Background Image
Table of Contents Table of Contents
Previous Page  423 / 652 Next Page
Basic version Information
Show Menu
Previous Page 423 / 652 Next Page
Page Background

SECT.

iv.]

THE HAPPINESS

OF

SEPARATE

SPIRITS.

413

actual

footstool

:

But

we

know

that

all

things

are

not

yet

put

under

him

;"

lieb.

ii.

8.

that

is,

all

the nations are

not

yet

subject

to his spiritual

kingdom,

nor

become obe-

dient

to his

gospel. As

fast as his

kingdom

grows

on

earth,

so

fast

his

honours and his joys

arise

;

and

he

waits

still for

the complete

union of

all his

members

to

himself

the

sacred head

:

he

waits

for

the morning of the resur-

rection, when

he shall be glorified

in

the

bright

and ge-

neral

assembly

of

"

his

saints, and

admired

in all

them

that

believe ;"

2 Thess.

i.

10.

O that

illustrious and

magnificent appearance

!

That

shining

hour of jubilee, when

the bodies of millions

of

saints

shall

awake out of

the

dust, and

be

released

from

their

long dark

prison

!

When

they shall

encompass

and

adore

Jesus

their

Saviour

and

their

God,

and

acknow-

ledge

their new

life

and immortal state

to be

owing

to

his

painful and shameful death

:

When

Noah,

Abraham,

and

David,

and

all his

pious

progenitors

shall

bow and wor-

ship

Jesus

their

Son

and

their Lord

:

When the

holy

army

of

martyrs,

springing

from

the

dust

with palms

of

victory

in

their hands,

shall ascribe

their conquest and

their

triumph

to

the Lamb

that

was

slain

:

When

he shall

presen

this

whole

church

before the

presence of

his

own-

and

his

Father's

glory,

without

spot, and faultless, with

ex

ceeding

joy

!

Can we imagine that Christ

himself,

even

the

man

Jesus,

in

the midst of

all

this

magnificence and

these honours,

shall feel no

new

satisfaction, and have

no

relish of

all

this

joy, above

what

he

possessed while

his

church

lay

bleeding

on

earth, and

this

illustrious com-

pany were

buried under ground

in

the

chains

of

death

?

And

yet you

will

say

Christ

in

heaven

is

made perfect

in.

knowledge

and

in

joy,

but

his

perfection admits

of

im-

provement.

Now if

the head be not above the capacity

of

all

growth

and addition,

surely

the members cannot pretend

to

it.

But I

shall

propose several more

arguments

for

this

truth

in

the following section.

SECT.

IV.

Of

the

increase

of

the

saints

above in

knowledge, holiness,

and joy.

That

there

is,

and

bath been,

and

will be

continual

progress

and improvement

in

the knowledge and joy of