Christus in corde, or, The mystical union between Christ and believers considered in its…

The head excels in perfection, all the ⟨p. 94⟩senses are in it; Christ is an head of perfection, he is full of Grace, not as the Saints are, in a measure only; but in an evident superlative way; in them there is plenitudo vasis, the fullness of a Vessel, but in him there is plenitudo fontis, the fullness of a Fountain; they have some feathers of the Dove, some first-fruits of the Spirit, but he hath the Dove it self, the whole entire Spirit in all the graces of it; the Spirit was not given to him [Greek or Hebrew],¹ out of a vessel or measure, in a scanty or sparing manner; but the whole Fountain of it was as it were poured out upon him. He hath all Graces; extensively, all kinds of Grace; nothing, that imports perfection, is wanting; intensively, all degrees of Grace, the highest top of holiness is no where to be found but in him; Grace is in him, as water is in the Ocean, or light in the Sun, in an abundant and indeficient manner; he is the great Element or primary subject of Grace, so that in all the intellectual world it is no where to be found in that fullness as in him; his humane nature hath as much Grace as it can hold, its capacity is filled up to the brim, at least in reference to Gods ordinary power; nay, some of the Schoolmen go higher, and say, that its capacity is so filled up, that if God should ⟨p. 95⟩put forth his absolute power to the utmost, he could not possibly pour into the Soul of Christ one drop of Grace more than it hath already; not out of any defect in the Divine power, but for want of room in the capacity of the Soul to receive it. But to wave this, it is enough for us to speak as the Scripture doth, It pleased the father, that in him should all fullness dwell, Col. 1.19. Christ hath all fullness of Grace, he hath grace in the greatest extent as to all the kinds of it, and in the greatest excellency as to all the degrees of it; he hath whatever appertains to Grace, and hath it, as Aquinas speaks,² in summo secundam perfectissimum modum quo haberi potest, in the highest degree, according to the most perfect manner that it could be had; no intellectual creature hath the like, it is only to be found in his humane nature.