Selected quad for the lemma: love_n
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A44684
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Of charity in reference to other mens sins by John Howe ...
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Howe, John, 1630-1705.
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1681
(1681)
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Wing H3033; ESTC R19382
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22,776
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72
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For the former The Charity or Love here spoken of is the root of all that duty which belongs to the second Table The whole of the duty contained in both is summ'd up by our Saviour in Love That of the former in that first and great commandment Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart c. Matt. 22. That of the latter is this other which is like unto it Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy self Upon which two we are told hang all the Law and the Prophets See also Rom. 13. 10. The instances which are given in this Chapter refer to man as the object and shew that it is the love of our neighbour which is meant But tho' it be so far humane it is however upon other accounts a real part of divine love which we see 1 Joh. 3. 17. that Apostle speaking even of love to our brother Whoso hath this worlds goods and seeth his brother hath need and shutteth up the bowels of compassion from him demands How dwelleth the love of God in that man And David call'd the kindness he intended the Relicts of Sauls Family the kindness of God 2 Sam. 9. 3. This part of love is divine both in respect of its original and of somewhat considerable in its object 1. In respect of its original 'T is a part of the communicated divine nature from whence they that partake of it are said to be born of God It is most conjunct with faith in the Messiah and love to God himself which are both comprehended in that birth For as it is said in the Gospel of John chap. 1. 12 13. That as many as received him viz. Christ to them he gave power to be call'd the sons of God even to them that believe in his name who were born not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man but of God And in his 1 Epist. chap. 5. 1. Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God So it is in this latter place immediately added as the double property of this divine production not more separable from one another than from it and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him And hereupon also from the in-being and exercise of this love tho' towards an object that seems very heterogeneous and of much another kind we come to bear the name of Gods children Love your enemies that you may be the children of your father which is in heaven Mat. 5. 44 45. The Law indeed of love to other men tho' it oblige to love some above others upon a special reason yet in its utmost latitude comprehends all mankind under the name of neighbour or brother as the particular precepts contained in it do sufficiently shew Which surely leave us not at liberty to kill defile rob slander or covet from others than the regenerate as we count or our own friends and relatives Now that Principle from which we are called Gods children must be of divine original for it is not spoken of them casually but as their distinguishing Character So that in this respect they are said to be of God It is their very difference from the children of another and the worst of fathers 1 Joh. 3. 10. In this the children of God are manifest and the children of the devil Whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God neither he that loveth not his brother Which also shews it is not universilly all love unto which this dignity belongs Some more noble-minded Pagans that were wont to ascribe divinity unto love have also carefully distinguished and told us of a love that was genuine and another that was spurious the one akin to virtue the other to vice and have noted it as an abusive error of the Vulgar to give the same name to God and a Disease The corruption and degeneracy of love is indeed less than humane but the first being and restored rectitude of it is of an original no less than divine 2. And even this love tho' placed upon man is divine too in respect of its object i. e. of somewhat we have to consider in it which is most properly and strictly the object or the inducement and formal reason why we love God is the Primum amabile the first Goodness as well as the first Being As therefore there is no being so nor is there any goodness amability or loveliness which is not derived from him We love any thing more truly and purely the more explicitely we acknowledg and love God in it Upon the view of those stroaks and lineaments of the divine pulchritude and the characters of his Glory which are discernable in all his creatures our love should be someway commensurate with the Creation and comprehend the Universe in its large and complacential embraces Tho' as any thing is of higher excellency and hath more lively touches and resemblances of God upon it or by the disposition of his Providence and Law more nearly approaches us and is more immediately presented to our notice converse use or enjoyment so our love is to be exercised towards it more explicitely in an higher degree or with more frequency As man therefore hath more in him of divine resemblance of Gods natural likeness and image good mâ—n of his moral holy image we ought to love men more than the inferior creatures and those that are good and holy more than other men and those with whom we are more concern'd with a more definite love and which is required to be more frequent in its exercise But all from the attractive of somewhat divine appearing in the object So that all rational love or that is capable of being regulated and measured by a Law is only so far right in its own kind as we love God in every thing and every thing upon his account and for his sake The nature and spirit of man is by the apostacy become disaffected and strange to God alienated from the divine life addicted to a particular limited good to the creature for it self apart from God whereupon the things men love are their idols and their love idolatry But where by regeneration a due propension towards God is restored The universal good draws their minds they become inclined and enlarged towards it and as that is diffused their love follows it and flows towards it every where They love all things principally in and for God and therefore such men most as excel in goodness and in whom the divine image more brightly shines Therefore it is most especially Christian Charity that is here meant i. e. which works towards Christians as such For compare this with the foregoing Chapter and it will appear that Charity is treated of in this which is the vital bond of holy living union in the Christian Church supposed in the other Whereby as the body is one and hath many members and all the members of that body being many are
Pedigree from Hell and acknowledg themselves spawn'd of the Devil and as a Summary of all unrighteousness as it is being taken as often for the duty of the second Table or as a very noted part of it taken in its utmost latitude Agreeably to that of our Saviour Joh. 8. 44. Ye are of your father the Devil he was a murderer from the beginning as every one is said to be that hateth his brother 1 Joh. 2. 15. If therefore we can reconcile God and the Devil together Heaven and Hell we may also Charity and rejoycing at other mens sins 2. The inconsistency of these Two will further appear by comparing this monstrous dis-affection of mind with the Inseparable concomitants of Charity or such things as are in connection with it And the argument thence will be also strong and enforcing if that concomitancy shall be found to be certain and the connection firm between those things and Charity I shall only give instance in four things which every one that examines will acknowledg to be so connected Viz. Wisdom and Prudence Piety and sincere devotedness to God and the Redeemer Purity Humility Moralists generally acknowledg a concatenation of the Vertues Those that are truly Christian are not the less connected but the more strongly and surely Which connexion of these now mentioned with Charity we shall see as to each of them severally and at the same time their inconsistency with this vile temper and practice 1. For Wisdom or Prudence it is so nearly ally'd to Charity that it is mentioned by the same name Jam. 3. 17. The wisdom that is from above is first pure then peaccable gentle c. The foregoing words v. 16. shew Love is meant These words represent the heavenly descent and the true nature of it both together That it is called Wisdom shews its affinity with it and that it partakes of its nature dwells in a calm sedate mind void of disquieting passions and perturbations which it is the work of Wisdom to repress and expel Indeed the name is manifestly intended to express generally the temper the genius the spirit of one that is born from above and is tending thither The contrary temper a disposition to strise envy or grief for the good of another which naturally turns into joy for his evil when his case alters is called Wisdom too but with sufficiently distinguishing and disgracing additions It is said vers 15. not to be from above but earthly sensual devilish And to have the contrary effects where envying and strise is there is confusion Tumult the word signifies or disorder unquietness disagreement of a man with himself as if his soul were pluckt asunder torn from it self and every evil work vers 16. There can be no charity towards another as hath been noted where there is not first a true love to a mans own soul which is the immediate measure of it Nor that where there is not prudence to discern his own best good and what means are to be used to attain it His true good he is not to expect apart by himself but as a member of the Christian community Not of this or that party but the whole animated body of Christ. In which capacity he shares in the common felicity of the whole and affects to draw as many as he can into the communion and participation of it So he enjoys as a member of that body a tranquillity and repose within himself But is undone in himself while he bears a disaffected mind to the true interest and welfare of the body Wherefore to rejoyce in what is prejudicial to it is contrary to prudence and charity both at once Put on saith the Apostle as the elect of God holy and beloved bowels of mercies kindness bumbleness of mind meekness long-suffering forbearing one another and forgiving one another if any man have a quarrel against any even as Christ forgave you so also do ye And above all these things put on Charity which is the bond of perfectness And let the peace of God rule in your hearts to the which also ye are called in one body Implying no true peace or satisfaction can be had but in vital union with the body Is he a wise or is he not a mad man that rejoyces he hath an unsound hand or foot or an ulcerated finger or toe rotting off from him or that is glad a Fire or the Plague is broken out in the Neighbourhood that equally endangers his own house and family yea and his own life 2. Piety and devotedness to God and the Redeemer is most conjunct with true charity By this we know that we love the children of God when we love God c. 1 Joh. 5. 2. For the true reason of our love to the one is fetcht from the other as hath been shewn And how absurd were it to pretend love to a Christian upon Christs account and for his sake while there is no love to Christ himself But can it consist with such love and devotedness to God to be glad at his being affronted by the sin of any man Or to Christ whose design it was to redeem us from all iniquity and to bless us in turning us away from our iniquities to rejoyce in the iniquity that obstructs and tends to frustrate his design Do we not know he was for this end manifested to destroy the works of the Devil And that the works of wickedness are his works Do we not know the great God is in and by our Redeemer maintaining a War against the Devil and the subjects of his Kingdom in which Warfare what are the Weapons on the Devils part but sins Who but sinners his Souldiers And who is there of us but professes to be on Gods part in this War Can it stand with our duty fidelity to him to be glad that any are foiled who profess to fight under the same Banner What would be thought of him who in battel rejoyceth to see those of his own side fall here one and there one He would surely be counted either treacherous or mad 3. Charity of the right kind is most certainly connected with Purity The end or perfection of the commandment or of all our commanded obedience is Charity out of a pure heart 1 Tim. 1. 5. Sincere Christians are such as have purify'd their souls in obeying the truth through the spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren and must see that they love one another with a pure heart fervently 1 Pet. 1. Pagans have â—aught there is no such thing as true friendly love but among good men But how consists it with such purity to take pleasure in other mens impurities or make their sin the matter of jest and raillery 4. A further inseparable concomitant of Charity is deep humility We find them joyn'd and are required to put them on together in the already mentioned Context Put on kindness humbleness of mind above all put on Charity Col. 3. And do find it