[2.] Living to God. None shall live with God but those that first live to God in a state of holy communion with him, and glorify him upon earth. The spiritual life is heaven begun : if it be begun, it will be perfected ; if not, we eternally miss of it. If we look for the resur- rection of the dead, we must prepare for it by giving all diligence ' to be found of him in peace,' 2 Peter iii. 14, by watching and praying, that we may be ' counted worthy to stand before the Son of man,' Luke xxi. 36, that we may meet him with cheerfulness and confidence, not fear any evil from him : Acts xxiv. 15, 16, ' And have hope towards
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God, that there shall he a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust. And herein do I exercise myself, to keep always a conscience void of offence toward God and toward men.' Surely it is no easy thing to attain to this blessedness, and therefore we must set ourselves if by any means to seek after it.
2. As to passive obedience, this must be minded too, that so dying with him, and after his example, we may consequently obtain to rise with him to everlasting life. So great a good as eternal blessedness is to be sought, though with the communion of the sufferings of Christ.
Now here I shall observe two things.
[1.] That no suffering must be excepted out of our resignation. Though all that shall be happy do not suffer death for Christ (for all are not called to so great an honour), yet all must be ready to die for Christ ; for he is a christian, and none but he, that can deny life itself for Christ's sake. I prove it, because when Christ would teach his disciples self-denial, he doth instance in this point, to put our self-denial to the trial : Mat. xvi. 25, ' He that saveth his life, shall lose it ; and he that loseth his life, shall save it.' Whether you love an immortal holy life with God, or else your fleshly and earthly life better. This is the great question to be resolved, whether you are heirs of heaven or hell ? The unsanctified may have some love to God, but not a love to him above their lives. But if you can, for the love of God, and the hopes of glory, submit even to death itself, this is the proof of your sincerity. Again, Luke xiv. 26, ' If any man come unto me, and hate not father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.' You will think it is a note of excellency, and a commendable qualification of some few extraordinary saints. No ; it is that measure of saving grace which constituteth sincerity. Some may more willingly and readily lay down their life for Christ, but all must be contented to do so. If you think this is a hard saying, and who can bear it ? I answer —
(1.) There is no room for objections against so plain a word of Christ. It is the wisdom of God, and not our reason, which disposeth the crown of life, and which way we shall obtain it ; and when Christ hath stated his terms, it is too late for the vote of man to think to bring down Christianity to a lower rate.
(2.) This self-denial must be acted. When there is no way to escape such sufferings but by sinning, you must cheerfully lay down, not only all your interests, but your lives for Christ's sake. As those martyrs, Heb. xi. 35, ' They were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection.' When they might have been upon certain conditions freed from these cruel pains, they chose rather to suffer and die than accept of these conditions, being contrary to the laws of God. Why ? Because they looked for a resurrection to eternal life, that God would give them a glorious, immortal, blessed life, for a little miserable, short, and mortal breath, and would recompense their cruel pains with eternal pleasures. This will explain the apostle's expression, ' If by any means I might attain to the resurrection of the dead.'
III. The reasons why, rather than fail and miss of eternal life, we must submit to any means which God hath appointed in this
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world, or for our trial doth put us upon in the course of his provi- dence.
1. From the absolute dominion and prerogative of God, both to make laws and to put us upon what trials he pleaseth to appoint. He is our lord and sovereign, and therefore it is his wisdom, and not our reason, must determine by what we shall attain to that blessedness for which we were created. In his word he hath prescribed the duties, and hath reserved to himself a liberty in his providence to appoint our trials. To repine against his laws is to question his sovereignty : Ps. xii. 4, ' Who have said, With our tongue we will prevail, our lips are our own ; who is lord over us ? ' If we think to speak and do what we please, and as our affections and interests shall move us, we go about to disannul his authority, and question his right to govern. So also to murmur against his providence. He may do with his own as he listeth, Mat. xx. 15. Therefore we must submit to his sharpest dispensations, and be in perfect subjection to the Father of spirits, Heb. xii. 9. Our comforts, our lives, are not our own ; God, that doth require them, is absolute lord of them. If he cannot dispose of us and our comforts at his own pleasure, he is not, at least he is not owned as our lord and governor.