A77608:124
Heaven on Earth
Heaven on earth or a serious discourse touching a well-grounded assurance of mens everlasting happiness and blessedness. Discovering the nature of assurance, the possibility of attaining it, the causes, springs, and degrees of it, with the resolution of several weighty questions. By Thomas Brooks, preacher of the Gospel at Margarets Fishstreet-Hill.Heaven on earth or a serious discourse touching a wel-grounded assurance of mens everlasting happiness and blessedness. Discovering the nature of assurance, the possibility of attaining it, the causes, springs, and degrees of it, with the resolution of several weighty questions. By Thomas Brooks, preacher of the Gospel at Margarets Fishstreet-Hill.
London: printed by R.I. for John Hancock, 1654
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
The seventh, and last reason, why God denies Assurance (for a time) ⟨p. 46⟩even to his dearest ones, is, that they may live clearly and fully upon Jesus Christ, that Jesus Christ may be seen1 to be all in all. It is natural to the soul, to rest upon every thing below Christ, to rest upon creatures, to rest upon graces, to rest upon duties, to rest upon divine manifestations, to rest upon celestial consolations, to rest upon gracious evidences, and to rest upon sweet Assurances. Now the Lord to cure his people of this weakness, (and to bring them to live wholly and solely upon Jesus Christ) denies comfort, and denies assurance, &c. and for a time leaves his children of light to walk in darkness. Christians, this you are always to remember, that though the enjoyment of assurance makes most for your consolation, yet the living purely upon Christ in the want of assurance makes most for his2 exaltation. No Christian to him that in the want of visibles, can live upon an invisible God, that in thick darkness can live upon God as an everlasting light. He is happy that believes upon seeing, upon feeling; but thrice happy are those souls that ⟨p. 47⟩believe when they do not see, that love when they do not know that they are beloved, and that in the3 want of all (comfort and assurance) can live upon Christ as their only all. He that hath learned this holy art cannot be miserable; he that is ignorant of this art cannot be happy.
The seventh, and last reason, why God denies Assurance (for a time) ⟨p. 46⟩even to his dearest ones, is, that they may live cleerly and fully upon Jesus Christ, that Jesus Christ may be seen1 to bee all in all. It is naturall to the soule, to rest upon every thing below Christ, to rest upon creatures, to rest upon graces, to rest upon duties, to rest upon divine manifestations, to rest upon celestial consolations, to rest upon gracious evidences, and to rest upon sweet Assurances. Now the Lord to cure his people of this weaknesse, (and to bring them to live wholly and solely upon Jesus Christ) denies comfort, and denies assurance, &c. and for a time leaves his children of light to walk in darknesse. Christians, this you are alwayes to remember, that though the enjoyment of assurance makes most for your consolation, yet the living purely upon Christ in the want of assurance makes most for his