of God; that is, in fome degree fhall partake of the felicity and immortality of God himfelf, who is always the fame, and his years fail not. It is raised a fpiritual body. We shall then be, as it were,

all

all fpirit, and our very bodies fhall be then fo raised and refined, that they fhall be no clog, no impediment to the operations of our fouls. And furely we cannot but think this a glorious change, when we confider how our bodies do now crufh our fpirits, and what a melancholy and dead weight they are upon them, and how grievous an incumbrance, and trouble, and temptation, they are for the moft part to us in this mortal state. I proceed now to the

II. Thing, wherein the bleffednefs of the juft at the refurrection fhall confift, viz. in the confequent happinefs of the whole man, of the foul and body united and purified, the one from fin, the other from frailty and corruption; and both admitted to the bleffed fight and enjoy ment of the ever-bleffed God. But this is an argument too big for our narrow apprehenfions of things, whilft we are in this mortal state; a fubject too unwieldly for fuch children, as the wifeft of us all are while we are in this world; and whenever we attempt to speak of it, we do but fpeak like children, and underftand like children, and reason like children about it. That which is imperfect must be done away; our fouls must be raised to a greater perfection, and our underftandings filled with a stronger and steadier light, before we can be fit to handle fuch a fubject, according to the worth. and dignity of it. We must first have been in heaven, and poffeffed of that felicity and glory which is there to be enjoyed, before we can think or talk of it, in any measure as it deferves. In the mean time, whenever we fet about it, we fhall find our faculties oppreffed with the weight and fplendor of fo vaft and glorious an argument; like, St. Paul, who, when he was caught up into paradife, faw and heard that, which when he came down into this world again, he was not able to express, and which is not poffible for man to utter.

So that in difcourfing of the state of the blessed, we must content ourselves with what the fcripture hath declared in general concerning it, that it is a ftate of perfect freedom from all thofe infirmities and imperfections, thofe evils and miferies, thofe fins and temptations, to which we are liable in this world; a ftate of unfpeakable and endless joy and happiness in the blessed fight VOL. VIII.

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and

and prefence of God, and in the happy fociety of an innumerable company of Angels, and of the fpirits of juft men made perfect.

So St. John defcribes the felicities and glories of that ftate, as they were reprefented to him in a vifion, Rev. xxi. 2. 3. 4. And I John faw the holy city, new Jerafalem, coning down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven, faying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself fhall be with them, and be their God. And God fhall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither forrow, nor crying, neither ball there be any more pain; for the former things are paffed away; that is, all thofe evils which we faw and fuffered in this world, will for ever vanish and difappear. And ver. 23. And the city hat no need of the fun, neither of the moon to fhine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And which is the greateft privilege and felicity of all, no fin fhall be there; ver. 27. And there hall in no wife enter into it any thing that defileth; and confequently no mifery and curfe fhall be there: chap. xxii. 3. 4. And there Jhall be no more curfe; but the throne of God, and of the Lamb fhall be in it, and his fervants fhall ferve him, and they fhall fee his face. In which laft words, our employment and our happiness are expreffed; but what in particular thefe fhall be, and wherein they fhall confift, it is impoffible for us now to defcribe; it is fufficient to know, in general, that our employment fhall be our unfpeakable pleasure, and every way fuitable to the glory and happiness of that ftate, and as much above the noblest and most delightful employment of this world, as the perfection of our bodies, and the powers of our fouls, fhall then be above what they were in this world.

In a word, our happiness fhall be fuch as is worthy of the great King of the world to bestow upon his faithful fervants, and infinitely beyond the juft reward of their belt fervices; it is to fee God, and to be ever with him, in whofe prefence is fulness of joy, and at whofe rightband are pleafures for evermore.

SER

SERMON

CLXXXV.

Of the happiness of good men, in the fu ture state.

I JOHN iii. 2.

It doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know, that when he fhall appear, we shall be like him; for we fhall fee him as he is.

TH

The firft fermon on this text.

HE great defign of this epiftle is to perfuade men to purity and holiness of life, without which we can lay no claim to the promises and privileges of the gofpel. Chriftians are called the children of God; and this is a great privilege indeed, a mighty argument of God's love and favour to us, to own us for his children. Behold, what manner of love the father hath beftowed upon us, that we should be called the fons of God. This is the happiness of our prefent condition: now we are the fons of God; and if fons then heirs; this gives a title to a future inheritance. And it does not yet appear what we shall be; the circumftances of our future happiness and glory are not perfectly revealed to us, only thus much in general is difcovered to us, that we fhall be very happy, because we fhall be admitted to the immediate fight and enjoyment of God; and we cannot fee him and enjoy him, unless we be like him; and to be like God, is to be happy. We know that when he fhall appear, edv qavepwon, that is, when it shall appear. It doth not yet appear what we shall be, but when it fhall appear, that is, when our future happinefs fhall be revealed to us: it is not yet particularly difcovered to us, but thus much in general we know of it before-hand, that we shall be like God, for we fhall fee him as he is. In which words there are thefe four things worthy of our confideration:

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Firft,

First, The prefent obfcurity of our future ftate, as to the particular circumftances of that happiness which good men fhall enjoy in another world: It doth not yet appear what we shall be.

Secondly, That thus much we certainly know of it in general, that it shall confift in the fight and enjoyment of God; We know that when it hall appear, we fhall fee him as he is.

Thirdly, Wherein our likeness to God fhall confist: We shall be like him.

Fourthly, The neceffary connexion between our likenefs to God, and our fight and enjoyment of him: We fhall be like him, for we fhall fee him as he is: that is, because we shall fee him as he is, therefore it is certain we fhall be like him; for unless we be like God, we are not capable of feeing and enjoying him.

First, The prefent obfcurity of our future ftate, as to the particular circumftances of that happiness which good men fhall enjoy in another world: It doth not yet appear what we fhall be. The fcripture tells us, that it is a glory yet to be revealed: that there fhall be fuch a ftate of happiness for good men in another world, though it was in a great measure obfcure to the world before, both to Jews and Gentiles, yet it is now clearly revealed to us by the appearance of Jefus Chrift, who hath brought life and immortality to light by the gof pel. But the particular circumftances of this happiness are ftill hid from us; and as it is a needlefs, fo it would be a faulty curiofity in us to pry and enquire into them. It is enough that we certainly know there is fuch a ftate; the knowledge of this in general is enough to quicken our diligence, and excite our endeavours for the obtaining and fecuring of it: it is enough to mortify all evil affections in us, and to baffle all temptations to fin, to know that it will rob us of fo great a felicity, as God hath promised to us; it is enough to fupport and comfort us under all the miferies and afAictions of this prefent time, to be fully affured that after a few days of forrow and trouble are over, we fhall be unfpeakably and eternally happy. A firm perfuafion of this, is argument enough to our obedience, and a fufficient fupport to our faith and patience, and

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