God hath provided the good things thereof, and by his Care and Providence brings them to thee daily for thy use, that with this Gracious and Liberal Allowance of his; thou mayest serve him with the greater Cheerfulness and Delight of Soul, in thy Passage through this World: But he never intended, thou shouldst take up with them as thy Happiness. Believe it, God hath provided better things for holy Souls in another World; he intends himself to be their Portion, his Heaven to be their Habitation and Dwelling place, Angels, Patriarchs, Prophets, Apostles, to be their Associates and Companions; where they shall live in the light of God's Countenance, see his Face, behold his Glory, and be filled with his Love to all Eternity

O blessed State of infinite Bliss and Happiness, beyond what words is able to express.

God hath not Excluded thee out of Heaven, and why shouldest thou exclude and shut out thyself?

Such a ravishing, overcoming Joy and Delight flows in upon the Soul, as it cannot express; no, nor sometimes is it able to bear up under it. And if there be so much sweetness in a Taste of Heaven, what is there then in a full enjoyment of Heaven.

And as no man can take in the Happiness of Heaven here, so no man can understand the greatness of it: So true are the Words of the Apostle, The things that God hath prepared for them that love him, are so many, and so great, that they cannot enter into the heart of man to conceive.

This Jesus Christ hath done, for this he hath both suffered and died; and because he hath made a Purchase of these things with his Blood, Believers shall therefore enjoy them; for Christ will not lose his Purchase, nor shall Believers therefore lose their Happiness.

In this world the sight of one Angel, though a Messenger of Peace, and one that brings good Tidings along with him; yet doth cause Fear and Amazement. But in Heaven the Saints shall behold all the Angels of God, and that not only without Dread and Horror, but with Joy and Delight, as being their Fellow-Creatures, with whom they shall eternally maintain a blessed Communion and Correspondency. And oh, what happy and delightful Company will those Glorious Creatures be, in whom there is nothing but what is Amiable and Lovely; yea, nothing but what is Admirable and Wonderful!

Whatever Sight the People of God have of Christ in this World, though in itself it be very sweet, and that which is more desirable than all the Pleasures and Delights that the World can afford; yet is it but imperfect, and a small thing, compared to that Sight and Enjoyment of Christ which God intends his People in Heaven; when their Graces shall be full and perfect, and their Souls fully and completely like unto him whom they shall behold

O with what ravishing Joy and Delight then must those Souls be eternally filled with that live in the Sight & Possession of him, as theirs forever! Is not his Love better than Wine? Will not the lifting up of the light of his Countenance upon the Soul, administer more cause of Joy and Rejoicing than the greatest increase of all worldly enjoyments whatsoever? O is not this the Language of holy Souls, His Love is! Life; yea, his loving kindness is better than Life O how shouldst thou chide thyself, O Believing Soul, whose Faith gives thee an Interest in him, that thou art so afraid of his Appearance!

Awake therefore, O ye drowsy Saints, rouse yourselves up out of your Security and Slothfulness; for a careless indifferent frame of Spirit doth not become those who are Expectants of so great and glorious a Redeemer, and of so great a Happiness as is the eternal Enjoyment of him. O what a holy Impatience and Unquietness of Soul should rather be found in Believers after this Blessed Redeemer?

Is there anything either in this World, or in the World to come that is comparable to him? Look upon him well, O Believing Souls, both in respect of what he once was, and in respect of what he now is, and you cannot but say he is made up of Love.

yea, it is a Happiness so great as shall never be fully understood; no, not by those that enjoy it; for from this Blessed Vision of God, which Glorified Souls always behold, there shall continually arise such fresh Discoveries of new and glorious Excellencies in the Divine Being, as shall ravish the Saints with new Joys and Pleasures to all Eternity.

ravish the Heart with eternal Ecstasies of Joy and Delight

These joyful Seasons abide not always with the People of God; but they soon lose them; the Light of God's Countenance is eclipsed, and his Face hid from them, by reason of their Foolishness.

Their Souls are so raised, so capacious, that they cannot be content with anything, even in Heaven itself, unless they enjoy God there. Should God bestow upon them the Glory of all the Creatures either in Heaven or in Earth; should he confer upon them the Glory of all the Kings and Emperors in the World; yea, should he add to that the Glory of the Sun, Moon, and Stars; nay, should he add to them, the Glory of all the Angels and Cherubim's in Heaven, yet still they would say, they had not enough to make them happy; for all these are not God.

The Philosopher tells us, that Happiness is a State wherein there is an aggregation, or meeting together of all good things whatsoever: So that according to this Definition of Happiness, if a Man could be supposed to enjoy all good things, and yet want but one, that Man could not be a happy Man.

Worldly Things are so far from giving us Contentment, that there is this Curse of God upon them all, that whoever sets his Heart and Affections inordinately upon them, shall never be satisfied with them; for as the Wise Man saith, Eccles. 5.10. He that loveth Silver, shall not be satisfied with Silver; nor he that loveth Abundance, with Increase.

As nothing can be the Perfection, so nothing can be the Satisfaction of the Soul, but he that made it. The Soul is never at rest till it return unto God, who is its Rest and Centre; therefore says David, Psal. 116.7.

The Happiness of the Saints in Heaven shall be the same which God himself enjoys

Enlarge therefore, O holy Soul; make room for thine own Glory and Happiness, spread forth thyself wide; yea, stretch out thy Desires as large as Heaven itself; for the God of Heaven will fill and satisfy them.

All that will live godly in Christ Jesus must suffer Persecution. They who are not of the world, but chosen by God out of the world, are sure to meet with the World's Hatred; so our Lord tells us, John 15.19 John 17.14.

A Saint's Happiness in Heaven cannot be lost, nor shall a Godly Man ever meet with any Disappointments there, unless it be by finding a Happiness far greater than ever he imagined

Saints in Heaven have not only the best Company; but they have that Society with the greatest Advantage, being such as shall never be broken, but continue everlastingly.

Let but Husband and Wife, let but Parents and Children, let but Friends and Relations make Heaven sure to their own Souls; let them but clear up to themselves their Title unto that Happiness that is to be enjoyed in Heaven through the great and blessed Redeemer; and then though Death will part them one from another for a Time, yet it shall certainly bring them together again in Heaven; and though some of them are more Happy than others, because by dying before them, they get to Heaven sooner than they, yet shall they all come thither in their appointed Time, and then shall they be freed from all Fears of ever being parted asunder anymore: And instead thereof they shall know themselves to be confirmed in the Happy and Everlasting Enjoyment of one another in Glory.

When we are in our Health and Strength, O how stupid, how careless are we as to the Concerns of our Souls! How few Thoughts have we of, and how little Preparation do we make for, our Eternal State?

How few Thoughts have we of, and how little Preparation do we make for, our Eternal State?

This, if anything, will bring a Saint upon his knees, and make him, with the Apostle, to pray again and again; yea, to besiege Heaven day and night with Prayers and Tears, that he may be delivered from that cruel and bloody Hell-hound, and from all his wicked Solicitations.

For certainly a Saint hath not a better Friend in all the World; for next unto Jesus Christ, who hath made satisfaction for a Believer's Sins, and obtained Life and Salvation for his Soul, Death must needs be his best Friend; because it frees him from all Sin.

How glorious have some of the Saints of God of old appeared, when their Excellency hath chiefly appeared in the Oriency and sparkling Beauty but of someone particular Grace; as for instance, How glorious was Abraham for his Faith; Moses, for his meekness & self-denial; Nehemiah for his zeal for God and his Glory; David, for his Love to God and his Ordinances; Job, for his Patience; S. Paul, for his unwearied Industry and Laboriousness in the Work of God, and the Service of Souls?

But if they would put forth their Grace into Exercise, and by Prayer implore Divine Assistance, they would be enabled not only to stand up against all the Enemies of their Peace; but with a holy Joy and Triumph to vanquish and overcome them.

If a Man were hungry, would painted Bread satisfy him; if a Man were starving with Cold, would painted Fire warm him? No, why truly all the things of this World will appear no better to a Man when he comes to die; there's no Comfort nor Satisfaction to be fetched from them

That when Stephen stood before the Council, his Face did shine with an Angelical Brightness. This was a glorious Sight, to see the Face of a Man to shine as the Face of an Angel. But this is nothing, compared with that Glory with which the Saints shall shine when they shall stand before the great God of Heaven, seeing him face to face.

Thirdly, The Bodies of the Saints in Heaven shall be full of Power and Agility: They are sown (says the Apostle) in Weakness; they are frail, sinful Bodies, and therefore they must die; yet shall they be raised in Power. Now this Power and Agility that shall be bestowed upon Glorified Bodies, is very wonderful, being that whereby they shall be able to move to and fro in Heaven, according as the Will shall command it, without difficulty or weariness; and possibly so, as to be able to keep pace even with Angels themselves in their Motion.

Secondly, It is necessary that the Bodies of the Saints in Heaven should be strong and powerful; because otherwise they are not able to bear that weight of Glory and Happiness that there they shall be Partakers of. We are easily persuaded to believe that a Man may be so miserable that he cannot bear it; but it is as true that Man's highest Happiness cannot be born by the strength he now hath

Those ravishing Transports of Joy and Delight, which glorified Souls shall have in the Vision of God, will crack, yea, break a weak Vessel into pieces. The Bodies of the Saints therefore must be made strong to bear the Glory of that Place; otherwise, the Excellency of the Object will destroy the Faculty. When the Sun in the Firmament shines in its full strength, the Glory of it is so great, that the strongest Eye is not able to behold it, but is soon overcome by its dazzling Brightness. O how much more unable then is any mortal Eye to see God, and to behold his infinite Glory.

How glorious is the Body of the Sun, compared with the Body of a Worm or a Fly? But there is a far greater difference between the Bodies of the Saints on Earth, and the same Bodies when glorified in Heaven; for then they shall become celestial and Heavenly Bodies, shining with a Glory and Beauty that shall transcend the Stars;

Now if Moses 's Body, that was but a frail mortal Body, and was shortly to lie in the Dust, did, by being with God for a little time, shine so gloriously, Oh with what Glory and Beauty shall the Bodies of the Saints shine in Heaven, when they shall become immortal, and enjoy the Presence of God with them to all eternity?

And this is the Reason why we understand so little of the Happiness of the Soul in Heaven; because it is spiritual