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The happiness of heaven is the seeing God; and because our Lord and Saviour is God incarnate, God the Son made man, by taking to Himself a soul and body such as ours, therefore to see Christ was, to faithful men, a kind of heaven upon earth, and losing sight of Him, as they did at His Passion, was like being banished from heaven. Of course, then, His coming in their sight again was the greatest happiness they could have. I do not say that St. John, St. Mary Magdalene, and the rest, were all of them at the time fully aware that He whom they had seen die, and whom they now saw rise again, was the very and eternal God. They probably came by slow degrees, some at one time, some at another, to the full knowledge of that astonishing truth. But thus much they knew for certain, that they could not be happy without seeing Him. The sight of God was the very blessing which Adam forfeited in Paradise, and which poor fallen human nature, so far as it was not utterly corrupt, has ever been feeling after and longing for. The holy men before the time of our Lord's first coming in the flesh, looked on, by faith, to the happiness of seeing God. But the apostles, and those who were about Him when He came, actually had that happiness. They enjoyed in their life time that privilege which Job had to wait for till he came to the other world. In their flesh they saw God. Some of them even touched God, and handled Him with their hands. When they knew He was risen, it was their life and joy, the light of their eyes, and their soul's delight, their comfort, their hope, and their all, come back again after seeming to be lost. This is why Easter was so bright a day to them. After forty days, He promised to send His Holy Spirit, which should make Him really, though invisibly, nearer to them than He had been as yet. Upon the faith of this promise we and all Christians even now live, and if we have not forfeited our baptismal blessings, are happy. But our happiness is so far dim and imperfect, in that we do not as yet see Christ. The apostles saw Christ, but were not yet members of His body; we are members of His body, but do not yet see Him. These two things, which are now separated, are to be united in the other world; and, being united, they will make us happy forever. Behold, He has mixed up the account of His resurrection, so awful to sinners, with the most affecting tokens of His mercy. From the moment of His rising to the hour of His ascension, He is never weary of giving them signs, by which they might know Him, however glorified, to be the same mild and merciful Jesus, the same Son of Man, whom they had known so well on earth. Think not that our Master's condescending grace in all these things was confined to those disciples only. Surely it reaches to us, and to as many as believe on Him through the apostles' word. Though He be at the right hand of God, His human body and soul are there with Him, and all His brotherly pity for the lost children of men, and tender fellow feeling towards those who stand afar off and smite upon their breast. All these blessings of our Lord's presence are sealed and made sure to us with the promise of the Holy Ghost, which makes us members of Him, in His baptism first, and afterwards in the holy communion.

(Sermons by Contributors to "Tracts for the Times.)

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KJV: For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:

WEB: But as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives. In the end, he will stand upon the earth.