Cbap. VIII. OfD EAT H. 447 2 . To receive Death not only with Pa,tience,bm earneft defires to be with Chrill:. I know Death is naturally unwelcome. Our Saviour tells St. Peter, When thou art old, another jhaU bind thee, and lead thee tvhere tho11 wo:'ldejl not , John 2L 4L fignifying his Martyrdom. The Circurnllance (when thOtt art old) JS remarkable, and lnttmatcs the naru11a l unwtlling- Secmus ~ oor- ~i~~~~~~n~epr:V~f;n~~ler~~:~~~~~er~!r~erfir~v~f rh~0~a~~s1~~t~~n~~ ~~~~~y~~ :eil~~~fe~~~~f~~cf~~~~~~~i God : for the divine Nature comm~nicated to them i ~ intelligent, and inclining towards Its polfe.t pr;ner chief q:ood : and if the obtaining it were .n?t by berng tmclothrd, bu~ clothed upon by an ~~~~~.s ~~~~~s immedtate Tranllation to Heaven, how wdbngly would they leave tbts World? But there ad eam vemr, ~su~ t~~~~;.~~ff~~~e::~.tl~a:t~:~t~~ ~~l)~:~~~~i:n~Lfr~~~! h~~\~,o~~~r~l:t~ed~~~~at~l; ~~r~~: ~;~~~::i~: mems to make the Saints defirous of dying, that methinks fincc Life is chiefly valued and ]()J.r.. dear to them, as it is the way to Heaven, when they arc come to that blelfed end, it fho~ld not belongerdeorable. What is this lower World that chains us fo fall:? 'Tis the Devd's Circuit wheremhe ranges, feeking whom he m!'J devour : 'Tis the Theater of Contentions. The Low afpire to rife; the Exalted fear to fall: The Poor envy the Rich, and the Rich dcfpifc the Poor. 'Tis a foreign Country to the Saints, and as Pilgrims and Strangers, they are liable to Reproaches, InJuries, and hard Dealings from the Wicked, the Natives of the T!.arth. What is the prefent momenhny Life that fo enamours us? 'Tis furrounded with Temptations, opprefs'd with Fears, ardent with irregular Defires, and continually fpent in Vanity or Vexation. In Adverfity 'tis deprefs'd and melancholy; in Profperity foolilh and proud. 'Tis a reallnfelicity under the deceitful appearance of Felicity. But above all other Motives, the evil of Sin from which we cannot be clearly exempted here, lhould render Death defirable. The bell- fufter internal Divifions between the L aw of the Flefb, and the Law of the Mind ; as Rebtcca felt the Twins, Efou and 'Jacob, repugnant in her :~k~ut,~~~ :h~-~~/.~ tci,!e~~~~~cl~~s'~~~~;g:~~~~/'~~:: ctTffi~~~ft~~n~rg~r ~h! AffeCtions, to raife what is drooping, and fupprefs what is rebellious? For they are like ~~:~!~1 e ~:::.~~eE~~:~:~f~:rk~l~:;io~ !~~·;;;{;,~;{:~:;; ~~~r!{,![;~s ?'~h~~ai1~ of the Saints give fad evidence of this. If the Body were unfpotted from the World, as in the Creation of Man, there might be a jufr Plea of our unwillingnefs to part with it; but fince it is the incentive and in!lrument of Sin, we lhould defire1o be dilfolved, that we might be perfealy holy. Death is the final Remedy of all the Temporal and Spiritual Evils to which we are hable here. And the Love of Chrifl- lhould make us willing to part with all the endearments of this Life, nay defirous to enter into the Celeflial Paradife, tllQ we mull pafs under the Angel's Sword, the !lroke of Death, to come into his Prefence. He infinitely defervesour Love, for we owe our Salvation and Eterna l Glory to the merit of his Humiliation, and the power of his Exaltatioo. With what earnefr afleaions did St. Pard de6re to be dijfolved and to be with Chrijl? Phi!. I. Love gave Wings of Fire to his Soul, ardent de fires mounting to Heaven. How valiant were the Martyrs in expreffing aas of Love to Chrift ? How boldly did they encounter Death that interpos'd between them and the fight of his Glory? Their Love was hotter than the Flames that confumed them. They as willingly left their Bodies, as Elias let fall his Mantle to afcend to Heaven. And how dees it upbraid the cdldnefs of our Love, that we are fo contented to be here, abfent from our Saviour. That the Moles of the Earth, who never faw the Light of the Sun, and feed on bitter Roots, are pleas'd in their dark Receptacles, is no wonder ; but if Birds that are refrelh'd with his chearful Beams, and feed on fweet fr uits, !hould willingly be confin'd in Caverns of the Earth, it were unnaturally frrange. Thus for Pagans (and thofe who are fo itr Heart, tho dillercnt in Profcffion) that are fo fhort-oghted and depraved1 that they only perceive and alfea prefent fenfible things, for them to be unwilling to ~~~:~~~e ~h~~~~; i~Y[g~~~~Jl~;h~(,:s~!~~f~:i~~n~f ~~~l~:u~let~rl~h~~n~e;~~~0~l~ev~~teb~~ Glory, and have tafted the Goodnefs of the Lord, and know the incomparable difference between the mean and frail Felicity hcre,and the inefl-imable immutable Felicity hereafter for them to be unwilling to leave this World for that which is infinitely better, ts afl-onilhing. Such wasthe Love of our Saviour, that his perfonal Glory in Heaven did not fully content ;:~~ :::h~~~Jt~e;:i:~;.a;c:;:n~h~; ~~;;~~~hotd ~;~;;,/ j~~~~~~hofr"'i~~If::~t:fo not anfwer his, 'tisafad Indication that we have not an lnterefr in him: for the application ofhisMeritsisalwaysjoin"d with the imitation of his Vermes, and the refleaionof his Love. The Lovers of Chrifl: will join with the inflamed Spoufe, Dnt1v us, and we wiU run after tlm: Cant. 1. Oloofcnour Affcaionsfromthis World, that we may readilyafcend Nntl to
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