2. Be not quiet till you come out of this estate by Christ ; he is the bridge between earth and heaven, John xiv. 6. There can be no familiarity between us and God, but through him, Luke xvi. 26. Christ is the ladder by which we ascend, the means of intercourse between God and us. When man was driven out of paradise, the tree of life was guarded by a flaming sword. There is no coming to God but by him, and * he is able to save to the utmost,' Heb. vii. 25.
3. Avoid sin, that separateth between God and you, Isa, lix. 1, 2. How will you pray when you cannot look God in the face ? Fear fol- loweth guilt. The Israelites, when they had sinned, worshipped at their tent-door. You cannot come to God with such confidence.
4. Let us often delight in communion with God and acquaint- ance with him. It is heaven begun. Heaven is for God's familiars. Strangers here will not be owned ; and hereafter (Mat. vii. 23) Christ will say unto them, ' I know you not/ But Christ will take notice of his old friends. Oh ! then, love his presence, make him of your coun- sel, your bosom friend.
5. Live in a holy sensibleness of his accesses and recesses ; for his accesses, that you may be thankful ; for his recesses, to be humble. It is a question which is worst, not to take notice of his accesses or recesses, not to mourn for his absence or rejoice in his presence ; both are bad. Not to mourn for his absence is the worst sin, because absence is most sensible. In the present life, when our enjoyment of him is lost, it is a temporary hell; yet it is foul ingratitude not to take notice of his presence, when he counselleth you in doubts, guideth you in straits. God will have his acts of familiarity to be observed ; it is his complaint, Hosea xi. 3, ' I taught Ephraim also to go, taking them by their arms; but they knew not that I healed them.' The one argueth little feel- ing, the other little gratitude ; only want of feeling is the worser sign, for that is a sign of deadness. When God suspends all acts of fami- liarity, some are stupid and insensible, so they can take up with the comforts of the creature ; they never mind spiritual visits. Micah mourned for his gods. Love is discovered by grief in want, as well as delight in enjoyment. The main of Christianity lieth in observing how it is between us and God. When actual influences are suspended, either of grace or comfort, when prayer finds not such an answer, and wlien we do not find such excitation to holy duties, and God hideth himseK from our prayers.
VeR. 41,] SERMONS UPON MATTHEW XXV. 95
We have handled the loss. Now we come, secondly, to speak of the pain. There are sad gripes at the parting of the soul and body ; what then will there be at the parting of the soul and Christ, when the terror of Christ's face shall banish them out of his presence ?
Secondly, Tlie poena sensus. Here I shall take notice of —
1. The nature of the torment, _^re.
2. The aggravation from the duration, everlasting.
3. The company and ^ociQij , prepared for the devil and his angels. The nature of the torment, ' fire.' By fire is not meant material or
ordinary fire ; that cannot hurt spirits. Now this is such a fire as is prepared for the devil and his angels. All the other expressions are metaphorical, the wood, the brimstone, the lake, the smoke, the worm, the chains ; and why not this ? But observe, though it be not fire, yet it noteth real and horrible torments, such as are more painful than fire. It is called ' wrath to come,' 1 Thes. i. 10, because there was never such wrath before. The Holy Grhost useth such expressions as we are acquainted with.
1. The extremity of these pains cannot be told us. Fire is an active, furious element, the pain most searching, and no fire more scalding than brimstone ; to sense that is most grievous and bitter. But the pains of hell surpass all that is spoken. Look, as when heaven is set out by gold and pearls and precious stones — the joys there are much above these shadows — so all notions come short of hell.
2. The whole man is under the pains of it, both body and soul ; both are fellows in sin, and both are punished. It appeareth partly from scripture : Mat. x. 28, ' Fear not him that can kill the body, but fear him that can destroy both body and soul in hell.' Mark, not only the soul, but the body. The body is not only the instrument, but the occasion of many sins ; the law in the members, brutish motions of lusts ; the eye is fed with lust ; therefore the body hath its share.
[1.] For the body ; what the torment shall be we cannot tell ; the scripture is silent ; only, in the general, that it shall have its share of punishment, is certain ; and not only by the grief and anguish of the soul, but the pain residing in the body. As the saints have not only a happiness for their souls, but their bodies ; their vile bodies shall be changed. At the day of judgment, when their bodies are united to their souls, their torments are increased. Here in the text it is said, ' Depart ye ; ' the whole man, no part free. There is a place of tor- ment, as we proved before, as well as a state of torment; therefore the body hath its inconveniences : their eyes meet with nothing but affrighting spectacles, the devils and the damned. Every time they look on their tempter, it revives their guilt ; as the saints, when they look on their Redeemer, it filleth their hearts full of love and adora- tion. What see they but devils to torture them, or other damned tormented with them? Wives and children through their negligence, or neighbours by their cursed example, brought into this place of tor- ment. Their ears are filled with nothing but yellings and bowlings, and hideous outcries. More particularly I shall not define.