SERMON XVIII.

COLLSSIANS I. 12.

GIVING THANKS UNTO THE FATHER, WHO HATH MADE US MEET TO BE PARTAKERS OF THE INHERITANCE OF THE SAINTS IN LIGHT.

"To be partakers of the inheritance. Thus read, it is interpretation, not strict translation; yet possibly I may make issue both ways, for your sakes, both as you read it, and as it is to be read in the original. The text verbatim runs thus-Fit to a part or portion of a lot of saints in light. It is a phrase in allusion to Canaan, where the people of God had their part and portion, and this by lot, by an immediate providence, and by no human art, by the special blessing and disposing hand of God, and by no merit or means of their own. The phrase notes high favours, great mercies, dispensations full of love, all love, all love to all eternity. The highest mercies are communicable. Heaven, all that is in heaven, distributive; distributive to men like ourselves; 66 Partakers of the inheritance."

Love is bountiful, she gives all; mercy empties herself upon her children; jewels of price, jewels of glory, of eternal glory are given away to her favourites. Having given us Christ, will He not with him give us all things? Rom. viii. 32. Love gives all; Christ, and all that Christ hath. The apostle argues from the greater to the less. Christ is a greater gift than heaven, and yet He is made communicable, and communicable to man, to us; therefore no marvel that heaven is.

Having given us Christ, &c. Love will make her heart-blood communicable, which is more than making heart-jewels communicable. Christ's giving of himself, is more than giving any thing without himself, more than the giving of heaven and earth to man. Heaven is not noted in scripture, as the height of Christ's love, but himself; what himself is, and what he puts himself unto. "His own self bare our sins in his body," &c. 1 Peter ii. 24. "And to be with Christ is best of all." It is not said, To be in heaven is best of all. The accent of love is fastened upon Christ himself, and not upon anything else. Christ himself is still noted as a greater communication of love, than heaven or earth, or anything besides him. Love opens her purse to her beloved, yea, she opens her bosom, and sets her beloved there; heaven is in Christ's bosom, and Christ opens this to his, he makes this communicable. "Partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light."

Sacred communication is to make suitable demonstration of infinite love. Great love is not suitably expressed by small things. Springs make channels, streams, rivers, suitable to their strength; they make their rent without, suitable to their bubbling within, underground. Heaven is but a suitable expression of the love of a God: it is but a stream suitable to such a fountain; but beams suitable to such a Sun. Heaven is but legible writing out of infinite love. Were not heaven made communicable, infinite love would be but half expressed; it would have no suitable demonstration; it would be far more in itself, than known to us. It is with Christ here in this world, as it is with a christian: a christian's fortune here doth not suit his titles; called a king, and has nothing. "Now are we the sons of God, but

it does not appear what we shall be," 1 John iii. 2. Why we shall be but the sons of God: his meaning is, that now title and revenue do not agree, nothing in possession that speaks out the son of a God, the son of a king. State and title do not fitly and fully express one another. So it is with Christ now, his love and his expression of it are short one of another. Many expressions of love are made here, but they all express it but brokenly. Heaven will speak out an infinite love; it will demonstrate it to the life, to all the senses at once, which is such a demonstration of a thing, as man cannot here make of any thing. There a man shall have the advantage of all senses together, to fathom infinite love; he shall hear it, see it, taste it, &c. He shall see the fountain where and how it rises; the ocean how vast it spreads, and how broad it bears. Christ demonstrates infinite love fully, fitly, therefore is heaven made communicable to poor earthen creatures; Partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light."

Sacred participation is to make soul satisfaction.' Every thing less than heaven, is too little to satisfy the soul" All is vanity," &c. Put all things on this side heaven together, and all is empty in reference to the vast partaking spirit of man.

It swallows and swallows the whole creation, and makes nothing of all; participation of earth, of all the earth, will not satisfy, heaven must come in too; or else the soul, like the dove, remains utterly restless, and cries like the grave, “Give, give." There is excess in the creature, but not proper filling. "Be not drunken with wine wherein is excess, but be filled with the Spirit." It is one Spirit that filleth another. Abundance of earthly things may make excess, and tern the soul into sin, but participation of fulness in God

is that which gives the soul its felicity in itself, and this is in heaven. Absolute fulness is in heaven, and this maketh absolute content; therefore is our participation here still reaching after more than can be had here. All that is dispensed in way of inferior ordinance, makes but tasting and longing, and does but put on an appetite to a full meal. Heaven is God's supreme ordinance, to give the soul satisfaction. Öther ordinances bring in the soul but drops, and therefore it still thirsts; this supreme ordinance brings in the ocean: the soul in this ordinance is swallowed up, it can breathe nothing but blessing, as seeing, feeling, hearing, tasting nothing else.

Sacred participation is made according to Christ's will. The pleasure of the King is, that we should sit at his table, that we shouid dip our morsels in the same dish with him, eat as he does, drink as he does, wear and fare to all eternity as he doth. Father, I will that they also whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory which thou hast given me," John xvii. 24. Christ would not be in heaven alone, to eat his morsels alone; his pleasure is in choice company, though not in any. "I will that they also whom thou hast given me, be with me." The pleasure of Christ is the spring of favours, as high as this rises, a christian rises, necessarily. The Son by nature may have what he will for the adopted son. The will of Christ is the rule of communication. All is his to make gifts to his favourites, as great as he will. "These have continued with me in my temptation, these shall sit on thrones" the pleasure of Christ thrones us, heavens us. Heaven riseth out of Christ's breast; it comes out of divine will. Participation is to suit will, will

is infinitely vast, therefore is heaven communicable. Great persons do great things, to satisfy their will.

Participation is proportioned to promise. No less than the land flowing with milk and honey, is promised. Heaven is but little enough, to fulfil truth, to pay debts. Christ hath been so free of his promise, that all he has, will but make it good, and render him just. He hath engaged his own honour, his own inheritance, all below, yea all that he has above, upon poor terms, but upon our service, which is more disservice, more sin than service at best. "If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be," John xii. 26. We are by promise to have as much wages as Christ, to receive as great pay, though not in so great command; and though but common soldiers, and he a captain, yet all that serve under him are to have as he has, a house full of silver and gold; yea, a house "not made with hands," a very vast house; a house full, a heaven full of jewels. Communication is according unto obligation, debts must be paid, although ever so great. Mercy never dies in debt to justice; every man shall partake of as much, as fit for and promised to him, although Christ himself hath no more.

Participation is proportioned sometimes according to merit. God's giving is according to Christ's deserving, not according to ours: the best of us should partake of hell, and not of heaven, if we had our deserts. Heaven is great, and yet less than Christ's merit, and therefore God himself is proposed as a saint's portion, and Christ's purchase; "The Lord is my portion"-he doth not say heaven. The Lord who made heaven, and can make more heavens, yea, is more than all heavens; upon a