"Will not God, that sheds abroad his love in our hearts by his Spirit here, fully fatisfy it bereafter? Will not God, who fills us here with the joy of his Spirit, by I know not what inconceivable ways, communicate himself in a more ravishing and ecftatick manner to us, when we fhall behold him as he is, and live for ever incircled in the arms of his love and glory? Upon the whole then, I cannot but believe, that the beatific Vifion will be the fupreme pleasure of heaven: yet I do not think that this is to exclude thofe of an inferior nature. God will be there, not only all, but in all. We shall fee him as he is; and we fhall fee him reflected, in angels, and all the inhabitants of heaven; nay, in all the various treasures of that happy place but in far more bright and lovely characters than in his works here below This is a state, now, that answers all ends, and fatisfies all appetites, let them be never fo various, never fo boundless. Temporal good, nay a ftate accumulated with all temporal goods, has ftill fomething defective, fomething empty in it: That which is crooked cannot be made ftraight, and that which is wanting cannot be numbred. And therefore the eye is not fatisfied with feeing, nor the ear with bearing: but all things are full of labour; man cannot utter it. And if this were not the state of temporal things, yet that one thought of Solomon that he must leave

S 4

them,

them, makes good the charge of vanity and vexation: and the contrary is that which compleats heaven; namely, that it is eternal. Were heaven to have an end, that end would make it none That death would be as much more intolerable than this here, ås the joys of heaven are above thofe of earth. For the terror, and the evil of it, would be to be eftimated, by the perfection of that nature and happiness which it would put an end to. To dye in paradife, amidft a crowd of fatisfactions, how much more intolerable were this, than to dye in thofe accurfed regions that breed continually briars and brambles, cares and forrows? And now, I doubt not, but every one will readily acknowledge, that an heaven, were it believed, were fuch a fruit of Chriftian Liberty, fuch a motive to it, as none could refift. Did I believe this, have I heard one fay, I would quit my trade, and all cares and thoughts of this world; and wholly apply my felf to get that other you talk of. There was no need of going thus far: but this fhews what the natural influence of this doctrine of a life to come is; and that it is generally owing to infidelity, where 'tis fruftrated and defeated. What is in this cafe to be done? What proof, what evidences, are fufficient to beget faith in him, who rejects Christianity and all divine revelation? He that hears not

Mofes and the prophets, Chrift and his apo

ftles,

fles, neither will he believe though one rofe from the dead. This doctrine of a life to come was generally believed by the Gentile world. It was indeed very much obfcured, but never extinguished, by the addition of many fabulous and fuperftitious fancies; fo ftrong was the tradition or reafon, or rather both, on which 'twas built. The Jews univerfally embraced it. The general promifes of God to Abraham and his feed, and the feveral shadows and types of it in the Mofaic inftitution, did confirm them in the belief of a doctrine, which I do not doubt, had been transmitted to them even from Enoch, Noah, and all their pious ancestors. Nor must we look upon the Sadducees amongst the Jews, or the Epicureans amongst the Gentiles, to

be any objection against this argument of a life to come, founded in tradition and the univerfal fenfe of mankind: because they were not only inconfiderable, compared to the body of the Jewish or Pagan world, but alfo deferters and apoftates from the philofophy and religion received. To what end fhould I proceed from the Gentile and Jew to the Chriftian? Were Christianity entertained as it ought, the very fuppofal of any doubt concerning a life to come would be impertinent. Here we have numerous demonftrations of it. Not only the fortune of virtue in this life, which is often very calamitous, but even the origin and nature

of

of it, do plainly evince a life to come. For to what end can the mortification of the body, by abftractions and meditations, be enjoyned, if there be no life to come? What need is there of renovation, or regeneration, by the Word and Spirit of God, were there no life to come? One would think, the common end of this natural life might be well enough fecured upon the common foundation of reafon and human laws. What fhould I here add, the love of God, and the merits of Jesus? from both which we may derive many unanswerable arguments of a life to come. For though, when we reflect upon it, it appears as much above our merit, as it is above our comprehenfion, yet when we confider, that eternal life is the gift of God through Jefus Chrift our Lord; what lefs than an heaven can we expect from an infinite merit and almighty love? The love of God must be perfect as bimfelf: and the merits of Jefus must be eftimated by the greatness of his Perfon, and his fufferings. He that cannot be wrought upon by thefe and the like gospel arguments, will be found, I doubt, impenetrable to all others. 'Tis in vain to argue with fuch a one from natural topicks: and therefore I will stop here.

I fhould now pafs on to the third thing, the attainment of Chriftian Liberty: but this chapter is grown much too big already:

and

and to the confideration of the fruit of this liberty, which I have fo long infifted on, nothing more needs to be added, but the obfervation of thofe rules, which I fhall lay down in the following chapters, For whatever advice will fecure the feveral parts of our liberty, will confequently fecure the whole. I will therefore clofe this chapter here; with a brief exhortation, to endeavour after deliverance from fin. How many and powerful motives have we to it? Would we free our felves from the evils of this life? let us dam up the fource of them, which is fin. Would we furmount the fear of death? let us disarm it of its fting, and that is fin. Would we perfect and accomplish our natures with all excellent qualities? 'tis righteousness wherein confifts the image of God, and participation of the divine nature: 'tis the cleaning our felves from all filthiness of the flesh and fpirit, and the perfecting holiness in the fear of God, that must transform us from glory to glory. Would we be mafters of the most glorious fortunes? 'tis righteousness that will make us heirs of God, and joint-beirs with Chrift: 'tis the conqueft of our fins, and the abounding in good works, that will make us rich towards God, and lay up for us a good foundation for the life to come. Ate we ambitious of honour ? let us free our felves from the fervitude of fin.