358 SERMONS upon Serm.42. SERMON XLII JOHN XVII.z4. Father, I will that they a fo whom thou haft given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my Glory which thou haft given me : for thou lovedit me before the Foundation of the World. Secondly; O W I come to our Work and Emploiment in Heaven, that we may behold his Glory. Obferve5 Our Work, or rather our Happinefs in Heaven, mainly confills in the fight of ChrJl's Glory. r John 3.2. Be- loved, now are we the Sons of God, but it doth not yet appear what we (hall be 5 but this we know, that when he fhiall,appear, we flsall be like him, for we fhall fie himas he is. We fee him now under a Vail, then in Perlon : r Cor. 13. 02. New we fee but through a Glafs darkly, then Face to Face. Here I (hall (hew, I. What is this Glory. Il. What it is to behold this Glory. III. Why our Happinefs lieth in it. I. What is this Glory. I. The Excellency of his Perfon. The Union of the two Natures in Chrift's Per - fon, is one of the My(teries that (ball then be unfolded. John 14. 20. At that day ye (hall know, that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. How he is God -Man in one Perlon, how the Father, Son, and Spirit are one. We were made for the un- der(tanding of this Myftery. God had Happinefs enough in himfelf, he made Creatures on purpofe, Angels and Ble(fed Men, to contemplate his Excellency. 2. The Clarity of his Humane Nature. It is happinefs enough to fee Jefus Chrift upon his White Throne : Rev. 22. 4. They AO fie his Face, and his Name fhhall be in their Foreheads. We (hall be Eye - witneffes of the Honour which the Father puts up- on him as Mediator. It will be a wonderful Glory, we want words to make it intelli- gible ; the vifible Sun path fcarce the honour to be Chrift's Shadow. We may guef at it by his appearance on Mount Sinai, when he gave the Law, Exod. 09. compared with. Heb. 12. 18, 19. By the Transfiguration, Mat. 17. when the Difciples were allo- nifhed : By the Glympfe given to Paid, when a Light from Heaven (pined round about him. Ads 9.3. Paul was three days without fight, and could neither eat nor drink 5 By thole emi(ftons of Light and Glory, John 18. 6. As foon as he had faid unto them, I am he, they went backward, and fell to the Ground. All theee Apparitions were formi- dable, but in Heaven they are comfortable ; we are more able to bear it, the Natural Faculties being fortified ; and we come to confider it as a Glory put upon him for our fakes. Il. What is this Beholding ? It is either Ocular or Mental. 1. Ocular 5 our Senfes have their Happinefs as well as the Soul 5 there is a glorified Eye, as well as a glorified Mind. 2 Cor. 5. 7. We walk by Faith, not by Sight : He doth not mean prefent retire, and the prefent view of Things, the Life of Faith is fometimes oppofed to that, but now he meaneth our Privileges in Heaven. Job pointed to
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