And be comforted in all the changes of this life, all the changes for the time to come, and in death itself, which is the last change. Are not all degrees to make way for that glorious appearing with Christ ? for the soul at death goes to heaven, and the body shall come after. Why should we be loath to die, when death is nothing but a change from misery to happi- ness ? a change from the danger of sinning, to an impossibility of sinning ; from a vale of misery to a place of happiness ; from men to God ; from sinful persons that trouble our peace and quiet to better company in heaven ; from actions that are sinful to actions altogether free from sin. It is a glorious and blessed change every way. We shall have better company, better place, better employment, all glorious then, till the time come that all the elect be gathered together, and then body and soul shall be ' for ever with the Lord,' 1 Thess. iv. 17. Why then should we fear changes, when all changes shall end in that that is better '? Is a labouring man loath to have his hire, or a weary man loath to have rest ? Is a king loath to be crowned ? Is a party contracted loath to have the marriage consummate ? Why should we be loath to die ? We should be ashamed of ourselves, that we have been so long in the school of Christ, and yet have not learned to unloose our affections from earth to better things ; that we stand in fear of death, that makes way to the glory of the soul now, and the eternal glory of body and soul after.
In a word, we are exhorted, in the begizming of the chapter, to have our minds in heaven, where Christ is ; and we are exhorted, after the text, to mortify our earthly members ; two necessary duties, to have our conversa- tion in heaven, before we be there, and to mortify our earthly members ; to die in our affections to earthly things, before we die indeed. Would we have strength put into our souls to perform both these ? Let us oft medi- tate of the things that are between these verses. Let us consider that we are dead, so we should be more lively to God. Consider that our life is hid with Christ ; that Christ shall appear ere long and we with him in glory.
THE HIDDEN LIFE. 217
We should raise our thoughts to be with Christ, and draw our souls up to heavenly things ; for the more our affections are upwards, the less they will be below. Our affections arc finite. The more we spend them on heavenly things, the less they will run on earthly. As a man in a trance, his thoughts are taken up with one matter, that he is dead to other things, so the soul which is taken up with the glory to come, and with Christ, it is dead to earthly things ; only it takes them for necessary use, as having use of them in our travail ; but it useth the world as if it used it not. And this issues from this principle, that we shall ere long appear with Christ in glory. There is no man but will drown himself too much with the things of the world, that hath not this to raise up his soul, ' I shall appear ere long with Christ in glory,' and then these things will be consumed.
The last point is, liou- these depend one vpon another, that because Christ shall appear in glory, therefore we.
I will touch it a little, because it is a point of faith that helps our judg- ment a little. It is a ground of divinit}', that whatsoever is in us that are members, it is in our head first ; for God is first, and then Christ mediator, and then we. Whatsoever is good in us, or shall be to us, it is in Christ first. He is justified from our sins, for he was our surety from sin. He was abased for them first ; therefore he shall appear then without sin to glory. Our sin was but imputed to Christ ; he became our surety for sin and he must be abased ; therefore we cannot be glorious here, because of our corruptions. Christ was surety for our sins in his first coming. Now his resurrection shewed that he had satisfied for om- sins. The second time he shall appear in glory. "WTiy are wejustified from our sins ? Because Christ, our surety, was acquitted.
We ascend gloriously to heaven. AVhere is the ground of it ? He ascended first, and we ascend for him and in him.
We sit in heavenly places. Why ? Because he is in heaven beforehand ; as the husband takes up a place for his wife. Why doth she,; go into the country and take it up after ? Because her husband hath gone before and taken it. Our ascension riseth from his, and our sitting at the right hand of God from his.
And so at the day of judgment, our being glorious, it comes from his. He then shall appear in glory, as the head and husband of his church, and shall shine upon all his members. He, as the sun, shall cast a lustre and beauty and glory upon all that are his ; and then they shall reflect that glory they have from him upon him again, and he upon them again. So he shall be glorious in them and they in him ; but the ground of all is, he is first in glory. He shall appear in glory, and then we in him.