sumed. What then? loves he his people in their sinning? Yes; his people, not their sinning. Alters' he not his love towards them? Not the purpose of his will, but the dispensations of his grace. He rebukes them, he chastens them, he hides his face from them, he smites them, he fills them with a sense of [his] indignation; but woe, woe would it be to us, should he change in his love, or take away his kindness from us! Those very things which seem to be demonstrations of the change of his affections towards his, do as clearly proceed from love as those which seem to be the most genuine issues thereof. 'But will not this encourage to sin?" He never tasted of the love of God that can seriously make this objection. The doctrine of grace may be turned into wantonness; the principle cannot. I shall not wrong the saints by giving another answer to this objection: Detestation of sin in any may well consist with the acceptation of their persons, and their designation to life eternal. 66 But now our love to God is ebbing and flowing, waning and increasing. We lose our first love, and we grow again in love;2-scarce a day at a stand. What poor creatures are we! How unlike the Lord and his love! "Unstable as water, we cannot excel." Now it is, Though all men forsake thee, I will not;" anon, "I know not the man." One day, "I shall never be moved, my hill is so strong;" the next, "All men are liars, I shall perish." When ever was the time, where ever was the place, that our love was one day equal towards God? And thus, these agreements and discrepancies do farther describe that mutual love of the Father and the saints, wherein they hold communion. Other instances as to the person of the Father I shall not give, but endeavour to make some improvement of this in the next chapter. CHAPTER IV. Inferences on the former doctrine concerning communion with the Father in love. HAVING thus discovered the nature of that distinct communion which we have with the Father, it remaineth that we give some exhortations unto it, directions in it, and take some observations from it: 1. First, then, this is a duty wherein it is most evident that Chris 1 Ps. xxxix. 11; Heb. xii. 7, 8; Rev. iii. 19; Isa. viii. 17, lvii. 17; Job vi. 4; Ps. vi. 6, xxxviii. 3-5, etc. ' Rev. ii. 4, iii. 2; Eph iii. 16–19. tians are but little exercised,—namely, in holding immediate communion with the Father in love. Unacquaintedness with our mercies, our privileges, is our sin as well as our trouble. We hearken not to the voice of the Spirit.' which is given unto us, "that we may know the things that are freely bestowed on us of God." This makes us go heavily, when we might rejoice; and to be weak, where we might be strong in the Lord. How few of the saints are experimentally acquainted with this privilege of holding immediate communion with the Father in love! With what anxious, doubtful thoughts do they look upon him! What fears, what questionings are there, of his good-will and kindness! At the best, many think there is no sweetness at all in him towards us, but what is purchased at the high price of the blood of Jesus. It is true, that alone is the way of communication; but the free fountain and spring of all is in the bosom of the Father." "Eternal life was with the Father, and is manifested unto us." Let us, then,— (1.) Eye the Father as love; look not on him as an always lowering father, but as one most kind and tender. Let us look on him by faith, as one that hath had thoughts of kindness towards us from everlasting. It is misapprehension of God that makes any run from him, who have the least breathing wrought in them after him. "They that know thee will put their trust in thee." Men cannot abide with God in spiritual meditations. He loseth soul's company by their want of this insight into his love. They fix their thoughts only on his terrible majesty, severity, and greatness; and so their spirits are not endeared. Would a soul continually eye his everlasting tenderness and compassion, his thoughts of kindness that have been from of old, his present gracious acceptance, it could not bear an hour's absence from him; whereas now, perhaps, it cannot watch with him one hour. Let, then, this be the saints' first notion of the Father,as one full of eternal, free love towards them: let their hearts and thoughts be filled with breaking through all discouragements that lie in the way. To raise them hereunto, let them consider, [1] Whose love it is. It is the love of him who is in himself allsufficient, infinitely satiated with himself and his own glorious excellencies and perfections; who hath no need to go forth with his love unto others, nor to seek an object of it without himself. There might he rest with delight and complacency to eternity. He is sufficient unto his own love. He had his Son, also, his eternal* Wisdom, to rejoice and delight himself in from all eternity, Prov. viii. 30. This might take up and satiate the whole delight of the Father; but Ἡ Ζωὴ ἥτις ἦν πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα, καὶ ἐφανερώθη ἡμῖν.—1 John i. 2. 1 1 Cor. ii. 12. s Ps. ciii. 9; Mic. vii. 18. "Optime in Dei Filium quadrat patris delicias.”—Mer. in loc. 1 he will love his saints also. And it is such a love, as wherein he seeks not his own satisfaction only, but our good therein also;-the love of a God, the love of a Father, whose proper outgoings are kindness and bounty. [2.] What kind of love it is. And it is, 1st. Eternal. It was fixed on us before the1 foundation of the world. Before we were, or had done the least good, then were his thoughts upon us,-then was his delight in us;-then did the Son rejoice in the thoughts of fulfilling his Father's delight in him, Prov. viii. 30. Yea, the delight of the Father in the Son, there mentioned, is not so much his absolute delight in him as the express image of his person and the brightness of his glory, wherein he might behold all his own excellencies and perfections; as with respect unto his love and his delight in the sons of men. So the order of the words require us to understand it: "I was daily his delight," and, "My delights were with the sons of men;"—that is, in the thoughts of kindness and redemption for them: and in that respect, also, was he his Father's delight. It was from eternity that he laid in his own bosom a design for our happiness. The very thought of this is enough to make all that is within us, like the babe in the womb of Elisabeth, to leap for joy. A sense of it cannot but prostrate our souls to the lowest abasement of a humble, holy reverence, and make us rejoice before him with trembling. 2dly. Free. He loves us because he will; there was, there is, nothing in us for which we should be beloved. Did we deserve his love, it must go less in its valuation. Things of due debt are seldom the matter of thankfulness; but that which is eternally antecedent to our being, must needs be absolutely free in its respects to our wellbeing. This gives it life and being, is the reason of it, and sets a price upon it, Rom. ix. 11; Eph. i. 3, 4; Titus iii. 5; James i. 18. 3dly. Unchangeable. Though we change every day, yet his love changeth not. Could any kind of provocation turn it away, it had long since ceased. Its unchangeableness is that which carrieth out the Father unto that infiniteness of patience and forbearance (without which we die, we perish), 2 Pet. iii. 9, which he exerciseth towards us. And it is, 4thly. Distinguishing. He hath not thus loved all the world: "Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated." Why should he fix 1 Rom. ix. 11, 12; Acts xv. 18; 2 Tim. i. 9, ii. 19; Prov. viii. 31; Jer. xxxi. 3. Matt. xi. 25, 26. "Hoc tanto et tam ineffabili bono, nemo inventus est dignus; sordet natura sine gratia."-Pros. de lib. Arb. ad Ruff. 3 Mal. iii. 6; James i. 17; Hos. xi. 9. Rom. ix. 12. "Omnia diligit Deus, quæ fecit; et inter ea magis diligit creaturas rationales, et de illis eas amplius quæ sunt membra unigeniti sui. Et multo magis ipsum unigenitum."-August. VOL. II. 3 his love on us, and pass by millions from whom we differ not by1 nature, that he should make us sharers in that, and all the fruits of it, which most of the great and wise men of the world are excluded from? I name but the heads of things. Let them enlarge whose hearts are touched. Let, I say, the soul frequently eye the love of the Father, and that under these considerations,-they are all soul-conquering and endearing. (2.) So eye it as to receive it. Unless this be added, all is in vain as to any communion with God. We do not hold communion with him in any thing, until it be received by faith. This, then, is that which I would provoke the saints of God unto, even to believe this love of God for themselves and their own part,-believe that such is the heart of the Father towards them,-accept of his witness herein. His love is not ours in the sweetness of it until it be so received. Continually, then, act thoughts of faith on God, as love to thee,-as embracing thee with the eternal free love before described. When the Lord is, by his word, presented as such unto thee, let thy mind know it, and assent that it is so; and thy will embrace it, in its being so; and all thy affections be filled with it. Set thy whole heart to it; let it be bound with the cords of this love. If the King be bound in the galleries with thy love, shouldst thou not be bound in heaven with his? (3.) Let it have its proper fruit and efficacy upon thy heart, in return of love to him again. So shall we walk in the light of God's countenance, and hold holy communion with our Father all the day long. Let us not deal unkindly with him, and return him slighting for his good-will. Let there not be such a heart in us as to deal so unthankfully with our God. 2. Now, to further us in this duty, and the daily constant practice of it, I shall add one or two considerations that may be of importance thereunto; as, (1.) It is exceeding acceptable unto God, even our Father, that we should thus hold communion with him in his love,—that he may be received into our souls as one full of love, tenderness, and kindness, towards us. Flesh and blood is apt to have very hard thoughts of him, to think he is always angry, yea, implacable; that it is not for poor creatures to draw nigh to him; that nothing in the world is more desirable than never to come into his presence, or, as they say, where he hath any thing to do. "Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?" say the sinners in Zion. And, "I knew thou wast an austere man,” saith the evil servant in the gospel. Now, there is not any thing more 1 Eph. ii. 3. Cant. vii. 5. 6 2 Matt. xi. 25, 26; 1 Cor. i. 20. 31 John iv. 16. 6 Luke xix. 21. Can a grievous to the Lord, nor more subservient to the design of Satan upon the soul, than such thoughts as these. Satan claps his hands (if I may so say) when he can take up the soul with such thoughts of God: he hath enough,-all that he doth desire. This hath been his design and way from the beginning. The' first blood that murderer shed was by this means. He leads our first parents into hard thoughts of God: "Hath God said so? hath he threatened you with death? He knows well enough it will be better with you;"—with this engine did he batter and overthrow all mankind in2 one; and being mindful of his ancient conquest, he readily useth the same weapons wherewith then he so successfully contended. Now, it is exceeding grievous to the Spirit of God to be so slandered in the hearts of those whom he dearly loves. How doth he expostulate this with Zion! "What iniquity have ye seen in me?" saith he; "have I been a wilderness unto you, or a land of darkness?" "Zion said, The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me. woman," etc. The Lord takes nothing worse at the hands of his, than such hard thoughts of him, knowing full well what fruit this bitter root is like to bear,—what alienations of heart,—what drawings back,-what unbelief and tergiversations in our walking with him. How unwilling is a child to come into the presence of an angry father! Consider, then, this in the first place,-receiving of the Father as he holds out love to the soul, gives him the honour he aims at, and is exceeding acceptable unto him. He often sets it out in an eminent manner, that it may be so received::- "He commendeth his love toward us," Rom. v. 8. "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us!" 1 John iii. 1. Whence, then, is this folly? Men are afraid to have good thoughts of God. They think it a boldness to eye God as good, gracious, tender, kind, loving: I speak of saints; but for the other side, they can judge him hard, austere, severe, almost implacable, and fierce (the very worst affections of the very worst of men, and most hated of him, Rom. i. 31; 2 Tim. iii. 3), and think herein they do well. Is not this soul-deceit from Satan? Was it not his design from the beginning to inject such thoughts of God? Assure thyself, then, there is nothing more acceptable unto the Father, than for us to keep up our hearts unto him as the eternal fountain of all that rich grace which flows out to sinners in the blood of Jesus. And, (2.) This will be exceeding effectual to endear thy soul unto God, to cause thee to delight in him, and to make thy abode with him. Many saints have no greater burden in their lives, than that their hearts do not come clearly and fully up, constantly to delight and 1 Gen. iii. 5. 3 Jer. ii. 5, 21. 2 Εφ ̓ ᾧ πάντες ἥμαρτον, Rom. v. 12. Isa. xl. 27-29, xlix. 15, 16. |