HEAVENLY LIFE UPON EARTH. 233 in his love. As if any man could choose Christ, be- fore Christ bath chosen him ; or any man were more willing to be happy, than Christ is to make him hap- py. Away with these injurious, if not blasphemous, thoughts ! If ever thou hast harboured such thoughts in thy breast, cast them from thee, and take heed how thou ever entertainest them more. God hath written the names of his people in heaven, as you use to write your names or marks on your goods; and shall we be attempting to raze them out, and to write our names on the doors of hell? But blessed be God, whose foundation standetla sure ;(k) and who keepeth us by his power through faith unto salvation. "(i) 13. (3) Labour to apprehend how near thy rest is. What we think near at hand, are more sensible of than that which we behold at distance. When judg- ments or mercies are afar off, we talk .of them with little concern, but when they draw close to us, we tremble at or rejoice in them. This makes men think on heaven so insensibly, because they conceit it at too great a distance; they look on it as twenty, thirty, or forty years off. How much better were it to re- ceive the sentence of death in ourselves,(lk) and to look on eternity as near at hand ! While I am thinking and writing of it, it hasteth near, and I am even entering into it before I am aware. While thou art reading this, whoever thou art, time posteth on, and thy life will be gone as a tale that is told. If you verily believed you should die to- morrow, how seriously would you think of heaven to night ! When Samuel had told Saul, To- morrow shalt thou be with me; this struck him to the heart. And if Christ should say to a believing soul, To- morrow shalt thou be with me; this would bring him in spirit to heaven before band. Do but suppose that you are still entering into heaven, and it will greatly help you more seriously to mind it, § 14. (4) Let thy eternal rest be the subject of thy frequent serious discourse; especially with those that can speak from their hearts, and are seasoned them- (h) 2 Tim. ii. 19. (i) 1 Pet. i. J. (k) 2 Cor. i. 9. 8 Gg
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