Selected quad for the lemma: love_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
love_n	cast_v	fear_n	perfect_a	12,552	5	8.8307	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A55754	Sun-beams of gospel-light shining clearly from severall texts of Scripture, opened and applyed. 1. A heavemly [sic] treatise of the devine love of Christ. 2. The Christians freedome. 3. The deformed forme of a formall profession. 4. Christs fulnesse, and mans emptinesse. By John Preston, doctor in divinity, chaplaine in ordinary to King James, Mr. of Emmanuel Colledge in Cambridge, and sometimes preacher at Lincolnes Inne.	Preston, John, 1587-1628.; Preston, John, 1587-1628. Two treatises, viz. The Christian freedome, and The deformed forme of a formall profession.; Preston, John, 1587-1628. Plenitudo fontis, or, Christ's fulnesse and man's emptinesse.	1644 (1644)	Wing P3307A; ESTC R219005	93,300	192

1. Hence then to make some use of it wee may learne not to deceive our selves to think we are in the state of grace when we are not for if wee did truly beleeve our sinnes are forgiven us wee would be healed but if we have the same lusts and keepe the same company which we did when wee were not changed it is a meere delusion whatsoever we say or think And thus much for the third point too there yet remaines one more wherewith wee will conclude the whole text and that we may draw from the contrary to what the Apostle here saith and indeed it is implyed though not exprest for if sin have no dominion over them that are not under the law but under grace then on the other side must it needs be as true That Whosoever is under the law sinne hath dominion over him that is Hee that refraineth sinne onely for feare of the law and of judgements sinne hath dominion over him this is the case of them that refraine sinning onely for feare and for the salvation of their soules or for educations sake which have beene brought up in good families or such as repent upon some amazement like the bulrushes which hang downe their heads onely while the shower lasts And that First because all such as are not under grace but under the law have not received the spirit which commeth by hearing the Gospell and no creature can change one creature into another as lead into gold or a Wolfe into a Lamb unlesse it be by Gods spirit Secondly to such Gods service is burthensome and violent motious last not long they are weary in clambering up an hill all naturall motions are swifter at the last than at the first but these are like the Israe it es who after a time would have returned into Aegypt againe Now then to end all with the time let us 1. Be exhorted not to abstaine from any sinne for feare of punishment but consider whether thou wouldest serve God for Gods sake although there were neither heaven nor hell it must be our meat and drink which men would doe though there were no punishment for the omission of it Blessed is hee that hungreth and thir steth after righteousnesse 2. Hence we may learne not to deferre repentance till death sicknesse crosses or age comes then it may be you would not sinne though with Balaam you had your house full of gold and silver for it 's not the abstinence from sinne that God loveth but the change of the heart Amaziahs heart was not right though he walked in all the wayes of David There are men that have made a covenant with hell and death but God will disanull that covenant or it will be but equivocall many have sworne in their sicknesse never to commit sinne again which afterward they have committed again with greedinesse many have dyed in the same without repentance 3. Labour to see your selves doing duties with as much love as you can and with as little feare because perfect love casteth out feare And so beloved I have given you a briefe survay of the severall points contained in this portion of holy Scripture wherefore if you know these things happy are yee if yee doe them FINIS THE DEFORMED FORME OF A FORMALL PROFESSION OR The description of a true and false Christian either excusing or accusing him for his pious or pretended conversation Shewing that there is a powerfull godlinesse necessary to salvation and that many have the forme but not the power thereof In handling whereof These three things are plainly and powerfully explained and applyed 1. What godlinesse is 2. What the power of it is 3. What be the reasons why some have but the forme thereof together with the meanes and marks both how to attaine and to try our selves whether we have the power thereof or not By that late faithfull and worthy Minister of Iesus Christ JOHN PRESTON Doctor in Divinity Chaplaine in Ordinary to his Majestie Master of Emanuell Colledge in Cambridge and sometimes Preacher of Lincolnes Inne Not every one that saith unto me Lord Lord shall enter into the kingdome of Heaven but hee that doth the will of my Father which is in Heaven Math. 7. 21. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this to visit the fatherlesse and widowes in their afflictions and to keepe himselfe unspotted of the world James 1. 27. Printed 1641. THE DEFORMED FORME OF A FORMALL PROFESSION 2 TIMOTHIE 3. 5. Having a forme of godlinesse but denying the power thereof OUR Apostle S. Paul doth in these words give us a part of a description of wicked men in the latter times he bringeth them in by way of prevention or objection or answer to an objection as if some should wonder that there should be such kinde of persons in the Church as hee in the former verses had described Covetous boasters proud blasphemers disobedient to parents unthankfull unholy c. doe these live as the Church do's Doe these retaine the Sacraments and the like Yes saith the Apostle they doe wee cannot denie it only this They have a forme of godlinesse but c. So that the point of doctrine arising from hence doth plainly appeare even at the first sight to be this viz. That there is a powerfull godlinesse necessary to salvation and that many have but the forme not the power thereof Now there be three things to be explained in opening of this doctrine to shew 1. What godlinesse is 2. What the power thereof is 3. The reasons why many have no more but the form therof For the first that you may the better conceive what Godlinesse is I will first shew you what it is not First then it is not bare nature but that godlinesse which God requireth of all men is more then so God indeed hath commanded nature yea even corrupt nature to bring forth many fruits of godlinesse as much abstinence from pleasure much patience much temperance and such like which are all very beautifull in their owne Spheres but because they come not from God nor his Spirit of sanctification or because they have no respect of God therefore they are not godlinesse neither doth God regard them Secondly it is not the act of religion proceeding from selfe-love though offered to God in regard that men see that God is the governour of the world that he hath the keyes of heaven and earth and men may doe much to God for such respects using him as a bridge to get to heaven by making themselves their utmost ends and therefore this is not godlinesse but what is it then you will say Thirdly it is a divine grace infused into the soule by God whereby a man followes God loves him magnifies him sets him up in his heart above all and manifesteth this in his life and the whole course of it doing all for him and to him and it is thus wrought When the creature

Christ be with you all And there he addes that sentence which so suits with the spirit and mind of S. Paul that it might easily shew it to be S. Pauls Epistle a man so abounding in the love of the Lord as hee is zealous against such as love him not We shall finde in al S. Pauls preaching that faith and love were that which he drave at those two roots those two pillars on which the Church is built from whence all the rest flow Hereby teaching Ministers what they should beat at what should bee their aime A●d so people are taught hence what to doe they must water these two roots well and then the branches will flourish Our wisedome should bee to looke to these for these being strong all will be strong If these bee weake all will be weake If any man love not the Lord Iesus let him bee had in execration yea accursed unto the death His scope is to commend love to the Corinthians If I should cast about me to commend some speciall thing unto you now at the closing up of my Epistle I know nothing better then this Love of the Lord Iesus And there are two reasons why you should love him first ye were in a miserable and accursed condition if you doe it not And the second is from the object you are to love he is the Lord and so may well challenge your love Iesus your Saviour and so hath well deserved it so that we have here an exhortation and two reasons of it The words have little difficulty Somewhat I will say of the two words in the originall Anathema Maranatha The word Anathema signifies the separatiō of a thing unto destruction Maranatha is a Syrian word signifying cursing takē from the Hebrew root and signifies more then Anathema The Apostle doubles this curse to shew the greatnes of the punishment It is a great punishment which he would expresse in two languages The generall doctrine we will observe from these words is this That to love the Lord Iesus is so necessarily required of us that hee is worthy to be cursed that doth it not Sometimes in Scripture the promise is made to faith sometimes to repentance sometimes to love Love is so required that without it a man is worthy to be accursed yea and shall be cursed I will but open and apply this not standing to prove it And First I will shew what love is in generall Secondly what this love of the Lord Iesus is to shew which there will bee showne how it is wrought And thirdly how they come to bee worthy to be accursed that love him not And first for the first Love is among the affections which are planted in the Will and it may be described thus It is a disposition of the Will and Heart of man whereby it turnes and inclines to some good which it apprehends to bee agreeable to its owne nature The Will is carried to nothing but that which is apprehended to bee good Now this love is a principall act of the Will and it must bee an agreeable good to him whose Will inclines unto it for an envyous man may confesse the excellencies of another man but hee hates them he suffers by them they seeme not to be an agreeable good to him And this may bee illustrated by the contrary Hate is that whereby a man turnes from a thing which he apprehends contrary to himselfe This Love shews it selfe in two effects first it desires the preservation of what it loves that it may be kept safe secondly it desires Vnion with it that they may draw neerer one to another That you love which you desire may bee yours with which you desire conjunction Now sometimes a thing may bee neerer sometimes too far off therefore it desires such a neerenesse as may stand with its convenience And this is common to all love if you love a Glasse you will take care that it bee kept cleane and whole and for your use so if you love a Horse you will take care that he bee well and in good case and that he be yours The same we see in the love of a Father to his Sonne of one friend to another This is the nature of Love Now Hate contrariwise desires the destruction of that which is hated that it may bee taken out of the world and if that cannot bee it desires separation from it as far as may bee And thus you have seene the nature of Love in generall Now there are divers kindes of Love There is a Love of Pitty whē you desire the preservation of a mans person and the removing of some ill quality As our Saviour mourned in Spirit for the hardnesse of their hearts hee did pitty them and yet was angry with their sinne There is a Love of Desire when a thing is dered to bee kept safe for our use And this is for the inferiour faculties as the sigh loves a pleasant object should be continued There is a Love of Complacence when wee looke on a thing in which all the faculties are pleased not onely the inferiour but the superiour as the Minde and the Will There is a Love of friendship when a man loves where he is loved again when love is reciprocall there is an intercourse of Love There is a Love of dependance when wee love him on whom we depend and thus we love God when wee looke upon him as on whom all our good depends so that we love him more than our selvs because our good depends upon him more than on our selves Wee will adde the qualities of Love there is a naturall Love planted in us by nature as the of parents to their children of one man to another this love is indifferent not good in it selfe good no otherwise than directed on a good object There is a sinfull Love arising from sinfull habits which seeke things convenient to it As nothing is better than love on a right object so nothing worse than love on a wrong object As naturall Love puts us in the condition men so this sinfull Love makes men worse than beasts and equals them with the Divell There is a spirituall Love arising out of holy qualities which seekes an object agreeable to it And this makes a man above a man and in some sort equall with the Angels Men are as they love GOD judges us by our affections wee are judged by what we love He that loves wickednesse is truly a wicked man he that loves holinesse is truely holy This foundation that wee have laid though it may seeme somewhat remote yet ye shall find it of use to hold up this building before wee have done with the point The s●cond thing that wee have to declare is What this love of the Lord Iesus is Now the best way to shew what this is is to shew how it is wrought now for the working of it there must be two Antecedent things which

bee without this love to him Now wee come to the third thing the reasons why they are worthy to bee accursed unto the death that Love not the Lord Iesus This may seeme strange and harsh What then becomes of all unregenerated men The Apostle meanes sure such as continue in their not loving the Lord or such as have sinned against the holy Ghost But the former sence I take to bee the best neither is this any strange thing for it is one part of the Gospel There are two parts of the Gospel If you beleeve you shal be saved if you beleeve not you shal be damned Sometimes it is if you repent you shal be saved or if you doe not you shall perish so if you love you shal be saved if you love not you shal be accursed now why should hee pitch on such a frame of words to expresse their condition Because when Christ shall come and bee a suter to us when he shall woe us and offer himselfe to us and wee will have none of him then the Sonne waxes angry When he shall offer himselfe unto us and none will kisse him then hee waxes angry unto the death and they perish in the way The greatest love not answered turnes to the greatest hatred so when the Father sent to call them to the feast that were invited and they refused it this made him wrath when wee shall come to preach Christ to men when this light hid from the beginning of the world shall shine and you shall despise it and contemne it know that now is the axe laid to the roote of the tree God will beare it at your hands no longer Now if a man will not Love the Lord Iesus let him be had in execration yea let him bee accursed unto the death If a man did not keepe the Law he was to be cursed now there was a double keeping of the Law A Legall which answeres the exact rigour of the Law an Evangelicall which is an earnest endeavouring to keepe the Law and to make a mans heart as perfect as may be Now there being more mercy in this there is a greater curse on the breach of it Now Love is the fulfilling of the Law and not to love the Lord is not to keepe the Law and therefore the Curse follows it If a man love not the Lord Iesus it is because he loves something better than him It may be you love your Wealth more than Christ And are you not worthy to be cursed for it It may be you are lovers of pleasure more than of God and doth not this deserve a Curse It may bee you love the praise of men before that of God and is not this to bee accursed Adultery was punished with death and what punishment then is enough for the going a whoring from such a God after such vanties Againe Cursing belongs to Hypocrites Woe be unto you Seribes and Pharisees Hypocrites Matthew 23. Now what a man doth not out of love is done out of hypocrisie which is to doe the outward action without the inward affection as counterfeit gold hath the same stamp and colour with true gold But as wee cast away counterfeit silver and gold set it apart to destruction nayling them up that they may bee knowne so will God deale with such as serve him outwardly without this love to him Love is that which commands all in a man It is as the rudder to a shippe all followes love When a man love not the Lord all go's from him Now when the whole man shall go from the Lord is not such a one worthy to bee cursed yea to bee had in execration to the death If this love of the Lord be so necessary then see what a sinne it is what an execrable thing it is not to love the Lord and what you are to thinke of your selves if you love not the Lord. When Iesus Christ shall bee propounded unto men and this light is great but men do● resist it and not embrace the Lord when we see this we should have such a spirit as Paul for this was out of the abundance of his zeale wee should I say bee stirred against such with an holy indignation Act. 17. Doe not I hate those that hate thee Psal. 139. yea I hate them with a perfect hate This thou hast that thou hatest the workes of the Nicholaitans which thing also I hate Revelations 2. And this was a signe of Lots sincerity that his righteous soule was grieved and vexed with the uncleane conversation of the Sodomites 2 Peter 2. If you can see Christ scorned and re jected and his Word slighted and his bloud trampled on and you your selves are not moved with it you are not of Pauls spirit who speaking of some whose God was their belly whose glory was their shame of whom saith hee I have told you often and now tell you weeping that they are the enemies of the crosse of Christ Philip 3. Whence came this but out of the abundance of his love to Christ and mankinde I wish yee would all looke to your selves whether you are in this number or not of those that love not the Lord. This is such a sinne as the curse is doubled upon it And the punishment is but to shew the measure of the sinne Hee thunders not out his curse against him that opposeth the Lord or resisteth him but against him that loveth not the Lord. The Apostle as Moses gets him up to the Mount Ebal and whom doth he curse Even all such as love not the Lord Iesus This Doctrine throughly considered may let in a crevice of light to thee that now thou maist looke on thy selfe as on an execrable thing which God hates and thou maist see GOD even stretching out his power to confound thee yea thou maist see the Gospel cursing thee But what terrour is there in the preaching of the Gospel you will say O much more my Brethren than may bee expressed for the curse of the Law was not so peremptory though we have plaine words for it yet it was not without all condition But God sweares to this curse as if wee were thus cursed if wee would continue not to love him The Law is the proper instrument of humbling yet the Gospel humbles more for sinne is the matter of Humiliation And there bee sinnes against the Gospel yea greater sinnes than against the Law when thou hearest the curse of the Law Cursed be he that continueth not in every thing that is written in the booke of the Law to doe them Galathians 3. You will say you wil go to Christ he shall do it for you But when the Gospel curses such as love not Christ to whom will you goe to love God Another man cannot love for you And if you thinke this be too harsh let this verse sound oft in your eares If any man love not the Lord Iesus Christ let him be

neither is there any on thy part for there is nothing required in thee for which hee shall set his love upon thee There are no merits desired on thy part onely accept him receive him hee will afterwards put some lines upon thee Art thou willing to take Christ for thy husband for better and worse with a crowne of Thornes as well as Glory then the match is concluded thou maist be sure that Christ will be thine But I have renewed my sinnes and have fallen into divers relapses I still provoke him and fall backe and GOD will not endure such a wretch Yet he forgives sinnes of all sorts he is abundant in mercy he is still forgiving and never gives over There is a fountaine opened to Iudah and Ierusalem for sinne and for uncleannesse Zach. 12. vers 13. There is afountaine not a cisterne to wash in which may be drawne dry Onely this caveat must be put in that we allow not our selves in any knowne sinne but that wee maintaine warre continually against sinne and by no meanes admit any peace with Amaleck Another meanes is to remove the impediments of love which are two especially strangenesse and worldly-mindednesse Strangenesse dissolves all friendship By this meanes the interest of friendship may be broken off This strangenesse breeds fearefulnesse when we goe to God and fearefulnesse weakenesse of love whereas boldnesse is the nurse of it Herein is our love made perfect that we have boldnesse in the day of the Lord Iesus As by neglecting fellowship with the Saints we come to lose our acquaintance wee had towards them so the neglecting of maintaining our acquaintance with God brings us quite at last to leave him Draw neere therefore to God continually and this will increase your love to him Be therefore oft speaking to him and hearing him speake to you Be much in prayer and often in reading and hearing And doe not these things customarily and untowardly but with life and affection goe to prayer as you would goe to speake with your most deare friend whom you most of all delight to talke with Let it be pleasant to thee to converse with him in all things when thou hast any injury befallen thee goe and make thy cause knowne to him and when any sinne hath escaped thee whereby he may be offended give not over till reconciliation be made and thy friendship rewarded Looke especially to thy wayes for sinne alienates and restraines a man from God therefore see that that bee removed as much as may be Worldly mindednesse also hinders the love of God This is the uncircumcision of the heart Hence is that the Lord thy God will circumcise thy heart and the heart of thy seed to love the Lord thy God with all thy heart that thou mayest live And untill the heart be circumcised it is filled with the love of the World so that hee cannot love the Lord at least with all his heart as hee ought There is no such quench-coale to the love of God as the love of the World Pleasures and the love of carnall things are very apt to steale away our hearts from God before we are aware If we looke not more narrowly to it they may doe it Examine your owne hearts and see if by how much the more you love the World by so much the lesse you are affected to the Lord. These things as Absalom steale away our hearts from God as he did the people from his Father If thou findest not that love to God which formerly hath beene see what hath come betweene God and thy heart Looke if some pleasure or lust have not crept in betweene for these will separate betweene God and thee See if there be not in thy understanding conceits of things to be better then indeed they are for these will turne the heart from the Lord but above all looke to thy will and affections FINIS A HEAVENLY TREATISE OF THE DIVINE LOVE OF CHRIST Sermon V. BY IOHN PRESTON DD. Matt. 22. 37 38. This is the first and great Commandement thou shalt Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart Psal. 31. 26. Love the Lord O all ye his Saints LONDON Printed by Thomas Paine for Iohn Stafford 1640. A HEAVENLY TREATISE OF THE DIVINE LOVE OF CHRIST Sermon V. 1 Cor. 16. 22. If any man love not the Lord Iesus Christ let him be had in execration yea let him be accursed unto the death NOw the next thing wee have to doe is to shew what kinde of love the Lord accepts for hee will not take any kinde of love that is offered him but onely such a love as he calls for as hee requires Thou must love him with all thy might and with all thy strength A publike person may doe more then a private His example may doe much or he may command others if not to doe good yet to refraine from evill God desires that thou love him with all thy strength if thou knowest much thou must doe much Besides some things thou canst doe namely which others cannot doe without great difficulty As some men are temperate some patient by nature If thou art such an one God requires more of thee then of another for he accounts that which thou canst doe without setting thy might to it as nothing It is not enough for thee to love the Lord but thou must love him with thy might The might of a rich man of a Magistrate of a Scholler or whatsoever thou art when thou shalt come to the Lord with a small pi●tance when thou hast opportunity to doe a great deale more the Lord will not take it at thy hands As a Landlord will not receive a small parcell when the Tenant may pay a greater summe Neither is this a thing indifferent for you to doe or not to doe for God requires much of him to whom he hath given much Hee gives us all talents which he puts as prizes in our hands which he expects we should lay out according as we have received Paul did no worke of supererogation though he was abundant in the workes of the Lord continually setting himselfe about the worke with his whole strength Thou must love him above all things else Above all creatures above that which is most deare unto thee yea above thy selfe And if thou dost not so thou lovest him but as a creature which will not serve his turne Hee hath done more for thee then any creatue hath or can doe He hath dyed for thee hath given himselfe crucified for thee he deserves therefore more love then thy pleasures profits or then any friend thou hast You are therefore to love him above all to imbrace cleave to him chiefly to make him wholly thine But how can he you will say be wholly mine seeing so many have their parts in him Yes hee is wholly thine and thou must bee wholly his He is infinite and so hath no parts but is entire to every one as every

line drawne to the Center may challenge the whole Center for it's owne though there be a thousand lines beside But what must I so love the Lord that I may not love earthly things Yes thou mayest love them so that it be not with an adulterous love Thou mayest love them for God as by them you may be enabled to serve God the better But how shall I know this adulterous love When you love any thing so as it lessens your love to your husband that is an adulterous love As when thou lovest some pleasure and delight so as it takes up the minde and hinders thee in hearing and will not suffer thee to pray without distraction but thy thoughts must be upon it this love is adulterate love Thou mayest rejoyce yet so as if thou rejoycest not As this joy hinders not thy walking with God so thou mayest labour in thy calling with a love to it yet so as it doth not draw away thy heart from God But this is very difficult will some say No it is easie When God hath put this love into thy heart the necessity of it may make it easie Thou mayest doe it or thou canst not bee saved Indeede it is impossible for a man that hath set his heart on riches to remove it off againe of himselfe And in this sense Christ speakes when he sayes It is so hard for a rich man to enter into the Kingdome of heaven But when God hath wrought this love in thee and hath revealed to thee the emptinesse and vanity of other things it will be easie But I am not able to love the Lord above my selfe and all other things Yes thou mayest if once thou art throughly perswaded that hee is thy chiefest good and how miserable thou art without him thou wilt then bee content to forsake all and to cleave to him alone A man that sowes Corne is content it should die so as it may bee quickned againe and bring forth encrease And therefore Paul though hee saw the outward building of his body goe to decay he cared not so long as he was renewed in the inner So when thou seest thy good conteined in him more then in thy selfe when thou seest thy happinesse laid up in him thou wilt easily bee perswaded to leave thy selfe to injoy him For thou losest nothing by losing thy selfe thy whole happinesse is in God Againe thou must be rooted and grounded in Love This is that which the Apostle so prayes for for the Ephesians Ephesians 3. 17. There is a certaine love by fits which God accepts not When men come and offer to God great promises like the waves of the Sea as bigge as mountaines oh they thinke they will doe much for God But their mindes change and they become as those high waves which at last fall levell with the other waters If a man should proffer thee great kindnesses and thou shouldest afterwards come to him to make use of him and hee should looke strangely upon thee as if hee were never acquainted with thee how wouldest thou esteeme of such love If wee are now on now off in our love God will not esteeme of such love and if you be not rooted in your love you will be unstable Let then your love bee well rooted let the foundation be good on which it stands now that ●s on two things This love must be founded in faith Therefore Ephesians 3. when the Apostle had prayed that they might be strengthened in faith he addes this also that they might bee grounded in love When thou art once rooted in faith thou shalt bee grounded in love When therefore you come to beleeve and consider whether Iesus Christ belong to you or no doe it not overly and slightly but doe it thorowly Sift every thing to the b●an give not over till thou art fully satisfied till thou canst answer all objections and rest in this perswasion that all is most true which hath been revealed to thee of the Lord Iesus Christ and it is good for thee to rest upon it Your love must bee built upon his Person If you love his and not him you will be unstable in your love If thou lovest him in his Person thou changest not for thy love will bee constant But if thou love him for that hee hath done for thee because hee hath done thee much good and given thee many favours and tokens of his love and kept thee from many troubles when hee changes his dealing towards thee thou wilt change thy love to him Thou wilt then doe as Iob receive good from the hand of the Lord and also evill Put case God should take from thee and send one affliction in the necke of another this will try thy love whether in this case thou wilt sticke close unto him Sometimes God hides his face from his children and writes bitter things against them If then thou canst love him thy love is on his Person a constant love Another condition of our love is that it must be diligent The Apostle commends the Thessalonians effectuall faith and diligent love 1 Thessalonians 1. 3. If you say you love the Lord and yet will doe nothing for him you have not that love which God accepts This love is operative diligent and not idle and dead Wee regard not a dead drugge a dead plant wee cut it up and cast it away even so doth the Lord esteeme of a dead love and love that shewes not it's life it 's diligence to obey God This love will cause thee to put on new aparrell to adorn thy life so as thy love may take delight in thee This will make thee carefull to beautifie thy selfe with the graces of the Spirit See therefore whether thy love prepare thee for Christ. This love doth that which Iohn Baptist did It prepares men for the receiving of the Lord. If thou wilt come then before him in thy old garments it is a signe thou lovest him not Againe the operativenesse of it is seene in opening thy heart to him when he offers himselfe unto thee This will give thee a capable heart to entertaine him that hee may dwell plentifully in thee This doth make thee comprehend with 〈◊〉 Saints what is the height and bredth and length and depth of the love of Christ. This love is diligent in cleansing the heart that it will suffer nothing to remaine there that may be offensive to the Lord God that dwels with his people This love therefore will suffer no sluttish corner to remaine in the heart but keepes all cleane It clenses a man from all filthinesse of flesh and Spirit 2 Corinthians 5. Lastly the diligence of love is seene in keeping of his commandements If thou doest nothing for the Lord thou lovest him not So much love as thou hast so much care will there be in thee to doe his will so much fire so much heat to stir for his glory So

much love so much desire to walke in perfect obedience before him And now wee come to the object upon whom our love must be placed The Lord Iesus Consider whom it is whom if you love not I pronounce you thus accursed It is the Lord Jesus he is your Lord your Prince your Saviour your Messias your Prophet so that hee which loves him not is worthy to be accursed First he is our Lord. Now to run from an ordinary Master is punishable to rebell against an ordinary King deserves death but he is more our Lord and King in a more speciall bond Besides that he hath made us and preserves us we are his by purchase and he hath bought us deere hee hath shed his blood for us so that hee that will not love this Lord let him be accursed Secondly againe he is our Saviour and in this respecct love is now more due to God then in time of innocency When Adam broke the Covenant and made shipwrack Christ offers himselfe a Saviour Now if wee will not receive him there is no more hope He is the secunda tabula left to us after shipwrack which if wee let goe wee cannot escape eternall destruction Lastly he is our Prophet that Messias Iohn 4. which tels us all things That great Prophet whom Moses foretold whom if we beleeve not we must be for ever accursed The time of our ignorance God regarded not but now hee will have an eye to us after that the light hath shone unto us and he hath revealed himselfe when this our Prophet hath come unto us and shewne himselfe unto us Now God olaimes our love and if now we refuse to love him and to come in unto him we are rebels Yea he is our Priest and would reconcile God unto us Yea he is made unto us a King to subdue our lusts and rebellious affections to draw us to himselfe as it were by force So that now if we love him not wee deserve the curse Now marke the Lord hath joyned these two together the Lord Iesus We must take heede that we separate them not And we must see that wee take him not onely as a Saviour but also as a Lord. He is not onely the Authour of the remission of our sinnes but he is our Lord to rule us The preaching of the Gospel is nothing but the offering of Christ his whole person and so you must take him as a subject to bee your Lord as a Spouse to be ruled and guided by him and then wee shall have the benefit which arises thence We are willing to part with the sweete but we will have none of the sowre as that young man would have had Christ but he would not part with his wealth for him But Christ tels him that he must either part with him or them Canst thou be content to fare as I doe to be rejected scorned in the world as I am then well good thou mayest follow me but otherwise thou canst not And if thou art content to doe thus to suffer persecution and to forgoe all for him thou shalt have him and all the benefits that come by him if not thou art not worthy of him hee that beleeves not the Lord Iesus is condemned already i. e. Hee that takes him not when hee is offered is in the state of of condemnation We must see therefore that we take his whole person as hee is a Lord as well as he is a Saviour and not the latter without the former If any man love not the Lord Iesus let him be had in execration yea let him be accursed to the death The Apostle curses sueh as love him not with a double curse He expresses it in two languages They are men set apart to evill appointed to destruction as some men are set apart to good so are these to evill They are shut up in prison such as God hath set himselfe against His eyes are continually upon them for evill Thus shall he be accursed that loves not the Lord Iesus There shall be a curse on his soule for matter of grace that as Christ cursed the figtree when hee came and found no fruit upon it never fruit grow more on thee and it withered away So when Christ is offered and this Gospell preached and thou refusest this grace thou mayest find Christ so curse thee that thou be ever barren in the matter of grace And if perhaps thou thinkest this no great matter the curse goes further Thou shalt bee cursed from the presence of the Lord. Thou shalt have no part nor portion in the light sweetnesse and comfort of his favour And this Caine tooke to heart though he were a wicked man and had before but Gods common favour and so Saul was exceedingly cast downe when as God would not answer him by any of those usuall meanes but is this such a matter to bee excluded from his presence yea and at the time of death you shall find it somwhat yea in troubles you shall see it a dreadfull thing as they did to want him to stand your friend As Saul did though in his prosperity he little regarded it yet when the Philistines came upon him he was driven to his wits end because the Lord would not answer him But these are but spirituall things I feele them not you will say But yet the curse goes further You shall be cursed also from the earth that is from earthly comforts which it yeelds to others Now thou shalt bestow all thy travell and paine upon it and be never the better for it But many a man receives him not and yet is not thus accursed Indeed we see it not many times and it may be the time of execution is not yet come Thou mayest have Cains priviledge though thou art accursed that none shall kill thee presently Thou mayest enjoy thy health and wealth and no man lay hold on thee here to hurt thee But thou art reserved to a more solemne day of punishment And yet the curse goes a step further thou shalt be cursed eternally But that thou wilt say is a great way off and you need not feare it yet But consider what eternity is what those dayes of darknesse will be when the Sun of comfort shall set and never rise againe upon thee When it shall be alwayes perfect night and never day When God shall open all the treasures of his wrath and powre them with full fury upon thee when the storme of vengeance shall never bee blowne over but thou shalt bee overwhelmed in the midst of all miserie asthe old world was in the deluge If this be the case of men that refuse yea that love not the Lord then take heed to your selves Wee the Ministers offer you Christ when wee preach and you sit negligently before us minding other things not caring to take the Lord. Take heed this is your portion to be thus accursed The Gospell hath two parts if

it doe not raigne in the Saints yet doth remaine and dwell in them for proofe whereof see this place of Scripture If any man thinketh saith Saint Iohn that he hath no sinne hee is a lyer and there is no truth in him The truth whereof will be seene in these things clearely 1. Because our knowledge is imperfect and therefore every grace is imperfect as our faith and so our love and therefore much sinne must be in a man in as much as his grace is not perfect 2. The flesh lusteth against the spirit therefore it is plaine there is sinne in us yea so much that often times it even captivateth us 3. Wee have in this life but the first-fruits of the spirit now when wee shall have it in fulnesse we shall have no more than enough therefore having now but the first-fruits of the spirit Mortification and Sanctification sinne is not wholly abolished in the Saints in this life but doth dwell in them The reasons hereof are 1. To humble us and to make us see what is in our hearts and to make us know that the Lord bringeth us to the holy Land therfore God sometimes left the Israelites to try them and so hee troubled Hezechiah to know what was in his heart and so he sent a Messenger of Satan to buffet S. Paul lest hee should be exalted above measure through aboundance of Revelations and so the Lord doth deale with every Saint 2. That Christ may be acknowledged for if wee had no sinne in us we should not acknowledge the benefits of his mediation so much as now wee doe All are shut up under sinne that he might have mercie upon all Rom. 3. 9. 11. 32. that is that it might be manifested and declared that they are saved meerely by the mercie of God in Christ as is said Rom. 3. 26. Otherwise wee should not rightly value our justification and sanctification but seeing him subduing pardoning our sinnes wee see what need we have of him how that we are lost without him 3. That wee might exercise our faith 1 Ioh. 3. 2. Wee are the sonnes of God but it doth not yet appeare what wee shall be c. So God hath hid his children under basenesse that their faith might be exercised for things we see we may easily beleeve but faith is of things not seene therefore God doth as men doe hide Jewels under base places where men would looke least for them wherefore wicked men stumble and are offended at this because they doe not beleeve it and therefore it is made an article of our faith that we need and beleeve the remission and forgivenesse of sinnes But let us apply it 1. This should teach us not to be discouraged for those infirmities that are in us for there are such in every Saint Sinne is a guest to evill men but a theefe to the godly which they would not have come in their hearts so it is one thing to weare a chaine as an ornament and another as a fetter to restraine them therefore the godly ought not to be discouraged but to assure themselves they are under grace 2. Wee must not censure men for the slips and falls wee see in them for wee must remember that sinne dwelleth in them we must not presently judge them to be hypocrites Be not many masters saith S. Iames that is censure him not for he standeth or falleth to his owne Master Rom 14. 4. 3. This should teach us to be watchfull and not to think our labour is at an end when we are in the state of grace for sinne still dwelleth in us and though we have the victory over sinne one day it will fight against us the next day as in a garden the weeds will grow because the roots are not quite plucked up and taken away so sinne is in us and therefore we must think it will fight against us and vex us and therefore I say let us renue our strength Now for this we must doe these two things First weaken sinne Secondly pray to God to make us watchfull And so I have also done with the second doctrine Againe from the latter part of these words or reason of the promise made unto them in the former part of this verse that sinne shall not have dominion over them because they are not under the Law but under grace I gather this conclusion viz. That the way to overcome sinne is to get assurance of the love and grace of God and that it is forgiven them the reason why the Apostle promises them sinne shall not have dominion over them is because they are not under the Law but under grace that is they had assurance of Gods love and that their sinne is forgiven them this is proved from that Faith purifieth the heart and You repent and beleeve the Gospel Now the reasons hereof are these foure especially 1. Because it is the meanes to get the spirit without which no sinne is forgiven which commeth by faith for it is not recieved by the law for so saith the Apostle Received you the spirit by the works of the law or by the hearing of faith Gal. 3. 2. Secondly it is the way to make us beleeve the promises to make us beleeve that wee are transformed into a heavenly nature for when wee beleeve the promises are true that works love in us and love transformeth us into the divine nature without which no sinne is overcome Thirdly because hereby wee are able to resist the tentations which are either for the enjoying of good or fleeing of evill so that these promises propound more good than sinne can harme sinne threatned the losse of outward things but the promises propound eternall life which is better than all things else in the world Fourthly because we doe delight in God for when wee doe beleeve in God that our sinnes are forgiven us in Christ then we looke at God as on a mercifull Father and then wee cease to delight in the world and we begin to delight our selves in the Lord. The use hereof is first for direction to teach us the way how to heale a sinne and that is to get assurance that it is pardoned and forgiven for legall terrours doe not heale a sinne but it is faith that purifies the heart and purifying pacifies it As a Traytor will not come in when hee heares a proclamation out for his death but when he heares he shall live and be pardoned this makes him to come in so we when wee onely fix our eyes upon the legall terrours shall not heale our sinnes but when wee beleeve they are pardoned this heales them But sorrow and a broken heart are required for sinners to be assured of their forgivenesse This sorrow is not so much commanded but it is that whereby God prepareth his servants hearts to make them see what need they have of pardon and so they may ask pardon but