Book II. 77

O F T H E
IMITATION
O F
Jefus Chrift.
Clie ^econD ©oofi.
Chap. I.
the Life of the Spiritual Man,
TH E Kingdom of God is within you , fays our Bleffed Lord. Betake thy felf then entirely to God, love bim ^«^-xvii.2r. with all thy Heart, and all thy Soul , and bid a final adieu to this wretched World , and thou Ihalt find fweet Content , and Comfort unfpeakable. Learn to defpife thefc oucward Vanities , and feek pure and fpiricual Satisfactions j place all thy Hopes, thy Happinefs, thy Thoughts in Them , and thou ftalt feel this Kingdom fpring up and grow withiri thee. For the Kingdom of God is Peace and Joy in the Holy Gbofi^ : A Joy peculiar to ^^'^•xiv. 17. the Saints, in which wicked and worldly-minded Men have no part. Chrift will approach to thofe j chat fly to him f©r Refuge, meet aad embrace them
8o €^f ti)t gimttation: Bookii.
thy Native Liberty, by raifing thy Soul above this vain World, and fixing thy Defires and Meditations upon the moil high God ; Converfe with Chrift in Prayer, and let this be fo conftant, fo intent, as to contrad an intimate Familiarity with Him.
It may be. His Glories and Divine Excellencies are Objects too refined and lofty, for thy Contemplations j:o dwell upon with Relifli and fenfible Delight. But he.hath condefcended to thy mean Capacity, and, by becoming Man, afflided A4an, hath furnifhed us with Matter of Meditation, of a fize with our Minds, while dwelling in Flefh. Confider then his Poverty, and Suf^ ferings. And, if thou canft not foar up fo high as Ghrift fitting on his Throne, behold him hanging on his Crofs. Take Sanduary in his Stripes and Wounds, andDeath; thofe Stripes by which the World is healed^ that Death, by which Mankind live : And, if thefe be well attended to , they will adminifter marvellous Strength and Comfort to thy Adverfities ; enable thee to bear Wrongs with Eafe, Contempt with Pati- ence,. Calumny and Detradion with Content. What! Was the Son of God a Scorn-iof Men, and an Outcaft of the People .'^ Was the King of Heaven reduced to Wantsand^JsIecefficies upon Earth, and had not fo
; ..: , J -/ir-much as Ti^bere to Jay his Head ^ Was He, -^ .[^f*^^- '^ who loved his Enemies fo tenderly as ^yen to die. for them, forfaken by his Friends ? Did Chrdft fubmij:.,cheerfully to endure, and to be defpis'd ? And'doit thpu,- wretched Sinner, murmur and com- plain, yvheprPpverty or Contempt come upon thee ? wh^n thy Friends defert, or thy Enemies flander thee? /_^Ji.::.i:; ^:^.©i ^^#-^.Mvi-,J,j dnf^miof Men, and doft thou expedxhat
all Men fhopid favour, and afliil, and fpeak of Thee ,With Ilonouri; N^y, wretched- Man, entertain not fo jv^ina Hope. .It cannot be 5V.it is not fit it fhould.: For
couldit chou be -exempted ftom Injwii^s and Afflidions, - -,-^ whac
BookIL of J E s U S C H R I S T. 8i
what Opportunity could there ever be for the Exercife of thy Patience ? If nothing crofs fliould happen in the whole Courfe of thy Life, how couldft thou approve thy Friendfliip and Love for Chrift ,• How exprefs thy Likenefs to him ? This the Apoftle tells us^ is the Condition, This the Way, that ^r/w.ii. u, leads to Happinefs ^ and They, who de- ^^' fire to Reign with Chrift , niuft not think much to fufFer with him, and for him.
Oh I had we but, with Thomas^ put ourFivgers into tin Trint of bis Nails ^ and thrufi our Hands into his Side ; Had we but acquainted our felves ^°^^ ^^• with his Sufferings , by deep and ferious Confiderati- on^ and tafted indeed the aftonifhing Greatnefs of his Love ; the Joys and Miferies of this Life would foon become indifferent to us. Or rather, they would no longer be indifferent , but we fhould even rejoice in Tribulation , and triumph in the Oppoijtion , and Shame, and wrongful Dealings of Men, which draw us to fo much nearer and more lively Refemblance of the BlelTed Jefus. For the Love of Chrilt teaches us to defpife our felves ,* and They, who do fo, will bear the Reproaches and Defpifings of others with Eafi- nefs and Temper. A Man, whofe Soul is united to Chrift in fervent Love , and who hath freed himfelf from Paffions and Worldly Sollicitudes : This Man, I fay, is as it were fpiritii:^liz'd , can have recourfe to God without Diftradion, lives in a manner by , and within, himfelf j nay, is raifed above himfelf, and en- joys Heaven , while yet upon Earth. He that hath fhook off the Fallacies and Prepoffefiions of Senfe, that fees and judges things, not after the deceitful Meafures of Common Opinion, but by the Standard of Truth, and their own Nature ; He is the Wife^the truly Learn- ed Man ; and taught this Wifdom , not by Humane Methods, but by Inflrudions from above, from God the Fountain and Perfection cr all Wifdomr
8x iS){ tf^t imitation Bookii.
This Man can never want Opportunities of enjoy- ing and improving his Happinefs. The Interruptions, which common Men lament^ cannot afFed Him. For nothing can take him from himfelf ^ and fo long as he hath his own Breaft to retire into^ he cannot be de- prived of a fit Place, and proper Seafon for any holy Exercife. If Bufinefs and the World at any time call him abroad, he always ads and converfes there with cautious Referve^ and keeps it in his Power to recoi- led and retreat again at pleafure. Bodily Labour is no hindrance, for this employs but the leaft part of him ,• the Cares of Life he never lays himfelf out up- on ,• but fuits his Temper to his prefent Circumftan- ces, and only ftudies to keep his Mind eafy and com- pofed : The Unreafonablenefs, and Folly, and unac- countable perverfenefs of other Mens Humours and Behaviour give him no difturbance ♦ for he is taken up with his own. In fhort. Every Man finds more or lefs Vexation and Obftrudion in the Affairs of his Soul^ as he engages himfelf more or lefs in the Worlds and chufes or refufes to make thofe things hjs Care, which are not properly fo.
A Man, whole Mind is purify 'd from the Drofs of Earth, and difpofed as it ought to God and hbay_enty Things, will find that every Accident of Life contri- butes to his Advantage. For the true Reafon of our Paflion and Difquiet, when Things fall out contrary to our Expedations or Defires, is the want of that Refignation and Terliper, which never fails to com- pofe the Spirits of Men^ mortify 'd to themfelves and the World , and difengaged from the Vanities and falfe Appearances of Happinefs here below. For no- thingfoinfeds and defiles^ fo entangles and perplexes a Aran's Mind, as a fordid Love of the Creatures. But when we can once prevail with our felves to de- rpife thefe trifiingjthefe deluding Comforts without us, ourRecireqientsJato our own Breaft^ will be frequent
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