And let us know that if we do not labour for this meat that brings to this life, look what degree of excellency we have had in the rank of the creatures, the same degree we shall have in misery ; for as the angels in the degree of excellency were the most excellent creatm-es, but being fallen they are in the same degree of misery that they were in happiness, and are now the most accursed creatures of all others, so man, as he is a most excellent creature, if he feed on the food that endures to everlasting life ; so if like Nebuchadnezzar he feed as a beast on earthly things, and forget his soul and affections, which are made to close and feed on Christ and better things, he shall have the same degree of misery that he hath in happiness, even next to the devils, the most wretched creature that can be. What if a man were clad as Aaron was in all his pontificality, in his priestly robes ! What if he should feed deliciously every day as Dives ! What and if he had the wisdom of Solomon, the strength of Samson! What and if he had all the kingdoms of the world ! If he have not the ' food that endures to everlasting life,' he should be stripped of all these ere long. It is only Christ, and the good things that are to be had in him and by him, that con- tinue everlastingly.
This should enforce us to labour after this food in the use of all good means. And before I leave the point, consider the reality, the truth of these heavenly things, of these things we have by Christ, ' the second Adam,' all things else are shadows. The food that nourisheth the body is not food in comparison of that. Earthly kingdoms are not kingdoms in respect of that ; earthly sonship is not sonship to that ; earthly riches they are nothing, they are vanity in comparison of that. Earthly inheritance is no inheritance in comparison of the inheritance we have by Christ, All other things are but titles of things. They are but empty things. There is a reality in Christ, a truth in the kingdom of grace. Alas ! what is riches, what are pleasures, what are honours, what is son- ship, what are all earthly things, in comparison of the soul, which is an immortal, a spiritual, an eternal substance ? They are but shadows. Those things that arc of equal extent and continuance with the soul ; and not only of equal extent, but that raise the soul to have communion with God in heaven, with the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost; there is the reality, there is the truth, if we will have the truth of things. ' I am that bread,' saith Christ afterwards in this chapter, ' and my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed,' as if other meat and other drink refreshed not indeed, but were only shadows of things.
Labour therefore for this meat ; and certainly, if so bo the Spirit of God once convince your judgments that these thmgs which I say are true, both
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for the necessity and excellency of this food, they will be effectual to stir you up to labour more after this food that endures to everlasting life. So much for that.
' Which the Son of man shall give you, for him hath God the Father sealed.'
To come now to the possibility of attaining this food, which is the third argument our blessed Saviour useth to enforce upon us this injunction, to ' labour for the food that endures to everlasting life.' Hope stirreth up endeavour, as we see in merchandizing. Though when we venture beyond the seas we commit all to wind and water, as they say, and it is doubtful what the issue may be, yet wo hope, and that sets us on work. So the poor husbandman, but that he hopes to have a comfortable issue, to have a harvest, he would never set himself to work. Now here is hope ; and hope on a better ground a great deal ; for he that makes other things successful, he hath given Christ for this purpose ; and Christ, you see here, he gives himself, ' which the Son of man shall give you.'
Here is all that we may ground and found our hope upon. Here is will, here is power, and here is authority to give it.
Here is will ; Christ will give it. Why ? Because he is the Son of man. What use is there of these words in this place ? Why doth he not say, ' which the Son of God shall give you ' ?
Oh, the Son of God without the Son of man is indeed a fountain of good things, but he is a sealed fountain ; alas ! of no comfort. Our comfort is in Immanuel, God-man. All our comfort is to be brought back to God, from whom we fell in paradise, and we must be brought back again to God by God. But unless God had become man, man had never come back again to God. Therefore all the union and communion we have with God, it depends on this first union of Christ with our nature, that the Son of God became the Son of man, as St Austin saith (c) ; for now the next union, that we become the sons of God, it comes from this, that God became man. And therefore he saith here, ' the Son of man shall give it you.' You need not climb up to heaven to fetch this food that endures to everlasting life, for the Son of God is come down from heaven to earth to take the nature of man ; and in that to die, in that to satisfy God's wrath, and so to become this blessed and everlasting food ; the Son of man, ' the second Adam.' As by one man we all come to misery, so by the * second Adam,' by man, we are restored to a blessed condition again. Therefore he saith here ' the Son of man,' because in the human nature all our salvation was wrought. Indeed, the worth and efficacy of our sal- vation comes from the divine nature ; but it was wrought in man's nature, the divine natm'e could not work it alone. But I will not dwell on this.