Ambrose - Houston-Packer Collection BX5200 .A49 1674

442 Book lV. lLonlttng unto jjcftt.S'. Joh. 2o. '9· Chri!l is mine, and mine in ~peculiar manner, tl1ere is a propriety with pecu'iarity - Lord~ and my God.O the excellency offaith! this ftep goes beyond zllt' 1e reft ; it 1 is a ble'f1ed ~hmg w have a true fight ofGod, there Is much power in it; but to fee God in his glory, MaJe!ly,greatnefs, goodnefs as my God; tofee all the attributesof God as rhofe thing. r1 my foul harh an interd!: in ; to fee Chri!l coming from the Father for me to be my R;d '"t mer; to fee Chri~ in whom all fullnes dwdls, in whom the treafures ~fall God'; ric~:; are, _not only Chnft dymg as man,_ but nfing a; God for me, and my fa 'vation ;· 10 fee Clmfr,and thentol~y hold on·Chp!l, an~ to fay, my Lord, and my God. 0 this is the work ofpreciOus fa1th; and to thiS now 1s Thoma< arivea in this confeffion of his Lord, <~nd my God. ' my 2. Hereupon follows ChriO:'s commendation and correction ; Jefus faith unto him, T.ho. "''"'' becau{e thou haft few me, thou haft believed· blefJed are they th.,t h.we not fee,• d yet h•ve believed; In the fir!l place Chrift comm;nds Thom,is faith, b'<•ufe thou h~ft {.;n me,thouhaftbet.ev_ed,q._d. thou feeO: me a man, but coufidering how I am ri!en ffom the dead! tl1~u bel1evefl: mme as God ; I commend thy faith, but 'tis a weak faith in re– fpect of ItS nfe; now the~efore to correct it,I pronounce thofeblelfed to all generations. that when I am gone, as mregardofmybod1lyprefence, yet they will beliere in me. blejfed are they th.1t haVt not fe,n, and yet have b.lieved. I am afraid of tedioufi 1 ef> and' therefore I !hall not enlarge any more on this apparition. ' SEC 1". VIII. Of Chrift's apparitiop to fo;nc ofhi< .Apoftlcs at the feaofTi berra<. THere is but one apparition more recorded by John; .ifrer thc(e !hings Je(u; fhewed himJ~h. 2toi • [elf Agam to the Dt(csples at the[ea o{Ttbmas, and on thu fvi(e jheweJ he himfe!f. In tl1efe apparitions the Evangelift ufeth one and the fame method; As in the for.ner fo here again is fet 1own the time when, the place were, the perfons to whom, the manne; how he appeared; not one ofthefe circpm!lances mull: be wanting to /hew the evidence and cer– tainty of his refurrection. • V I. The time, aft_er the[e things; after ~~.three former apparitio~s he com~s to a forrlt; er.lr. and he concludes wuh chts, as rherem ma~ng fome menuon of h1mfelf, wnh which he concludes the whole book; thir irthe Di{ciple which uftifieth thefe things, mtd wrote thefe things, and we ~now hi< uftimony u tme. 2. The place, at thefea ofTiberias; or at the lake Gene:ureth; where he bad called them to the ApoO:le!hip,.there now he appears to thefe Apo!l:les; they were at fir!l linr– ers, and now they are at their calling upon the fea, Chrift fl:anding on the nwre. . 3. The perfons to whom he appears, they were Di{ciples, their names are in the nexr verfe. All Chrift's apparitions were to the Difciples ofCbrift; we read not that ever he !hewed himfelf after hisrefurrection to any but to his followers ; be /hewed himfelf openly, not to all the people, but unto witnefJes, chofen b•fore of (Jod, even to"' who did Mt. ' 0 ' 4r; eat and drink_ with him after he ro{e from the dead, .Act. 10.41. !trangers to Chri!l: mull be no witnefles of Chrift's refurrection, and this was his meaning ;yet a little while andth~ wtrrldfwhmenomore, butyefeeme, }oh. 14 19. 4· For the manner of his apparition on thir wifeJhewed he himfelf. cbr!f. b,m. I. He ~uwedhimfelf, fo it i> in this.verfe twice repeated, after rhefe things Jcfeu jhewed s:.. 111 ]oh, himf•if and in this wifehe jhewed himfelf. Chrift now was not feen,or 10-ol>n tothe bodily eye (for hi< body was immortal)unlefs by difpenfation he condifcended th;mo. I deny not, but that glorified bodyes are ever actually feen of bodyes that are glor1fied; but of mortal men who are yet in this vail oftea.rs: thofe glorious creatures can_not be fe~n actuaUy, except there be fome peculiar and d1v1ne d1fpenfauon . .As the ayre 1s too fubulero be feen, or as the Sun is too glorious for a weak eye to behold; fo are glonfied bodyes too f~bule, too fplendid for a mortal eye to pierce:our Savtour tells. us that the bodyes of the SaJnrs dojhme forth asthe Srminthe Kingdom oftheir Father ;.and that they are asthe Angels, .And the .A· Mat. r·. 4•· pottle tells us, that their bodies are (piritual bodies; there is a llatural body, and there i4 a[Pi– !·1ar. "· 3" rima! body : now without difpenfation we cannot fee fpiritual things. And hene<; it is that 1 Cor. •5, 44 when Clu ift fhewed himfelf ro the two Difciple1 at Emmauo, it is faid that their eyes Luli.: 1 l'· trcrc rpuud, snd they k._nctv him, and he vanijhed ollt of their {ight. Mark, firft their '-!" ~ere open,d, why, no qudhon bur thm eyes Wfre opened be(oi·e, they d1d not walk wtth lumd, an

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