And then he rose again for this end, that he ' might be Lord,' because, howsoever he had a title to be Lord of the church, — by the union of the human nature with the divine, he was Lord alway, — yet in regard of the exercise of his lordship, it was defeil-ed till his glorious resurrection and ascension. Then that that lay hid before, Christ's divine power, majesty, and lordship, that appeared and manifested itself, as it is Kom. i. 4, ' He was mightily declared to be the Son of God by the resurrection from the dead.' He was the Son of God before; but then it was a kind of begetting, because it was then manifest. Things are said in Scripture and divinity to be when they are apparent to be. So this day of the resurrection Christ was begotten ; because it was apparent then by raising himself from the
PUECHASED BY HIS HUMILIATION. 337
dead, that he was the only-begotten Son of God. Now that made way for his lordship ; for after his resurrection God gave him power over all things in heaven and earth ; and then upon the resurrection he had the Spirit in more abundance, having conquered all enemies between God and us. Therefore he was fit to be Lord by that, because he could give the Spirit to them over whom be meant to rule.
But then in his own person, he rising, triumphed over all opposite ene- mies whatsoever ; over death the last enemy, and over Satan, sin, and the law, having cancelled all. Surely [since] he hath overruled all for himself, he will overrule all for his church and people ; and therefore he rose again to be * Lord of quick and dead ;' and he may well be, because he is Lord of ' quick and dead' in his own person. He is Lord over all in his own person, and therefore he is Lord over the church, and all the enemies of the chm'ch. So far as the enemies seized upon his person, so far he over- came them all. He hath as much care of his mystical person the church, as he had on* his own body ; and more too, for he gave that for the other.
And then he revived to be Lord over all ; that is, he lives for ever to make good what he hath gotten by his death. He will not lose the price of his own blood. He is in heaven to appear before God, and sits at the right hand of God, and rules there till he have made his enemies his foot- stool, till he draw his church home to heaven, to himself. ' He lives for ever,' as the apostle saith, 'to make intercession,' Heb. vii. 25. Hereupon it must needs be that by living for ever he is fitly qualified to be Lord over all the ' quick.' Now I proceed.
' That he might be Lord both of quick and dead.'
Christ is Lord both of the dead and of the living. You see upon what ground he is Lord of all, as well as of his church. He is an eternal Lord over the dead and the living. He is a transcendent Lord, above all other lords whatsoever ; and he is independent. He is not obnoxious f to any. All have power from him ; and in some sort indeed Christ hath redeemed even all other creatures. The}' are Christ's. And in some sort even proud wicked men, that live in the church, that have perhaps some parts (which are the occasion of their damnation, because of and by them, they are proud and insolent), they are redeemed by Christ, thus far to be serviceable to his church, to use their parts to his own ends. They go a great way in salvation, that so by their parts they may be fit to do service to the church. So he is Lord not only over the church, but of others for the service of the church.
Now this point, that Christ is Lord of the dead and of the living, it yields many comfortable uses. I spake of some things in general, and then we came to some particulars, as,
1. First, Seeing Christ is Lord of the quick and of the dead, tee may comfort ourselves under the sovereignty of Christ. To be Solomon's servant was accounted a great happiness. Those that did obsei*ve the government of Solomon did think so, as the Queen of Sheba, 1 Kings x. 8. Alas ! what shall we think of those that are under Christ, who ' is greater than Solomon,' Mat. xii. 42, a most great, a most wise, a most loving, a most gracious and powerful Lord over all. Therefore it is a most comfortable condition, here in this life, to add a little to that point, however it be Bervice. It is against the nature of man to serve a man, yet not to serve a more noble ; to serve God is to reign.
Besides, while we live here, such is our disposition, such is the weakness * Qu. ' of ' ?— G. t That is, ' subject to '— G.
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338 Christ's exaltation
of base sinners, that tliuy must be ruled by another; antl indeed our happi- ness and security consists in being ruled by another higher than ourselves. We are not fit to be our own governors. St Paul saith to the Galatians, ' an heir in his non-age diU'ereth little from a servant,' Gal. iv. 1. So it is with Christians. Till they be in heaven they diller little from servants ; and therefore they must be under tutors and government.