Pneumatologia, a treatise of the soul of man wherein the divine original, excellent and immortal nature of the soul are opened, its love and inclination to the body, with the necessity of its separation from it, considered and improved, the existence, operations, and states of separated souls, both in Heaven and Hell, immediately after death, asserted, discussed, and variously applyed, divers knotty and difficult questions about departed souls, both philosophical, and theological, stated and determined, the invaluable preciousness of humane souls, and the various artifices of Satan (their professed enemy) to destroy them, discovered, and the great duty and interest of all men, seasonable and heartily to comply with the most great and gracious design of the Father, Son, and Spirit, for the salvation of their souls, argued and pressed / by John Flavel ...

Inference I.

IS it so? Learn hence the mighty strength and prevalence of Divine Love, which over-powering all natural Affections, doth not only enable the Souls of men to take their Separation from the Body patiently, but to long for it ardently, Philip. 1.23 While some need Patience to dye, others need it as much to live, 2 Thes. 3.5. 'Tis said Revel. 12.11. They loved not their lives. And indeed on these terms they first closed with Christ, Luke 12.26. To hate their lives for his sake (ie) to love them in so remiss a degree, that when ever they shall come in competition with Christ, to regard them no more than the things we hate.

The love of Christ is to be the supream love, and all o∣thers to be subordinate to it, or quenched by it. 'Tis not its own comfort in the Body, it principally and ultimately designs and aims at, but Christs glory, and so this may be

furthered by the death of the Body, its death thereupon be∣comes as eligible to the Soul, as its life, Philip. 1.20. O this is an high pitch of grace! A great attainment, to say as one did, Vivere renuo, ut Christo vivam; I refuse life to be with Christ: Or another when asked whether he was willing to dye, answered, Illius est nolle mori, qui nolit ire ad Christum; Let him be loth to dye, that is loth to go to Christ So 2 Cor. 5. We are willing rather to be absent from the Body, and present with the Lord.

'Tis not every Christian that can arrive to this degree of Lov•••• though they love Christ sincerely, yet they shrink from death cowardly and are loth to be gone. There are two sorts of grounds upon which Christians may be loth to be unbodied, 1. Sinful, 2. Allowable.

1. The sinful and unjustifiable grounds are such as these, viz. (1) Guilt upon the Conscience, which will damp and discourage the Soul, and make it loth to dye. It arms death with terrour, the sting of death is sin. (2) Unmortified af∣fections to the World, I mean in such a degree as is neces∣sary to sweeten death; and make a man a Voluntier in that sharp engagement with that last and dreadful Enemy. It is with our hearts, as with fewel, if green and full of sap, it will not burn, but if that be dried up, it catches presently: mor∣tification is the drying up of carnal affections to the Crea∣ture, which is that that resists death, as green Wood doth the fire. (3) The weakness and and cloudiness of Faith. You need Faith to dye by, as well as to live by, Heb. 11.13. All these dyed in faith. The less strength there is in Faith, the more in death. A strong Believer welcomes the messen∣gers of Death, when a weak one, unless extraordinarily assi∣sted, trembles at them.

2. There are grounds on which we may desire a longer continuance in the Body, warrantably and allowably: as (1) To do him yet more service in our bodies before we lay them down. This the Saints have pleaded for longer life. Psal. 30.9. Psal. 88.11, 12, 13. and Isai. 38.18, 19. (2) To see the clouds of Gods anger dispelled, whether publick or personal, and a clear light break out ere we dye, Psal. 27.13.

(3) They may desire with submission to outlive the days of persecution, and not to be delivered into the hands of cruel men, but come to their Graves in peace, Psal. 31.15. and 2 Thess. 3.2. That may be delivered from absurd men.

3. But though some Christians shun death upon a sinful account, and others upon a justifyable one, yet others there are, who seeing their Title clear, their work done, and re∣lishing the Joys of Heaven in the praelibations of Faith, are willing to be uncloathed, and to be with Christ. Their love to Christ, hath extinguished in them the love of life, and they can say with Paul, Act. 21.13. I am ready. Igna∣tius longed to come to those Beasts that were to devour him, and so, many of the Primitive Christians: Christ was so dear, that their lives were cheap, and low priz'd things for his enjoyment. And here indeed is the glory and tri∣umph of a Christians Faith and love to Christ: For (1) it enables him to part chearfully with what he sees and feels, for what his eyes yet never saw. 1 Pet. 1.8. Whom having not seen ye love. (2) To part with what is dearest on earth, and lies nearest the heart, of all he enjoys, for Christ's sake. (3) To reconcile his heart to what is most abhorrent and for∣midable to nature. (4) To endure the greatest of pains and torments to be with him. (5) To cast himself into the vast Ocean of Eternity, the most amazing change, to be with Christ. O the glorious Conquests of Love!