Selected quad for the lemma: heaven_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A62566
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The last sermon of his grace John late Lord Archbishop of Canterbury Preach'd before the King and Queen at White-Hall, February 25th, 1693/4/ Together with his Grace's sermon on Phil.3.20. For our conversation is in Heaven.
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Tillotson, John, 1630-1694.
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1695
(1695)
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Wing T1199; ESTC R222272
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34,275
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55
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our minds dwell upon these considerations We are unworthy of heaven and unfit to partake of so great a glory if we cannot take pleasure in the contemplation of those things now the possession whereof shall be our happiness for ever With what joy then should we think of those great and glorious things which God hath prepar'd for them that love him of that inheritance incorruptible undefil'd which fadeth not away reserv'd for us in the heavens How should we welcome the thoughts of that happy hour when we shall make our escape out of these prisons when we shall pass out of this howling wilderness into the promis'd Land when we shall be remov'd from all the troubles and temptations of a wicked and ill-natured world when we shall be past all storms and secur'd from all further danger of shipwreck and shall be safely landed in the regions of bliss and immortality O blessed time When all tears shall be wiped from our eyes and death and sorrow shall be no more When mortality shall be swallowed up of life and we shall enter upon the possession of all that happiness and glory which God hath promis'd and our faith hath believ'd and our hopes have rais'd us to the expectation of when we shall be eas'd of all our pains and resolv'd of all our doubts and be purg'd from all our sins and be free'd from all our fears and be happy beyond all our hopes and have all the happiness secur'd to us beyond the power of time and change When we shall know God and other things without study and love him and one another without measure and serve and praise him without weariness and obey his will without the least reluctancy and shall still be more and more delighted in the knowing and loving and praising and obeying of God to all eternity How should these thoughts affect our hearts and what a mighty influence ought they to have upon our lives The great disadvantage of the arguments fetch'd from another world is this that those things are at a great distance from us and not sensible to us and therefore are not apt to affect us to strongly and to work so powerfully upon us Now to make amends for this disadvantage we should often revive these considerations upon our mind and inculcate upon our selves the reality and certainty of these things together with the infinite weight and importance of them We should reason thus with our selves If good men shall be so unspeakably happy and consequently wicked men so extreamly miserable in another world If these things be true and will one day be found to be so why should they not be to me as if they were already present why should not I be as much afraid to commit any sin as if Hell were naked before me and I saw the astonishing miseries of the damned and why should I not be as careful to serve God and keep his commandments as if Heaven were open to my view and I saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God with crowns of glory in his hand ready to be set upon the heads of all those who continue faithfull to him The lively apprehensions of the nearness of death and eternity are apt to make mens thoughts more quick and piercing and according as we think our selves prepar'd for our future state to transport us with joy or to amaze us with horrour For the soul that is fully satisfi'd of his future bliss is already entred into heaven has begun to take possession of glory and has as it were his blessed Saviour in his arms and may say with old Simeon Lord now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace for mine eyes have seen thy salvation But the thoughts of death must needs be very terrible to that man who is doubtfull or despairing of his future condition It would daunt the stoutest man that ever breathed to look upon death when he can see nothing but hell beyond it When the Apparition at Endor told Saul to morrow thou and thy Sons shall be with me these words struck him to the heart so that he fell down to the ground and there was no more strength left in him It is as certain that we shall die as if an express messenger should come to every one of us from the other world and tell us so Why should we not then always live as those that must die and as those that hope to be happy after death To have these apprehensions vigorous and lively upon our minds this is to have our conversation in heaven from whence also we look for a Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ who shall change our vile body that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body according to the working of that mighty power whereby he is able even to subdue all things to himself FINIS Books Writ by his Grace JOHN Late Lord Arch-Bishop of Canterbury FOrty Two Sermons and Discourses upon several Occasions most at Court in Four Vol. 8 vo The Rule of Faith Or An Answer to the Treatise of Mr. J. Sergeant c. 8 vo Six Sermons concerning the Divinity and Incarnation of our Blessed Saviour Of the Sacrifice and Satisfaction of Christ and of the Unity of the Divine Nature and the B. Trinity c. against the Socinians 8 vo Six Sermons newly Printed one concerning Resolution and Stedfastness in Religion One of Family Religion Three of Education of Children and One of the Advantages of an Early Piety 8 vo Now Re-Printing in 12 mo A Perswasive to frequent Communion in the Sacrament of the Lords Supper 8 vo alone stitcht price 3 d. or in 12 mo bound price 6 d. A Discourse against Transubstantiation 8 vo alone price 3 d. stitcht The Exact Effigies of His Grace John Late Lord Arch-Bishop of Canterbury on a Large Sheet of Paper Curiously Engraven by R. White Price 12 d. All Printed for B. Aylmer and W. Rogers