What! is the beggar to be “raised from the dunghill, set among princes, and made to inherit a throne of glory?” is dust and ashes, a puny rebel, a guilty traitor, to be pitied, pardoned, loved, exalted from the depths of despair, raised to the heights of Heaven—gifted with kingly honour—royally fed—royally clothed—royally attended—and, at last, royally crowned? O my soul, look forward with joyous emotion to that day of wonders, when He whose head shall be crowned with many crowns, shall be the dispenser of royal diadems to His people; and when they shall begin the joyful ascription of all eternity, “Unto Him that loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us Kings——; to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” Wilt thou not be among the number? Shall the princes and monarchs of the earth wade through seas of blood for a corruptible crown; and wilt thou permit thyself to lose the incorruptible, or barter it for some perishable nothings of earth? Oh! that thou wouldst awake to thy high destiny, and live up to thy transcendant privileges as the citizen of a Kingly Commonwealth, a member of the blood-royal of Heaven. What wouldst thou not sacrifice,—what effort wouldst thou grudge, if thou wert included at last in the gracious benediction, “Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world?”
“REMEMBER THIS WORD UNTO THY SERVANT, UPON WHICH THOU HAST CAUSED ME TO HOPE!”
31st Day.
“He is Faithful that Promised.”
“God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.”—Rev. xxi. 3, 4.
The Vision and Fruition of God.
Glorious consummation! All the other glories of Heaven are but emanations from this glory that excelleth. Here is the focus and centre to which every ray of light converges. God is “all in all.” Heaven without God!—it would send a thrill of dismay through the burning ranks of angels and archangels; it would dim every eye, and hush every harp, and change the whitest robe into sackcloth. And shall I then, indeed, “see God?” What! shall I gaze on these inscrutable glories, and live? Yes, God himself shall be with them, and be their God: they shall “see his face!” And not only the vision, but the fruition. Oh! how does sin in my holiest moments damp the enjoyment of Him! It is the “pure in heart” alone who can “see,” far more, who can enjoy “God.” Even if he did reveal himself now, these eyes could never endure His intolerable brightness. But then, with a heart purified from corruption—a world where the taint of sin and the power of temptation never enters—the soul again a bright mirror, reflecting the lost image of the Godhead—all the affections devoted to their original high destiny—the love of God the motive principle, the ruling passion—the glory of God the undivided object and aim—the will no opposing or antagonist bias,—man will, for the first time, know all the blessedness of his chief end,—“to glorify God, and to enjoy Him for ever!”