February 22

For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.—1 Corinthians 15:25, 26.

ALTHOUGH those persons and things that never degenerated from their original, are entirely subject to him; the angels obey his will; universal nature is governed by his providence; the heavens, the earth, the waters, and all things produced from them never resist the direction of his hand; yet there are others who fell from their integrity, and some things consequent to man's rebellion, which either oppose the power of Christ, or are not yet actually subdued; and they are the enemies of our salvation, Satan, sin, and death. Now the perfect freedom of the church from all these, will be the last glorious act of Christ's regal office. And it is observable, the day of judgment is called the day of redemption, with respect to the final accomplishment of our felicity, that was purchased by the infinite price of his sufferings. The day of Christ's death was the day of redemption, as to our right and title; for then our ransom was fully paid: and it is by the immortal efficacy of his blood that we partake of the glorious liberty of the sons of God; but the actual enjoyment of it shall be at the last day. Therefore the perfection of all our spiritual privileges is referred to that time, when death, our last enemy, shall be overcome.

The apostle saith, And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the first-fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves, groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption; to wit, the redemption of our bodies. During the present life, we are taken into God's family in the quality of his children; but the most solemn act of our adoption shall be at the last day. In this there is a similitude between Christ and his members. For although he was the Son of God by his marvellous conception, and owned of him while he performed his ministry upon the earth; yet all the testimonies of God's favor to him, were not comparable to the declaration of it in raising him from the grave. Then in the face of heaven and earth, he said, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. So in this life God acknowledges and treats us as his children, he clothes us with the righteousness of his Son, feeds us with his word, and defends us from our spiritual enemies; but the most public declaration of his favor shall be in the next life, when all the children of the resurrection shall be born in a day. Add further, although the souls of believers immediately upon their separation are received into heaven, and during the sleep of death enjoy admirable visions of glory; yet their blessedness is imperfect, in comparison of that excellent degree which shall be enjoyed at the resurrection. As the Roman generals, after a complete conquest, first entered the city privately, and having obtained license of the senate, made their triumphant entry with all the magnificence and splendor becoming the greatness of their victories: so after a faithful Christian hath fought the good fight, and is come off more than conqueror, he enters privately into the celestial city; but when the body is raised to immortality, he shall then, in the company and with the acclamations of the holy angels, have a glorious entry into it. I will briefly consider why the bodies of the saints shall be raised.

1. The general reason is from God's justice. As the economy of Divine providence requires there must be a future state, when God shall sit upon a judicial throne to weigh the actions of all men, and render to every one according to their quality; so it is as necessary that the person be judged, and not one part alone. The law commands the entire man composed of essential parts, the soul and body. And it is obeyed or violated by both of them. Although the guilt or moral good of actions is chiefly attributed to the soul, because it is the principal of them, yet the actions are imputed to the whole man. The soul is the guide, the body the instrument. It is reasonable therefore that both should receive the recompense. We see the example of this in human justice, which is a copy of the Divine. The whole man is punished or rewarded. The soul is punished with disgrace and infamy, the body with pains; the soul is rewarded with esteem and honor, the body with external marks of dignity. Thus the divine justice will render to every one according to the things done in the body, whether good or evil.

2. The special reason of the saints' resurrection is their union with Christ. For he is not only our Redeemer and Prince, but our second Adam—the same in grace as the first was in nature. Now as from the first, the soul was destroyed by sin, and the body by death; so the second restores them both to their primitive state, the one by grace, the other by a glorious resurrection. Accordingly the apostle saith, that by man came death, and by man came the resurrection from the dead. Christ removeth the moral and natural impossibility of our glorious resurrection:—the moral by the infinite merit of his death, whereby divine justice is satisfied, that otherwise would not permit the guilty to be restored to eternal life; and the natural, by his rising from the grave, to a glorious immortality. For his infinite power can do the same in all believers. It is observable, the apostle infers the resurrection of believers from that of Christ, not only as the cause, but the original, example. For the members must be conformed to the Head, the children to their Father, the younger to the elder Brother. Therefore he is called, The first-fruits of them that slept, and the first-begotten of the dead. In Christ's resurrection ours is so fully assured, that the event is infallible.

"Glory to God, in full anthems of joy;

The being be gave us death cannot destroy:

Sad were the life we may part with to-morrow,

If tears were our birthright, and death were our end;

But Jesus hath cheer'd the dark valley of sorrow,

And bade us, immortal, to heaven ascend:

Lift then your voices in triumph on high,

For Jesus hath risen, and man shall not die."