SECT. IX. Of conforming unto Jesus in that respect.
9. LEt us conform to Jesus in the aforesaid respects. A serious beholding of Jesus in his Ascension, Session, and Mission of his Spirit, is enough to change us into the same Image from glory to glory. It was the sweet saying of an experienced Saint, View a glorified Christ, see him as in that relation and condition, and you will soon have the sparkles of the same glory on your hearts. Christ is now exalted, he is now in glory at the right hand of God,* 1.1 O let all our actings be glorious, let all our walkings, joys, breathings be as in glory, If ye be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth at the right hand of God; set your affections on things above, and not on things on the earth. I shall not in this transaction lay out many particular conformities to Christ's actings, but gather all into one, contained in this Text, which is heavenly con∣versation; seek things above, set your affections above; Christ is gone up, and Christ is set down at God's right hand; and herein if you will conform, let your hearts be in Heaven, let your affections be in Heaven, let your conversations be in Heaven: it is the Apostles own practise wherein stood his conformity to Jesus Christ for our conversation is in heaven.* 1.2 I do not know any one thing wherein we can be more like to Christ exalted, whiles we are upon earth, than to have our hearts, our affections, our conversations with Christ where he is: now then if we be vertually risen with Christ, and ascended with Christ, and set down with Christ in heavenly places, let us spiritually ascend, and sit down with him in these respects; certainly there is a proportion in our heavenly con∣versation; oh let our conversations be in Heaven?
In prosecution of this I shall examine these Quaeries.—
1. What do we mean by our conversation in heaven?
2. Why must our conversation be in heaven?
3. By what means must we come up to this conversation in heaven;
1. By our conversation in heaven I mean our aim at heaven; as heaven is our home, so our eye is there; whatever we do, our end, our scope is to fit us for heaven, and to lay in for heaven, We look not (saith the Apostles) at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen,* 1.3 for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. We look not] that is, we aim not at things which are seen; invisible things are the only scope and aim of a gracious soul.
2. By our conversation in heaven, I mean our communion with Christ in heaven. Truly our fellowship is with the Father,* 1.4 and with his Son Jesus Christ. As it is amongst