Let us leam this for our duty, as weU as consider our comfort, in that the chm'ch is the house of God, let us carnj ourselves as ive should, decently, in the house of God. Those that are to look to the house of God, they should purge out all unclean corners, that God may delight to dwell in his house still, that we give him no cause to depart out of his house. ' That I may dwell in the house of the Lord,' dc.
The act here is, that I ' may dwell in house of the Lord.' He did not desire to be in it for a day or a little time, to salute it, and so leave to it ; but to ' dwell in the house of the Lord,' and to dwell there for ever. You see here that Christians have a constant love to the best things, a constant desu'e to dwell in the house of God. You may think it a strange desire of this holy man to dwell in the house of God ; but think then of the con- tinuedness of his desire, it was even to heaven itself ; he desiz'ed ' to dwell in the house of God for ever.'
For what end ?
1. I desire to dwell in the house of God, that I may dwell in the love of God, and in the care of God to me i)i Christ for ever. I do not desire to dwell in the house of God, as it is a meeting, and there an end; but I desire to dwell in the house of God, that I may dwell in the love and care of God, and not only dwell in his care and love to me, and his care and esteem of me ; but,
2. That I may dwell in my love to him, that I may ' abide in his love,' and faith in him ; that I may abide in Christ. It is not only for a man to abide in the house of God, and go no further than so, but to abide in the love of God ; and in our love, and care, and faith, and dependence upon him, to make God our house, to Uve, and walk, and abide in, ' to dwell in God,' as St John saith, 1 John iv. 13 ; not only in the house of God, but God himself. And the upshot of all his desire, was to abide in heaven for ever. The desires of God's people never rest till they come to theii" proper centre, and there they are quiet. There is a rest of all desires in heaven ; as fire, it never rests till it come to its element above, and heavy bodies rest not till they come to the centre below. So holy desires, that are the motion of the soul, they rest not till they come to the centi>e, the place of rest. So we must conceive of David's desu-e to dwell in the
228 A BREATHING AFTER GOD.
house of the Lord, to dwell in the care, and love, and protection of God for ever, to dwell in love, and faith, and dependence, and in the whole stream of my soul for ever while I live ; and then abide in heaven, where there are ' pleasures for evermore,' as he saith in another place, Ps. xvi. 11.
Therefore when we have any thoughts and desires, while we are here below, of grace and comfort, &c., let us extend, and stretch our desires to the last, to heaven itself, where all deshes shall be accomplished, where all promises shall have their full performance. It is a poor thing only to desire to live in the church militant, and there is an end. No ; here is the comfort of God's people, that in their prayers and desires, and their en- deavours suitable to their prayers and desires, they all lead them to heaven ; and there they have their foil accomplishment. They have a constant desire to dwell in the house of God.
1. The reason is, because the soul in this world is never fully satisfied ■with the good things of God's house till it he in heaven. This life is a life of desires and longing ; the church is but contracted to Christ in this world ; the marriage shall be consummate in another world. Therefore the church desires still fui'ther and further communion with Christ in his ordinances here, and for ever in heaven.
2. And then tliere are remainders of corruptions still, that dead and dvU our performances, and put us on to actions that grieve our spirits atul the Sjnrit of God ; to this end, that we may have a perpetual supply of the Spirit. We desire to dwell in the house of the Lord, because there is corruption in us still, till grace hath wrought it out fully.
3. There is more and more to be had still in the house of God. We never come to be full. The soul it is wondrous capable, being a spiritual essence. It is capable of more grace and comfort than we can have in this world. Therefore we pray, ' Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.' A Christian desires to dwell in the house of the Lord here, till he come to dwell in heaven, till he be translated from the temple here, to the temple inheaven. In Ephes. iv. 11, seq., God hath ordained a ministry to the edification of the church, not only to constitute the church, as some think and say, that preaching must constitute a chm'ch, and after praying must edify it. Oh ! let both go together. ' God gave gifts to men,' to preach, to edify the church more and more. So long as there is use of building more and more, so long there is need of the ministry. Therefore he desired to ' dwell in the house of the Lord.'