Looking unto Jesus a view of the everlasting gospel, or, the souls eying of Jesus as carrying on the great work of mans salvation from first to last / by Isaac Ambrose ...

SECT. VI. Motives from our riches, in case we are lively in this Duty.

2. FOr our riches, in case we are lively in this Duty: Oh the blessed incomes to such souls! we may reckon up here those very particulars which the others wanted. 1. That Christ gives Light unto them; as the receiving of the Sun gives light to the body, so the receiving of the Sun of Righteousness gives light, a spiritual, heavenly, and comfortable light to their souls. 2. That Christ gives grace and holiness unto them; of his fulness we receive grace for grace. As the print upon the wax answers to the seal, or as the characters upon the Son answers to the Father; so there are certain stamps of the grace of Christ upon the Saints, that what good they do, it springs not from external mo∣tives

only, as in hypocrites, but from Christ working in them an inward principle of new nature; and upon this account doth John tell us, the Law was given by Moses, but grace & truth came by Jesus Christ. 3. That Christ gives contentation or satisfaction unto them: as the pearl satisfied the Merchant in the Parable with treasure, so Christ satisfieth the soul with wisdome in the understanding, with the sense of his love in the heart, with sure and blessed peace in the conscience; they that rightly look unto Jesus, may say as Jacob did, I have enough. 4. That Christ gives glory unto them; he is the glory of Israel, he is both the Author, and the matter of their glory; he is the glory of their justification, as the gar∣ment is the glory of him that wears it; he is the glory of their redemption, as the ran∣somer is the glory of the captive: he is the glory of their sanctification, as Jordan clean∣sing him from his leprosie was the glory of Naaman; he is their all in all, in whom they glory, and to whom they give all honour, and glory, and power, and praise. 5. That Christ gives peace unto them, God is in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, he is the Author, and the world is the object of this reconciliation. Christ is our peace; and peace is prea∣ched by Jesus Christ; they that hear Christ in the Word, or that look unto Christ by the eye of faith, they have this peace; for Christ only in Ordinances is the revealer, and pro∣curer, and the worker of peace in all the children of peace. 6. That Christ procures ac∣ceptation with God for them; he stands betwixt God and such believers; and as they mind him, so he is ever mindful of them, pleading their cause, answering all the accusa∣tions of Satan, and praying to his Father in their behalf. 7. That Christ gives life unto them; he that hath the Son, hath life; he that hath Christ in his heart as a root of life living in him, or as a King setting up his throne within him, or as a Bridegroom betroathing himself in loving kindness to him, he hath life, the life of grace, and the earnest of the life of glory. 8. That Christ gives wisdome unto them, Christ hath in him all the treasures of wisdome, and therefore he that looks most to Christ is the wisest man in the world; he that hath the Sun, hath more light than he that hath all other lights in the world, and wants the Sun. 9. That Christ gives a taste of his goodness unto them; they cannot look unto him, but he makes them joyful with the feeling of himself and Spirit: and hence it is that many times they brake out into Psalms, and Hymnes, and spiritual songs, and make melody in their hearts unto the Lord. O there is a goodness of illumination, rege∣neration, sanctification, consolation, contentation, pacification, and spiritual freedome flowing from Christ to the souls of his Saints, which to carnal men is a sealed Well, whose waters their palates never tasted. 10. That Christ gives a sincere and inward love of himself unto their hearts. No sooner is their eye of faith Looking unto Jesus, but present∣ly their hearts is all on fire; such a sutableness is betwixt Christ and their souls, as is be∣twixt the hearts of lovers; their love to Christ is like the love of Jonathan to David, a wonderful love, and passing the love of women; they love him as the bridegroom to whom their souls are married, as the choycest pearl by whom they are inriched, as the Sun of consolation, by whose beams their souls are comforted, as the fountain by whom their hearts are refreshed, and their desires every way satisfied. 11. That Christ gives the sense of his own love to them; they cannot look on Christ, but they see him loving, and embracing their humble souls; they see him binding up their broken hearts; they behold him gathering to himself, and bearing in the bosom of his love, and comforting with the promises of his Word their wounded spirits; they behold him like Jacob serving in the heat and in the cold for Rachel, serving in manifold afflicti∣ons from his cradle to his cross, to make a Spouse unto himself. 12. That Christ gives the experience of his power to them; they that look on Christ, do feel the power of Christ inwardly in their souls, dissolving the works of Satan, casting down his Kingdom, and mighty holds within them, healing all their spiritual maladies, sustaining them in all afflictions, filling their souls with all Spiritual and Heavenly might, making them strong in knowledg, and strong in faith, and strong in love, and strong in motion, and coming to Christ, as a river of much waters is strong in coming home to the Ocean. 13. That Christ gives the sense of his own worth and excellency unto them, they see now in Christ is wisdome surpassing the brightness of the Sun, even all the treasures of wisdome; in Christ is power excelling the strength of rocks, he is not onely strong, but strength it self; in Christ is Honour transcending all the Kings of the earth, for he is King of Kings, and Lord of Lords; in Christ is beauty excelling the Rose of Sharon, and Lilly of the valleys, he is fairer than all the flowers of the field, than all the precious stones of the earth, than all the lights in the firmament, than all the Saints and Angels in the highest heavens. 14. That Christ gives the sense of their wants, and of

the worlds vanity, and of his sutable goodness unto them, In looking unto Jesus they see themselves in themselves miserable, and all other things miserable comforters: they have learnt the meaning of that Psalm, Put not your trust in Princes, nor in the son of man and in whom there is no help, his breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth, in that very day his thoughts perish; happy is the man that hath the God of Jacob for his God, whose hope is in the Lord his God. 15. That Christ gives all things, every thing unto them. All things are yours (saith the Apostle) whether Paul, or Apollo, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come, all are yours, and you are Christs, and Christ is Gods. All things are yours; First, all the Ministers of Christ from the highest to the lowest, whe∣ther Paul, or Apollo, or Cephas; they are your servants, they are men that watch over you for your salvation. Secondly, the world is yours; indeed the world stands but for your sakes, if your number were but once compleated, quickly would the world be set on fire: you will say, ay! but how is the world ours? we find not this, for who hath the world at will? why, though you have not, yet the misery you find in the world, the want of wealth as well as the enjoying of it is yours, (i e.) it tends to your advantage. Thirdly, life is yours, it is a fitting, a preparing, a squaring of you for a better life, even for eternity. Fourthly, death is yours; for you shall die just then when it is best for you, death shall serve but as a servant to your advantage. Fifthly, things present, and things to come, are yours; godliness hath the promise of this life, and of that which is to come. Sixthly, I will add, the Lord himself is yours, take God, and look on him in his greatness, in his mighty power, even this great God, the Lord of heaven and earth, is yours, he is yours, and all that he hath is yours, and all that he doth is yours, and all that he can do is yours, I will be thine (saith God to Abraham) I will be to thee an exceeding great reward. Here is a Catalogue, an Inventory of a Christians riches; have Christ and have all; when an Heathen was but asked; where all his treasure was, he answered, where Cyrus my friend is: and if any ask you, where all your treasure is, you may answer, where Christ your friend is; in this respect you may truly say, there is no end of your riches, they are called the unsearchable riches of Christ; Paul could find no bottom of these riches; O who would not look unto Jesus? If Christ be yours (besides those particulars enumerated in this Text, (1 Cor. 3.22, 23.) God is yours, the Father is yours, the Son is yours, the Spirit is yours, all the promises are yours; for in Christ they are all made, and for him they shall be performed. Come, let the proud man boast in his honour, and the mighty man in his valour, and the rich man in his wealth; but let the Christian pronounce himself happy, only happy, truly happy, fully happy, in beholding Christ, enjoying Christ, having Christ, in Looking unto Jesus.

You have the Motives of our wants, in case of neglect: and of our riches in case we are active, frequent, serious, and lively in this Duty. But for our further encouragement to fall upon it, I shall add a few Motives more.

Notes

• John 1.17
• Luke 2.32
• 2 Cor. 5.29 Ephes. 2.14. Acts. 10.36
• 1 John 5.11.
• Ephes. 5.19
• 2 Sam. 1.26
• Psal. 146.3, 4.
• 1 Cor. 3. 22, 23.
• 1 Tim. 4.8.
• Gen. 15.1.
• Ephes. 3.8.