another Life. And towards the Conclufion of the legal Difpenfation, there was yet a clearer Revelation of a future State; as appears from Dan.12.2. Daniel, and from the feven Brethren cruelly 2 Mac. 7. put to Death under the Perfecution of Antiochus. 9, 14. Q. What farther Evidence and Affurance doth the Gospel give us of the Soul's Immortality? A. Our Immortality in another State is clearly revealed in the Gospel, which is called Tit. 2.11. the Grace of God, which brings Salvation, and bath appeared to all Men; and in another Heb.7.16. Place is ftiled, The Power of an Eternal Life. And that the Soul is not obnoxious to Death as the Body is, and that it remains after the Death of the Body, is plain from that Caution our Saviour gives to his Difciples, not to fear Luke 12. them that kill the Body, and after that have no more that they can do; which, as St. Matthew expreffeth it, cannot kill the Soul, but to fear Mat. 10. him who, after he hath killed, bath Power to caft into Hell. The exprefs Promises of eternal Happiness, and the no lefs clear Threatenings of everlasting Mifery, do unavoidably fuppofe our Existence in another State to all Eternity, Mat. 25. The wicked shall go into everlasting Punishment, but the Righteous into Life eternal. For this Heb.9.15. Cause our Saviour is called the Mediator of the 4, 5. 28. 46. 25. New Teftament, that they which are called might receive the Promife of the eternal Inheritance. 1 Joh. 2. This is the Promife, faith St. John, which be bath promifed us, even eternal Life. God fo loved Joh. 3.16. the World, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whofoever believes in him fhould not perish, but have everlasting Life. Who hath brought Life and Immortality to Light through the Gospel, 2 Tim.1. All these Texts, and many more that might 10. be urged, fufficiently prove, that at Death our Souls fhall not vanish into foft Air, but fhall have an eternal Duration in another World. And the Gospel hath farther added fuch an Argument as lies level to the meaneft Capacity, and that is a lively Inftance of the Thing to be proved, in raising Chrift from the Dead; who, A&s 17. after he had converfed forty Days upon Earth 10, 31. for the Satisfaction of his Difciples, afcended visibly before them into Heaven, and by fulfilling the Promises he had made them, fufficiently convinced them of his being received into Heaven, and of the Authority with which he was invested. So that he who hath made thefe Promises of eternnal Life, hath raised himself from the Dead, which is enough to convince us that these Promises are real, and shall be made good to us. Q. But is not the Sleep of the Soul till the Refurrection confiftent with thofe Promises of eternal Life made in the Gospel? A. This extravagant Opinion is founded upon the frequent Refemblance that is made in Scripture of Death to Sleep; but this Metaphor in the holy Writings is only applied to the Body's refting in the Grave, in order to be awakened out of this Sleep at the Refurrection; as may appear by confulting the following Texts, Dan. 12.2. Mat. 27.52. Als 13, 36. 1 Cor. 15. 21. and Ver. 51. 1 Theff. 4. 14. in which Places it is ufed with exprefs Reference to the Body. But Sleep applied to the Soul is utterly inconfiftent with feveral Paffages of Scripture, which plainly fuppofe the con04 trary trary. The Parable of the rich Man and Lazarus doth fo defcribe the State of good and bad Men after this Life, that in either of them it is irreconcileable with this Opinion of the Sleep of the Soul. And the Promise of our Saviour to the penitent Thief, This Day fhalt thou be with me in Paradife, fufficiently implies, that his Soul was not to be in a State of Infenfibility, but in a Place of Happiness. The Reafon St. Paul gives, why he and other good Men were willing to be abfent from the Body, was becaufe they were prefent with the Lord, which muft needs fignify a State of Happiness, and not Infenfibility. And the Force of this Argument, to. encourage Chriftians against the Fear of Death, confifts in this, that upon their Diffolution they should be admitted to a State of Bliss, with which the Sleep of the Soul is inconfiftent. Q. How doth it appear that the Chriftian Evidence for another Life is greater than what the World bad before? A. Because the World never had, before the Gospel Revelation, any exprefs Promise of immortal Life. The Jews had very strong Prefumptions, from their Law, of another and better Life, upon which the most of them firmly believed it. And even our Saviour himself in his Difpute with the Sadducees, urges no fuch Promifes, but only argues by Confequence from God's owning himself to be the God of Abraham, Ifaac, and Jacob. And as the Promise of God is a better Security for immortal Life than mere natural Reafon, fo a divine Promife exceeds the Evidence of natural Reason, because it is lefs liable to any of those Objections, which weaken weaken natural Proofs, and hath all the Certainty which natural Reafon, as well as Revelation, can give it. And accordingly we find how much ftronger the Belief of immortal Life was after the making thefe divine Promises than it was before; for this made the Primitive Chriftians, for the fake of their Religion, defpife this Life, and all the Enjoyments of it; this made them fuffer Perfecution with Chearfulness, and welcome Torments and Death with Joy and Triumph; and this in fo many Instances, not only of Men, but of the weakeft Age and Sex, that the World never faw fuch wonderful Effects before. Q. What Affurance does the Refurrection of Chrift give us of the Truth and Certainty of thofe Promifes of eternal Life? A. The Refurrection of Christ is a manifest Proof of his divine Authority, and that he was a Prophet fent from God, who could not give a greater Teftimony of it, than by raifing him from the Dead, which is fo peculiar to our Saviour; that no Impoftor ever pretended to it. So that confequently whatever he taught must be true, and the Promifes he made will certainly be fulfilled. And fince he hath kept his Word in raifing himself from the Dead, there is no Reason to diftruft him in any Thing else he hath promised. By his own Refurrection from the Dead he hath wrought fuch a Miracle, as is moft proper to confirm us in the Belief of our Refurrection to eternal Life; for having had Power to raise himself, he cannot want Power to raise us. Q. What Effect fhould the Belief of the Soul's Immortality, and its Duration for ever in another State, have upon us? For the Effects of A. It fhould make us prefer the Interest of our Souls before all the Advantages of this Life: Nay, it fhould make us ready and willing to part with every Thing that is moft dear to us in this World to fecure their eternal Welfare; because all the Enjoyments of this World can make us no Compenfation for the Loss of our Souls. It should put us upon great Zeal and Diligence in all the Ways of Piety and Virtue; for it is only by fuch Qualifications that our Souls can be prepared to enjoy the Happiness of the next Life. It fhould make us carefully avoid all Sin, as the greatest Enemy to our future Hopes as well as our prefent Quiet. It fhould wean us from the Love of this World, which was never defigned for our Happiness, and is not capable of fatisfying the Defires of immortal Souls. It fhould fupport us under all the Afflictions of this Life, knowing that here we have no abiding City, but expect one to come. It should comfort us upon the Approach of Death, because, when this earthly Tabernacle is diffolved, we shall have an House not made with Hands, eternal in the Heavens. The PRAYERS. I. Almighty God, who, through thy only-be gotten Son Jefus Chrift, haft overcome Death, and opened unto us the Gate of everlafting Life; I humbly befeech thee, that as, by section. thy fpecial Grace preventing me, thou doft put into my Mind good Defires, fo by thy continual Refur Help |