Behold! he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him....Rev. i. 7.. WITH what ardor of heart may every believer cry out, blessed be God, every hour brings nearer the solemn advent, the gloricus appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus! "O christians, now is our salvation nearer than when we first believed." Come, thou once despised Nazarene, thou once crucified Saviour: he shall come; he will come quickly, and be seen in human form. Shall we not see those wounds and scars in his body, the tokens of his inestimable love to and perfect victory of his cross for us poor sinners? How joyful in the exercise of faith, the fervor of love, the expectation of hope, is this contemplation! This quells the fears of nature, mortifies its lusts, subdues its corruptions. To this end are we born again of the Spirit, that we should enjoy the visions of faith, see Jesus, live by faith upon him, have fellowship with him in the sufferings of his cross, and long for his appearing in glory. Then shall we share with him in the glories of his kingdom. "He shall come to be glorified IN his saints, and admired IN all them that believe." Whence then our dejection of mind, our fear of death, our unwillingness" to be absent from the body, that we may be present with the Lord?" Truly, all this ariseth from the mystery of iniquity which worketh in us. But here is our wisdom, to oppose the mystery of faith to that. Never venture to think of your own dying, without considering the death of Jesus; look not at your own sins, without looking at the blood of Jesus; think not a moment of his appearing as a judge, without remembering him as our precious Saviour; dwell not on the glory and majesty of his eternal power and Godhead, without reflecting on his humble form, his manhood state; conceive not of him as a king and lawgiver, without considering him as a priest to atone for our sins, an advocate to plead our cause, and our forerunner entered into the heavens FOR US; for so shall we daily prove, that we are more than conquerors over every foe that opposeth the holiness and comfort of our souls, through Jesus who loved us. "Behold, he cometh!" O joyful day! most desirable sight! then our sorrows, our fears shall for ever cease. Then our eyes shall see our dearest friends; our foes, that we this day find and feel, we shall see no more for ever. "To them that look for him, shall he appear the second time without sin unto sal vation." "O, lift up your heads with joy, for your redemption draweth nigh." Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory....Psalm lxxiii. 24. THAT is a precious caution of our loving Saviour, “Judge not according to the appearance."....John vii, 24. St. Paul reproves saints, "Do ye look on things after the outward appearance?”. 2 Cor. x. 7. Through this conduct, saints in all ages have puzzled their minds, distressed their souls, and have been tempted to hard thoughts of their God. They have not "judged righteous judgment," in respect to carnal men and the dispensations of God's providence to them. So we see Job greatly exercised, (Job xxi. 7.) and Asaph in the above Psalm. But after the cloud of carnal reasoning and unbelief passed over their minds, the sun of glory and truth shone again with splendor upon them; then faith puts forth its lively exercises and sweet approbations of God. "O MY God and Saviour, I see thy ways to man are just! Righteous art thou, O Lord, thou art My God, I will love thee: Thou shalt guide ME by thy counsel," &c. As the Lord is often said to make a covenant with his people when it was only renewing his old covenant of grace and love in Christ Jesus, so faith frequently makes a fresh choice of, claim to, and glory in the Lord Jesus. "My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure, saith the Lord."....Isa. xlvi. 10. Amen, saith the believing heart. By thy word and Spirit guide me continually; I cannot guide myself. Jesus be thou my guide, my companion, and my familiar friend. Blessed christian! though in Paul's case....Acts xxvii. 20...." When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, when no small tem-* pest is upon thee, and all hope of being saved seems taken away,” yet Jesus is at the helm. Thy vessel shall ride out every storm ; he will guide safe to the haven of glory and blessedness. Some persons seem so wholly taken up with prying into the secret purposes and inscrutable depths of God's decrees, that they take no heed to their steps, but, like the philosopher who was so intent in observing the starry heavens, that being careless of his walk he fell into a ditch. Not God's secret purposes, but his revealed truths are the objects of our faith: "his word is a light to our feet:" by that he counsels and directs us. The gracious Spirit leads and guides his children in the paths of peace and holiness. It is true, the path to glory is unpleasing to the flesh, and therefore is ever opposed by it; but as there is a disposition in regenerate souls to long for glory, so also a love in them to God's word and the way of holiness. In this the children of God are manifest. All such, God will most certainly receive to glory. "As many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God."....Rom. viii. 14. Zealous of good works....Tit. ii. 14. CALL to mind, disciple of Jesus, how in times past thou didst walk according to the course of this world, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and yet the God of this world so blinded thine eyes, and so deceived thine heart (strange infatuation!) that thou didst talk of and trust in even what had no existence, thine own good works. Glory to the rich grace of our Saviour, who delivers us from the natural notions of our corrupt reason, the pride of our free-will, and the vain confidence of our own righteousness! Now all our glorying is in Jesus; for though by nature we are slaves to our lusts, in bondage to iniquity, our minds defiled, our consciences impure, and therefore to every good work reprobate, yet such was the love of Jesus to us, that "he gave himself for us." He hath redeemed us from all iniquity; he hath purified us unto himself as a peculiar people, "zealous of good works." By the knowledge of faith we are persuaded Jesus loves us, delights in us, grants us peculiar familiarity with himself, bestows peculiar blessings on us, and hath made peculiar provisions for us, both in time and eternity. Hence christians are inspired with a peculiar zeal for good works; a zeal according to godliness. We love our God and only Saviour; therefore we delight to serve and study to glorify him in our souls and bodies. Our sinful lusts and passions are contrary to him; therefore, as assisted, we daily strive and pray to mortify and subdue them. To do good to the souls and bodies of all men, especially to them that are of the household of faith, is well-pleasing to the Lord; therefore it is the joy of our hearts to abound in those things. Here true zeal centers, that we do good from a good principle, love to God; from a good motive, Jesus hath commanded it; with a good aim, that the glory of his name, the honor and interest of his cause may be advanced in the world by us. Such a zeal stabs the pride of self-seeking and vain glorying; for our best works, our chiefest good, is to glorify our God and Saviour. Godly souls blush therefore, and are grieved to the very heart when a thought arises of doing any good work to procure the favor of God or to secure his love to our souls, or to entitle us to his kingdom. This is to glorify ourselves. But we have not so learned Christ as to oppose God's free-grace truths, dishonor a God of love, degrade the glory of our precious Saviour, for we give all the glory to him, as having done all for us. We see salvation finished by him, and glory secured to us IN HIM; therefore, in love we desire to be wholly devoted to him, and to do those things that may glorify him ONLY "who hath bought us with his blood."....1 Cor. vi. 20. This is truly a zeal according to knowledge. Giving thanks to the Father, who hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light.... Col. i. 12. Too many of God's dear children seem to abound more in complaining of what they find and feel in themselves than in praising God for what he hath done for and in them. Why is this? They do not live enough in their own kingdom; they do not enough consider their own privileges; they dwell not enough upon the rich love of God their Father to them; the free-grace of Jesus their Redeemer FOR them, and the work of the comforter IN them. But, what from a sense of their corruptions, the devices of satan, the sight of the spirituality of the law, the legality that is in them, they cannot think themselves made meet for God's kingdom; therefore they do not praise God for it. Say, O ye sons and daughters of the Most High, is this right? What! because you find sin abound in you, will you not give praise that grace doth much more abound towards you and IN you also? Consider, God the Father HATH made us meet. Who? Us vile sinners. How? by taking away the being of all sin in us? No, no more than by taking us out of the body. If we never have meetness for glory till all sin is perfectly destroyed in us, we shall never begin the work of praise till we get to glory. But praise is á present work for what God HATH already done in us. First, "God HATH delivered us from the power of darkness." The prince of darkness no more blinds our eyes to the evil of sin, the curse of the law, the glory of God shining in the face of Jesus, and the preciousness of his salvation. For, secondly, "God HATH translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son." We are out of the kingdom of nature, sin, pride, and unbelief; we live under the spiritual reign of JESUS. Therefore, thirdly, we possess all the graces of this kingdom; FAITH in the king of saints, love to the king of saints, and "love to all the saints;" to all our fellow-sinners who confess Jesus the Son of God, and salvation by him ONLY. Is sin our burden? Christ our glory, our life of holiness? Is holiness the desire of our souls? we have light, life, faith, love, holiness; then God HATH made us meet for the enjoyment of his glory... Nay, we do enjoy him Now. We have fellowship with the Father and his Son Jesus Christ, therefore, we are now to give him thanks; we shall never have any other meetness for heaven on earth, though greater degrees of the comforts of this may be experienced. Omy soul, art thou no longer in the darkness of sin? satan's slave? under the curse of the law? blinded by pride to the charms of Jesus? tied and bound by the chains of unbelief? an enemy to God's grace, his truth, and his people? "O Lord, thou art my God, I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name, for thou hast done wonderful things." &c.... Isa. xxv. 1. I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living....Psalm xxvii. 13) In times of sore distress and affliction, whether in soul or body, saints are taught many sweet lessons. Chastenings from the Lord are all in love; by them our God teaches the soul to profit. “Nồ chastening for the present is joyous, but grievous." In the dark night of suffering, christians sigh out many a doleful strain. Sometimes according to all appearances from nature, sense, feeling, and the judgment of reason, they are ready to cry out, "All things are against me." Hence their courage sinks, their hopes and their hearts fail them, and they are ready to faint; but they have an invisible friend always near them; he supports them by his power under all their trials and conflicts; supplies with comforting cordials; revives their spirits with the consolations of his word; and when he brings them out of their troubles, then how sweetly do they sing of him! how many a joyful psalm! What a rich treasury of experience are we favored with from the pen of David, dipt in the ink of affliction! How sweetly does he indite to the glory of his God and the comfort of his Father's children in after-ages! He believed, therefore he spake. Unless he had believed, he had fainted. Faith will support when all things else fail. O, what a soul-supporting grace is faith! Why so? Because it looks to, depends upon, trusts in an almighty, faithful, covenant-keeping God. Faith consults not flesh and blood, but the word of grace and truth. By faith we endure every fight of affliction, every onset of the enemy, seeing him who is invisible. As faith is the support of the soul, so the object of faith, Jesus; he is both faith's author and strength. "Thy faith shall not fail," saith Jesus to Peter; "I have prayed for thee." It failed not as an abiding principle in the heart unto salvation, though it did in the confession of the lips. While the precious head is praying above, the dear members shall be kept in faith below. Though poor souls, through the enemy's power, the corruptions and rebellions of the flesh, may speak unadvisedly with their lips as David did, ́ (Psalm cxvi. 10, 11.) "I was greatly afflicted, I said in my haste, all men are liars." But in their right mind they give all glory to God, confess his goodness, and take shame to themselves for such base declarations, and from their own experience give sweet advice to their brethren. I had fainted unless I had believed. 'Therefore do thou "Wait on the Lord, be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart; wait I say on the Lord." Great God, thy glories shall employ And will this glorious Lord descend |