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Show •' thri~J tbmi~tg" t/J hiJ SpM~fe '"be 3, He cometh in tbe inftuell<tJ of his ~rovid~nce; common Pro• vidence to proteCl: lave relcue and d~hver hts people. 4. He cometh to']~<dg'nwrt, and his Reward is w!th. him to render to every one according to his work. Now It ts true. of . all thefe comings of Chrifi : they may be leeo afar off; the behevmg ·Soul fe es, may lee Chrifi coming, bef~ re he be fully come. . for the further opening of this Point : The term Behold, bemg here metaphorically ufed, it bein~ properly an act ?fthe ou tw~rd 'Senfes, and here applied to the Mtnd, I fhall open It .by purlutng the Metaphor a little. Realon tells u$ that th~ee t~11ngs are neceffary to the natural act of Beboldmg: I. Vifibtle ob]tCium, 2. Fa- , culM vifiva, 3· M<dittm uifioni<. So here: . . . I. The Soul that beholdeth mull have a vifible-objeli. A man ,coming upon a Mountain, leaping upon an Hill is a vijibk objtfl y()u all know. Chrill is here fet out to us under that nouo~, which is enough to let us know, that he may be beheld. There ts a certainty that Chrill will come ; it is'a tru; Propolition, and it is not a concealed Truth, but again and agatn revealed,aod f~ an , intelligible Propolition, a thing t~at may be kno":o,. an Object that n\ay be underllood : He that ts Truth hath fatd tr ; and He cannot lie nor repent. 2, Secondly, As the Object is a vilible Object, the Propofi· tiona certain revealed Truth, and therefore may be apprehrnded ·by our underllJnding. So every true Believer hath a vifivefacul· •ty. .Let an Object be never fo vifible to the outward Eye, yet the blind-mao cannot behold it ; Why~ becaufe he wanteth a vifive faculty, he wanteth a power for.to ,Cee . ... Let a Pr?polition be never Co true, yet an ignorant unbehevmg Soul feeth tt not ,b~ caufe he wants fpiritual Illumination , he wants Faith ; Chnft tells his Dilciples, that to them it was given to ~now the. M)ifteriu of tbe Kingdom ofh.,ven, but to others it war not, The ~tfc'tples of Chrift had fpiritual Eyes,they had none; but every Believer q~<a, tenus a .Believer hath Faith, a power to apprehend things that have no other being than in the revealed will of God. To fee ' things that are not otherwife than fecured , and made certain in the Word of God. Faith i1 the Jubftance of things not Jwt : and \ ( this faith in the Believers Soul ioables him to fee Chrifi coming 1 before he be fully come. Thirdly, Suppofe a vifible objefJ and a vivfie faculty, yet~ man , man cannot fee except he hath a . due Pltdium or mean of V11ion. The chrifts com;~tg to his spoufl to be beheld. The mean of natural fighl is light, Suppofe things l'!ever fo' vifible, and a tr_~an to have never fo good eyes, yet in a dark night he ~wh nothtng?becaufe ~e ~ar.terh light which is the medium by ~htch we ~ee thtngs: fo H t~ as to the Souls beholding. Thouglt 11 be a certain truth that Cbrift rs commg, and though a Believer hath a fpiritual illumination, and the grace of faith by which he is able to behold him coming, yet you mull in order to the ex· ercife of this Faith have a medium of fpiritual Vifion. Now rhequefiion is by what medium a Believer may forelee Chrill coming I will open this in lome particulars. ' r. A Believer may fee Chrifis coming i¥ JPeculo divin« natuu, in the glafs of the Divine Nature; if he wifily confiders the na· ture of God, he may from thence conclude that Chrill is coming; The love of God, the jufiice of God, (two eminent pieces of the Divine Nature ) will let a Believer, (in the day of Chrifls abfence) know that he is coming to it agaiA, That Soul that thinks · tha.t God can hide his face•from hls people for. ever, forgets that he ts love; he that well confiders thofe bowels of compallion• which God hath for his people, and how they are daily yerniog towards them, and rolling. together for them, may ealily read ; Chrills return to them again:how can he be long from his Spoufe~ · his people in whom he delights~ how can he long wit hold the · covering from the apple of !.is Eye? Chrifi fahh of all his Saints of all his Churches, who i< offmded, and I burn noll who fo Ieeth' _ not Chrills coming in his Providence~ he that feeth not Chritl • coming to deliver his people from their enemies or to judge the World, and to render every mao according to his work,cootiders · not the Jullice and righteoufnefs of God: It i1 (faith the Apollle ) . 2· ThefT. 1. 6. a righteous thing with God to recompence tribulation;. ' them that tro11ble yo~<, and ID you who are tro.,bled, re{l and peact •. 2. Secondly, A Believer may behold Chrills coming, in many Jim and faithful Promif-r. This is the true medium by which the Eye of Faith difcerneth things afar off, and like that God who is · the. Author of it calleth the tbingr tbat-are n•t as if they wtre. The Beltever reads the Promif~s of God the many Prornifes for his return again to the S9uls, and .to th; Affemblies of his people, and : knoweth that he is f•ithful that hath promifed; and thus feeth him comi ng, though as to the ilfues of his Providence he be yet afar off . . The Scripture is full ofPromifes for Gods ·returns ·to · the defected Souls of his people, or to their Alfemb!ics when he: .Ee 2 . lt.ltb> |