Christian History Institute Presents Pastwords #129: The Considerations of Drexelius upon Eternity by Jeremias Drexel ©2007

THE REWARD OF ETERNAL LIFE.

he Life in Heaven is Life indeed, and the most perfect and absolute Life of all others, in that it is Animal, in that it is Humane, in that it is Angelical, yea in that it is Divine. There lives the Memory, by the perfect remembrance of all things that are past: There lives the Understanding, by the knowledge and vision of God: There lives the Will, and enjoyeth all manner of good, without fear of losing it. In like manner liveth there the Appetites both that which is called Concupiscible, and that which is called Irascible. There live all the Senses, and are filled with Delights. There is heard no fighting, no lamentation, no grief or sorrow, nor so much as the least sign thereof. There is the most sincere and pure song of Joy, without the mixture of the least drop of the Gal of Bitterness and Sorrow. Let the Eyes by silent, they never heard the like; let thy Heart be silent, it could never conceive the like to this Life. This Life includeth within itself all pleasures, riches, honors, and all the delights of all lives, senses, and faculties. St. Augustine, as it were set on Fire with the fervent desire of this Life, breaketh forth into these words. How great Happiness shall be there, where there is the presence of no Evil, and the absence of no Good? Where we shall be continually praising God, who is all in all; Blessed are they that dwell in thy House; they will be still praising thee, Psal. 84.4.

All the faculties of our Souls and members of our Bodies being made incorruptible, shall be ever setting forth the praise of God. There shall be true Glory and Praise in deed, where neither he that doth give praise and glory can be deceived, nor he to whom it is given can be flattered. There shall be true honor indeed, which shall be denied to none that is unworthy, yea, which none that is unworthy shall desire or seek after; where none that is unworthy shall be permitted to abide. There he which is the giver of virtue, shall be the reward thereof: for he hath promised himself; and what could he promise greater and better than himself? The Prophet Jeremy is witness of this his promise, in these words, I will be their God, and they shall be my People, Jerem. 31. 33. I will be unto them whatsoever with honesty can be desired, I will be unto them life, and health, and food, and plenty, and glory, and honor, and peace, and every good thing: For this is the meaning of these words, God shall be all in all: He shall be the end of our desires. And one great good there is to be found in that blessed City of God, which is not elsewhere to be found, and that is this, That no inferior there shall envy his superior, but they shall be like members of the natural body compacted together in a friendly and peaceable manner; where the finger desireth not to be the eye, nor the foot the head, but every member is content with his own place. And a little after saith the same Father, there shall we keep an Eternal Sabbath of rest, and there shall we taste and see how sweet the Lord is, we shall be filled with his goodness when he shall be all in all. O god my God! Thou art Love and Charity, Truth and Verity, true Eternity and Eternal Felicity.

Another speaketh unto this life, by way of Apostrophe, after this manner, in thee there is no corruption, nor defect, nor old Age, nor anger; but perpetual peace, and solemn glory, and everlasting joy. And continual solemnity. There is joy and exultation, there is Eternal spring. There is always the flower and grace of youth and perfect health.

That is, Yesterday was with thee never; But to day is present ever: Thou hast peace that ever lasteth, Health and life that never wasteth; God is all in all.

Glorious things are spoken of thee, O City of God, Psal. 87.3. In thee have their habitation all those that rejoice; in thee there is no fear, in thee no sorrow. All desires are turned to joys. Whatsoever a Man can wish for is present with thee: Whatsoever can be desired, is in thee in abundance. They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy House; and thou shalt make them drink of the River of thy Pleasures, Psal. 36.8. For with thee is the Fountain of Life; in thy light shall we see light, 9. When we shall see thee in thyself, and thee in us, and ourselves in thee, living in everlasting felicity, and enjoying the Beatifical Vision of thee for ever.

And though this felicity be everlasting; yet a Man may obtain it in a short time, and with little labor. I have compassion on the multitude, saith our Saviour, because they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat, Mark 8.2. Sweet Saviour, dost thou count it such a matter for us to abide with thee three days, and eat nothing? And why, sweet Jesus, dost thou not rather tell us of the days of Eternity, and the everlasting joys wherewith we shall be abundantly satisfied in the Kingdom of Heaven? God taketh notice of the least service that we perform, and it is precious in his sight: He telleth the very hairs of our heads; and much more then will he tell the drops of blood that are spilt for his sake, and put them up in the Bottle of his Remembrance.

We may therefore very well cry out with St. Hierome, Oh! How great a blessedness is this, to receive great things for small, and Eternal Things for Temporal; and further to have the Lord our Debtor! But thou wilt be ready to say, it goes hard to be in sufferings every day; and though all other things might easily be endured, yet Death is terrible. Christian Brother, I am ashamed to hear thee say so, it is foolishly spoken, and like a Child. Knowest thou not thus much? I know that I ascend to descend, flourish to wither, am young to grow old, live to die, and die to live blessed Eternally. Trust therefore in the Lord for ever: For in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength, Isa. 26.4.

Again, St. Augustine comes into my mind, who upon the words of our Lord saith thus, Our Lord and Saviour concluded with these words, saying. These shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into life Eternal, Matth. 25. 46. It is Life Eternal that is here upon Earth, therefore Life is promised unto them: And because they are much afraid to die, therefore Death Eternal is threatened unto them. What wouldest thou have? Life; Well, thou shalt have it? What art thou afraid of? Is it Death? Well, thou shalt not suffer it. But they which shall be tormented in Hell Fire, shall have a desire to die; and Death shall fly from them. To live long therefore is no great matter; yea more, To live always, is no great matter; but To live blessed, that is a thing to be desired, that is a great matter indeed.

Therefore thou shalt live in Heaven, and shalt never die; there shalt thou live blessed for evermore; for neither shalt thou suffer any evil; neither shalt thou be in fear of suffering it; for there it is impossible to suffer any evil. There shalt thou possess whatsoever thou canst desire; and what thou possessest, thou shalt desire still to possess: Thou canst not be cast out of possession, and this shall satisfy thee. It was there, that David did expect to have his thrift quenched, and his hunger satisfied. In thy presence is fullness of joy, at thy right hand there are Pleasures for evermore, Psal. 15.11. And again, My soul thirsteth after thee, Psal. 141. 6. And yet again, As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied when I awake with thy likeness, Psal. 17.15. This is a new and a strange voice for a King: He hath his Table well furnished with all kinds of Dishes; and yet as if he were hunger-starved he hopes to be filled at another Table; his own Bread and his own Wine would not serve his turn, to appease his Hunger, or to quench his Thirst. There was other Bread that he had a mind to , and other Liquor that he so thirsted after, the Bread of Heaven, and the Water of Life. For what is the plenty and abundance of all the Kings of the Earth? It is nothing else but mere want. And what is the dainty Fare at their great Tables? It is but like the Beggars Pitcher, if it be compared with the Fatness of God's House, and his Heavenly Table. Come Eat and Drink, and be filled, my beloved, shall the King of Heaven say; this Feast of mine shall never be ended; there shall come no sorrow after it; as it is To day, so it shall be For ever and ever. Neither can St. Augustine here contain himself, but he breaks forth again into this Exclamation, Oh life of lives surpassing all life? Oh everlasting life? Oh life blessed for ever! Where there is joy without sorrow, rest without labor, riches without loss, health without sickness (there is no such matter in this life) abundance without defect, life without death, perpetuity without corruptibility, beatitude without calamity; where all good Men are in perfect charity, where all knowledge is in all things, and through all things; where the Majesty of God is seen in presence, where the mind of the beholders is filled with the bread of life: They always behold God's presence, and still they desire to behold it; they desire to behold it, and yet without anxiety; they are satisfied with it, and yet without satiety

And that thou mayest understand and know, good Christian Brother, that this super-excellent Glory, these celestial Riches, this Heavenly Kingdom is to be bought, hear what the same St. Augustine saith, I have to sell, saith God, I have to sell; come and buy it. Lord, what is it that thou hast to sell? I have rest; come and buy it. What is the price of it? The price is labor. And how much labor is Eternal rest worth? If thou wilt speak the truth and judge aright, Eternal rest is worth Eternal labor. It is true indeed; but do not fear: For God is merciful. For should thy labor be Eternal, thou shouldest never attain to rest Eternal; but that thou mayest attain at length to rest Eternal, therefore thy labor shall not be Eternal; not but that is worth so much, but that thou mayest at length get the possession of it. Indeed it is worth the price, though it be labor Eternal; but that it may be purchased and possessed, it is necessary that the price thereof be but labor Temporal. Therefore Christian Brethren, let us rouse up ourselves, and stir up one another with this exhortation of St. Augustine, which here followeth.

Let us set before our eyes, the life which is Eternal, and let us well consider the nature of it, which we shall come the better to understand, by removing from it, whatsoever we account troublesome in this life. For it is easier to find what it is not, rather than what it is. And yet it is set to sale. Thou mayest buy it if thou wilt. Thou shalt not need to be much troubled or turmoiled about it, for the greatness of the price. The price is whatsoever thou hast, and no more. Never examine what thou hast, but consider what thou art. It is worth thy buying, though thou givest thyself for it. Give thyself, and thou shalt have it. What? Art thou to sell thyself? Art thou to buy thyself? Behold, such as thou art, if thou canst be content to give thyself thou shalt have it. But thou wilt be ready to say it may be, Alack! I am a wicked Man; and such a Man perhaps will not be received for good payment: If thou beest not already good, do but give thyself, and by so doing thou shalt become good, and go for current. Do but make a faithful promise to give thyself; and this shall make thee good, and being made good, thou art a price of thyself good enough: And thou shalt have, as I said, not only health, safety, life, and such like as shall have an end; but also thou shalt be freed from many miseries: Thou shalt neither be wearied, nor stand in need of rest, thou shalt neither hunger, nor thirst, neither increase nor decrease, neither grow young nor wax old, because there is no being born there; for there is full growth and stature, and the entire and perfect number of years. There is no number like unto it: For as it hath no need of being augmented, so if there no need of being diminished. Behold what excellent things are spoken of it! And yet I cannot come near telling thee what it is, or what good things are treasured up in it: For it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of Man, 2 Cor. 2.9. And how shall my mouth be able to utter what the heart of Man is not able to conceive?

And because we have gone along through St. Augustine's Book, as it were through so many pleasant Gardens, and are now brought at length to the celestial Paradise, let us seal and confirm what hitherto hath been spoken by the testimony of the same Father. If we were every day, saith he, to suffer all torments, yea the torments of Hell itself, and that for a long time together, to the end that we might behold Christ in his Glory, and have communion and fellowship with the Saints; were it not worth our pains and sufferings! Who would not suffer any sorrow to be made partaker of so much good, and so great Glory? Let the Devils then lie in wait for me, let them assault with temptations; let my Body be brought down with fasting, let my flesh be kept under with pressure; let me be wearied with labors, let my moisture be dried up with watching; let one Man clamor against me, let another disquiet me, let me be bowed together with cold, let me be set on fire with heat; let my conscience murmur, let my head ache, let my breast be inflamed, let my stomach be troubled with ventosities, let my countenance wax pale and bleak, let me be full of infirmities; let my life consume away with grief, and my years with mourning; let rottenness enter into my bones, and let it spring up like a Fountain under my feet; let all these miseries come upon me, so that I may have rest and consolation in the day of tribulation, and ascend up unto the people of the Lord. For, What shall be the Glory of the just, and how great shall the joy of the Saints be, when every face shall shine as the Sun! When the Lord shall begin to reckon up his people in their distinct orders, in his Fathers Kingdom; and when he shall render unto every Man according to his works, the rewards which he hath promised, that is, Heavenly for Earthly, and Eternal for Temporal.

Think therefore upon the days of old, and call to mind the years which are yet for to come. Think upon Eternity, O Man, think upon Eternity; think upon the Eternity of Torment, and the Eternity of Joy, which is to follow after this short life is ended, and I dare warrant thee, thou wilt never complain of any Adversity; thou wilt never slip out of thy mouth such a word as this, This is too grievous, or This is intolerable, or, This is too hard: Thou wilt, I dare say, count all things easy and tolerable whatsoever can happen in this life, and thou wilt never be pleased, than when thou art most afflicted.

It is reported by John Moschus, son of Olympius, an old Man of singular patience (who lived cloistered up in a Monastery near unto Jordan) that he had his mind so bent and fixed continually upon Eternity, that he had scarce any sense or feeling at all of any temporal sorrow or misery. For, (as he goes on with his story) upon a time, as it happened, a certain Religious Man turned out of his way to visit him, and finding him in a dark cell, a place, as he thought, uninhabitable by reason of heat and swarms of Gnats and other Flies; not without much admiration spake thus unto him. And canst thou, Olympius, endure to live in such a close room, so exceeding hot, and so much pressed with Gnats, and swarms of Flies? But what did Olympius answer? And dost thou wonder at this? I tell thee, my son, all these are but light matters: I count them tolerable, that so I may escape Eternal Torments, which are intolerable. I can endure to be stung by Gnats, that so I may not feel the sting of conscience, and the gnawing of the Worm that never dieth. This heat which thou so complainest of I can suffer easily, when I think upon the Eternal Fire of Hell, which is unsufferable. These troubles, if I may so call them, are but short, and shall have an end; but the Torments in Hell are without end. Whereupon said the other, Certainly, Olympius, thou art lead by the spirit of wisdom and truth; so wisely and truly hast thou answered. I would there were more of thy mind, that would think thus seriously upon these things; then certainly there would be more than there are nowadays, that would after thy Example patiently suffer and endure all things.

The Conclusion of All.

Zeuxis, the most Famous for his Skill amongst all the Ancient Painters that we have heard of, was observed to be very slow at his Work, and to let no piece of his go abroad into the World to be seen of Men, till he had turned it over, and over, this side and that side, again and again, to see if he could spy any fault in it: And being upon a time asked the reason why he was so curious, why so long in drawing his Lines, and so slow in the use of his Pencil, he made this answer, I am long a doing what I paint, I Paint for Eternity. And thus stands the case with all, we Paint also for Eternity. Whatsoever we do, it so belongs unto Eternity, that a Man may truly say of it thus, I write, I read, I sing, I pray, I labor, whatsoever I do, whatsoever I say, whatsoever I think, all is for Eternity. Now is this be the nature of our thoughts, words and deeds, if they shall remain for all Eternity, we had need have a care what we think, speak or do; it concerns us to look about us, to mind our business, not to go negligently and sleepily about our work, not to let any thing go out of our hands rude and imperfect, but to polish and perfect it will all the care, skill, and industry that we can use. We Paint with Zeuxis for Eternity. When we have done our works, they are presently transmitted to Eternity, to be viewed by a most judicious and all-seeing Eye, that no fault can escape; and being viewed and censured, they are to be committed either to be Eternally punished, or Eternally rewarded. What I have said before, I here say again, because it cannot be said too often, though I should say it a thousand times; whatsoever we think, speak, or do, once thought, spoke, or done, it is Eternal, it abided for ever.

Will you hear what St. Gregory saith? In all our actions we must use great care and circumspection, we must well weigh and consider with our selves, what it is that we take in hand, and to what end we do it, that our minds be not set upon any thing that is Temporal, but upon those things which are Eternal. Therefore in all they actions labor to be perfect. Pray for Eternity, study for Eternity, suffer for Eternity, contend for Eternity, labor for Eternity, So live to God, that thou mayest live with God; so live on Earth, that thou mayest live in Heaven; so live for Eternity, that thou mayest live to Eternity.

Hear also what St. Bernard Smith. Our works do not pass away as soon as they are done (as they may seem to do) but as Seeds sown in time, they rise up to all Eternity. The foolish Man which hath no understanding, will wonder to see such a plentiful increase rise up of such little Seeds, be it good or be it evil, according to the nature of the Seed which is sown. But he that is wise will ponder these things, and count no sin little: for he hath an eye still not to that which is present, but to that which is to come; not to that which is sown, but to that which is reaped; not to that which is done in time, but to that which remains to all Eternity.

Oh the dangerous and miserable madness of the Sons of Adam! God created us unto the possession of Infinite and Eternal goods: And why are we carried then with the whole bent of our affections, to those things which are slitting and vanishing? God made us heirs of Heaven and eternal possessions: And why do we so miserably intangle ourselves in our vanities, and run headlong to destruction? Let us be wise in time, let us look will to our steps, let us make speed on the way of Eternity: Let us so live that we may live to Eternity. The way whither is short and narrow, but the term thereof is very large.

But O miserable and foolish Men that we are! We fain would obtain Eternal life, but we are loth to tread in the way that leads to it: We fain would be there; but we will not take pains to go thither. Every Man desires to be blessed. There is no Man, saith St. Augustine, of what condition or degree soever he be, but have a desire after that life which is blessed for ever. Therefore that life is the common Haven at which all Men desire to arrive; but all Men know not how to steer their course aright. It is a thing which all Men without controversy would fain possess; but how to compass it, what course to take, which way to go, that is the point they cannot agree upon. We may seek it long enough upon Earth; and it is a Question, whether we shall ever find it or no. Not that I condemn the seeking of it, but the not seeking of it in the right place. One is of opinion that the Soldiers life is most blessed. But another denies that, and says, the life of the Husbandman is most blessed. And again, this another denies, and says, that the Lawyers life is most blessed; and he gives his Reason for it: For the Lawyer is worshipped by the People, and is much sought unto, he is ever taking of Fees, and pleading Causes.

And again, this another denies, and says, the Judges life is most blessed: For he hath power of hearing Causes, and deciding them. And yet again, another denies this, and says, the Merchants life is most blessed: For he sees diverse Countries, learns many Fashions, gathers together much Wealth. You see, dearly beloved, in so many several kinds of Lives there is not any one to be found, that will please all. But the Life blessed for ever, that is it which pleaseth all.

Blessedness therefore is not to be expected here, but is to be sought for elsewhere, and never to be found out, but by a good and godly Death. Ungodly Men themselves desire to die the Death of the Godly, but they will not live the Life of the Godly: For to die well is the way to Felicity; but to live well is matter of labour; and yet that is not to be obtained without this. Eternity depends upon death, and there no dying well without living well, Choose which thou wilt, life or death. If thou livest well, thou canst not but die well; and it shall be well with thee for ever; if thou livest not well, thou canst not hope to die well, but it will be ill with thee for ever.

Not many years ago, a Man of a good House, having more wit in his head, than Religion in his heart, being asked what he thought of the strict lives of the Religious, and the loose lives of the licentious, which he esteemed best, answered thus, I could wish to live the licentious, but to die like the Religious. Some wit there might be in his answer, but I am sure there was little Religion in it. He had spoke like a Christian Man, if he had said thus, I desire to live the life of the Religious, that my end may be like his. Balaam could say, Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his, Numb. 23.10. But he had said a great deal better, if he had said thus, Let me live the life of the Righteous, that I may die the death of the righteous, and that my last end may be like his. For whosoever liveth the life of the Godly, shall be sure to die the death of the Godly: And whosoever liveth the life of the ungodly, shall be sure to die the death of the ungodly: Once he shall die, but that once shall be always, and that always for ever and ever.