We consist of body and soul in this world, and our souls are much confined and tied to our. senses. Imagination propounds to the soul greater things than the senses. So God helps the soul by outward things that work upon the senses ; sense upon the imagination, and so things pass into the soul- God frames his manner of dealing suitable to the nature he hath created us in. Therefore he useth the word and sacraments, and such things, whereby he makes impressions upon the very soul itself.
And this indeed, by the way, makes spiritual things so difficult as they are ofttimes, because we are too much enthralled to imagination and sense, and cannot abstract and raise our minds from outward sensible things to spiritual things. Therefore you have some, all the days of their life, spend their time in the bark of the Scriptures ; and they are better than some others that are all for notions and outside : such things as frame to the imagination, and never come to know the spuit of the Scriptures, but rest in outward things, in languages and tongues, and such like. Whereas these things lead further, or else they come not to their perfection. The Scrip- ture is but a glass, to see some excellencies in it. ' We see as in a glass.' Now the use of a glass among us especially is twofold. (1.) It is either to help weakness of sif/ht against the excellency of the object. When there is a weak sight and an over excellent object, then a glass is used, or some polite* and clear body, as we cannot see the sun in itself. The eye is weak and the sun is glorious. These two meeting therefore together, we help it by seeing the sun in water, as in an eclipse. * That is, = polished. — G.
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If a man would judge of an eclipse he must not look on the sun, but see it in water, and there behold and discern these things ; so to see the glory of God in himself, it is too glorious an object. Our eyes are too weak. How doth God help it ? He helps it by a glass, by ' God manifest in the flesh,' 1 Tim. iii. IG, and by the word and sacraments whereby we come to have communion with Christ. To apply this more particularly.
Now that we are to receive the sacrament, conceive the sacraments arc glasses wherein we see the glory of the love and mercy of God in Christ. For take the bread alone, as it doth not represent and figure better things, and what is it ? and take the wine alone, as it doth not represent better things, and what is the wine ? But an ordinary poor creature. Oh, but take them as they are glasses, as things that convey to the soul and repre- sent things more excellent than themselves, so they are glorious ordinances. Take a glass as a glass, it is a poor thing ; but take the glass as it repre- sents a more excellent thing than itself, so they are of excellent use ; so bread and wine must not be taken as naked elements, but as they represent and convey a more excellent thing than themselves, that is, Christ and all his benefits, the love and mercy and grace of God in Christ ; and so they are excellent glasses. Therefore I beseech you now, when you are to receive the sacrament, let your minds be more occupied than your senses. When you take the bread, think of the body of Christ broken ; and when you think of uniting the bread into one substance, think of Christ and you made one. When the wine is poured out, think of the blood of Christ poured out for sin. When you think of the refreshing by the wine, think of the refreshing of your spirits and souls by the love of God in Christ, and of the love of Christ that did. not spare his blood for your soul's good. How doth Christ crucified and shedding his blood refi'esh the guilty soul, as wine refresheth the weak spirits. Thus consider them as glasses, where better things are presented, and let your minds be occupied as well as your senses, and then you shall be fit receivers, as ' in a glass.'
' We behold,' &c.
God when he made the world, this glorious frame of the creatures, and all their excellencies, he created light to discover itself, and all other excel- lencies. For light is a glorious creature. It discovers itself. It goes with a majesty and discovers all other things, good and bad whatsoever ; and together with light God created sight in man, and other senses, to appre- hend the excellency of the creation. What were all this goodly frame of creatures, the sun, and moon, and stars, and glory of the earth, if there were not light to discover and sight. to apprehend it by? Is it not so in this outward creation of the old heavens and old earth that must be con- sumed with fire ? And is it not much more in the new creation ? There is excellent glory, marvellous glory, wondrous grace in* Christ, &c. Must there be light, and must not there be an eye to discover this ? Surely there must. Therefore it is said here, ' We behold.'