hast changed thy Love thou hast changed not only the Lodgers but the Governours and Rulers of thine Heart for now the Father is come and the Son is come and the Holy Ghost is come and have taken up their abode in thee Will God dwell in Hearts of Clay Yes if Love to him dwell there V. Christ will manifest himself unto his Lovers He will discover his Love and that in the worst condition ye can be in While ye are in Prosperity many may manifest much Love unto you but when ye are afflicted distressed and stand most in need of their Help and Love will with-hold it from you Job 19.13 He hath put my brethren far from me and mine acquaintance are verily estranged from me 14. My kinsfolk have failed and my familiar friends have forgotten me 15. They that dwell in my house and my maids count◠me for a stranger I am an alien in their sight 16. I called my servant but he gave me no answer I entreated him with my mouth 17. My breath is strange to my wife though I entreated for the childrens sake of mine own body 19. All my inward friends abhorred me and they whom I loved are turned against me But Christ that dwells in the Hearts of his Lovers is to them a Bosom friend that he makes the time of their greatest Troubles and Distresses to be the time of the discoveries and manifestations of his love Isa 63.9 In all their afflictions he was afflicted and the Angel of his presence saved them in his love and in his pity he redeemed them and he bare them and carried them all the days of old And if he withdraw and for a time conceal his love it is to make them more earnest in seeking after him and for fuller discoveries of his love to them afterwards Cant. 3.1 2 3. VI. All things shall work together for the good of them that love God and Jesus Christ Nothing shall befall them but first or last shall further them in their way to Heaven and tend to their advantage Many things seem to be against you but all shall work for you If you be in Prison your Heart shall be the more enlarged If you lose the things of the World your Heart shall be the more set on the things of Heaven If you be sick and weakly it shall quicken you and stir you up to make more haste to get ripe for Heaven If you be Poor in the World it shall further your Riches in Grace Whatever be the Cross it shall increase the weight of your Crown Rom. 8.28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God to them who are the called according to his purpose VII Sincere love to Christ is a mighty help against Apostacy If a man be a Professor and a Lover of the World a Professor and a Lover of Pleasure of his own Ease and Life more than of Christ when these come in danger to keep them he parts with Christ but he that loveth Christ above all will part with all to cleave to Christ Love to Christ hath carried his people through great difficulties and dangers out of love to Christ they have contemned the Allurements and laughed at the Affrightments of this World have gone through Shame and Reproach endured Stripes and Imprisonments Bonds and Bondage and Death it self Rom. 8.35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ Whether it be understood Actively or Passively of the love wherewith we love Christ or the love whereby we are beloved by Christ is not material for concerning both we might ask Shall Tribulation or Distress or Persecution or Famine or Nakedness or Peril or Sword 37. Nay in all these things 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 we over-overcome we are more than conquerors through him that loved us 38. For I am perswaded that neither Death nor Life nor Angels nor Principalities nor Powers nor things present nor things to come 39. Nor height nor depth nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. If any leave Christ it is for want of love for so far as love prevails we shall in greatest Troubles and Sufferings for him cleave unto him VIII The Lovers of Christ shall be always under his Eye for good He will be looking upon them in order to the shewing of Mercy unto them He looks upon the Lovers of the World and Sin with an Eye of Observation and Indignation he looks and takes notice of their sinful love he looks and is angry with them for such love but he looks upon his Lovers with an Eye of Compassion to pity and to tender them Psal 119.132 Look thou upon me and be merciful unto me as thou usest to do unto those that love thy name God useth to do so it is his way his manner and custom of dealing so with such as love him it is not a strange thing to God nor a thing that he doth but now and then but it is his daily custom to look upon his Lovers and shew them Mercy Psal 145.20 The Lord preserveth all them that love him but the wicked that do not love him will he destroy IX The Lovers of Christ have great preparations made by God himself for their entertainment in the other World For all the Lovers of the World and Sin and Vanity is Wrath and Hell prepared but for the Lovers of Christ such things as do transcend the most refined Wit to conceive the most eloquent Tongue to express or the ablest Pen to describe 1 Cor. 2.9 Eye hath not seen nor ear heard neither have entred into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for them that love him 1. The Eye of Man hath seen admirable things Coasts of Pearl Golden Mines stately Monuments Kingly Palaces costly Raiments but never Eye hath seen such things as God hath prepared for them that love him 2. The Ear hath heard of more than the Eye hath seen and many hear of the joys of Heaven whose Eyes shall never see them 3. The Heart of Man can conceive more than the Eye hath seen or the Ear hath heard it can imagine all Pebles to be Pearls all the Earth to be a silver Heap the Sea to be liquid Gold the Air transparent Chrystal every Star to be a Sun And if all these were so they would be but as a Sand to a Mountain a Beam to the Sun a Drop to the Ocean a Grain to a Golden Mine compared with the things that are prepared for such as love God and Christ for those things are so great they cannot be measured so many they cannot be numbred so precious they cannot be valued so long and lasting they will never be ended they exceed our Faith they are beyond our Hope above our Desires they might be possessed hereafter but they cannot be comprehended here because For Sublimity they are Incomprehensible for Transcendency
so or else ye have basely dissembled both with God and this Congregation Many of you that did not love the Lord Jesus Christ now do or ye have been wretched Hypocrites while ye have been Hearers of these Sermons for what did ye mean by all those Bills that ye did give in day after day ten or twenty in a day acknowledging your former Sin till now in loving other things and not Christ Why did ye say Ye never were convinced of the necessity of loving Christ before I beseech you Why have ye so many and so often with such earnest Requests even for Jesus sake and as we had any love for your Souls desire Me and the Congregation to beg with Importunity that God would give you such an Heart now that ye might love the Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity above all with a Superlative Love with a Predominant Love with all your Heart and with all your Soul that you might not be Anathema when Maranatha Were not these your own Words Did not the Congregation hear them Read When I reviewed your Papers at Home did not I sind these Words and such like whereby ye did express the former Condition and the present Desires of your Souls Tell me then were ye in good earnest or did ye jest with God and Men in desiring Prayers that ye might so love the Lord Jesus If so repent of your Hypocrisie lament your double Dealings bitterly bewail such cursed Dissemblings If ye were in earnest and your Hearts as well as your Hands did guide your Pens in Writing such Desires and ye have indeed changed your Love or rather God hath turned your Love from Sin unto his Son from the World unto himself I shall have cause to bless God that I Preached and ye heard what was spoken of this subject then are ye my Joy and Crown and Rejoycing both now and at the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ And to you that have this love wrought in your Hearts so lately and to all the rest that had like love to him before I wish all the Blessings that are contained in that Prayer of the Apostle with which he concludeth his Epistle and I this subject Eph. 6.24 Grace be with all them that love the Lord Jesus in sincerity Amen The BLESSING to the Lovers of CHRIST THE Psalm being Sung all the People as is usual stood up I kept my Seat longer than ordinarily I was wont which caused their Eyes to be the more towards me Then I stood up and said Why stand ye gazing Why are your Eyes so intent upon me What can I say more What more do ye expect The Blessing What! All of you What! Whether ye love Christ or no Alas If God Curse how can I Bless I have day after day set Life and Death a Blessing and a Curse before you and must it not be with you according to your own Choice If ye will be blest indeed ye must love Christ if ye will not love Christ the Curse and not a Blessing waiteth for you though ye here wait for the Blessing If ye would not go without the pronouncing of the Blessing from hence to your Homes love Christ oh love Christ Oh at last be perswaded to love Christ that ye might not go from Christs Bar to the Flames of Hell without his Blessing for ever I have done for this time and Text when I have said the Words of my Text If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ let him be Anathema Maranatha and let all the People that dare least they should wish a Curse upon themselves say Amen And for you that have set your Hearts on Christ above all I beg from the Father of Mercies that Grace might be with all them that love the Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity and let all the People say Amen What lively Countenances what Affections what Tears and Cryings with the Spirits working were caused do not expect that I should tell FINIS Books Printed for and Sold by Thomas Cockerill at the Three Legs in the Poultrey THere is now in the Press and will suddenly be Published An Exposition of the Assemblies Shorter Catechism with Practical Inferences from each Question By John Flavell Minister of the Gospel Charnock's Works in Two Vol. Fol. Rushworth's Historical Collections 3d Part never before Printed containing the Principal Matters which happened from the Meeting of the Parliament 1640. to the end of the Parliament 1644. in 2 Vol. Fol. Geography Rectified or Description of all the World in all its Kingdoms Provinces Countreys c. Also Government Commodities Coins Weights c. Illustrated with about 80 Maps By Robert Morden 4 to The Morning Exercise at Cripplegate or several Cases of Conscience Resolved by sundry Ministers In 4 to A Supplement to the Morning Exercise at Cripplegate 8vo Specculum Theologiae in Christo Or a view of some Divine Truths which are either Practically Exemplified in Jesus Christ set forth in the Gospel or may be reasonably reduced from thence 8vo Christus in Corde Or the Mystical Union between Christ and Believers Precious Faith considered in its Nature Workings and Growth These three by Edward Polhill of Barwash in Essex Esq
the Lord pronounceth his Oath negatively then it is to be understood as an affirmation as Isa 14.24 The Lord of hosts hath sworn if not so it shall come to pass that is it shall certainly come to pass But when he setteth it down affirmatively then it is to be understood negatively as Psal 95.11 If they shall enter into my rest that is they shall never enter into my rest When God sweareth thus by himself he mentioneth not the Curse because no Execration or Curse can fall upon him that is God necessarily infinitely and eternally blessed and therefore not to be expressed because it cannot come upon him neither should such a form of speech be supplied as some do prophanely use then let me not be God or such like It is sufficient to alarm Sinners that God doth swear if they continue to the death without love to and saith in Christ they shall not enter into his rest 1. A man loves not Christ that hath 1. an understanding to know the excellencies of Christ the necessity of Christ the danger of being without Christ and the everlasting good and benefits that are to be had by Christ 2. A man that hath a Will to be guided by the Understanding a Will to chuse good and refuse evil 3. A man that hath Affections of love desire and delight and shall not place them upon their proper primary principal Object 4. A man that hath a Conscience to walk and act by to accuse and condemn him when his Affections are not rightly fixed and to comfort him and to testify for him when they tend to and rest in their proper Object 5. A man that is capable of knowing loving and enjoying the best good 6. A man that hath heard of Christ that professeth Christ and hath frequently and earnestly been intreated to give Christ his love 7. A man that is a sinful man a lost man a diseased polluted man that stands in need of washing cleansing and recovering healing Grace Shew me the man that needs not Christ and let him deny him his love 8. A man that is a dying man a man leaving this World going out of Time and entring into Eternity that must shortly be a damned or saved man within a few years months weeks days or houts be eternally happy or everlastingly miserable 3. Any man especially where the Gospel is preached where the joyful sound is heard to whom the tydings of a Saviour and Eternal Life are brought The Heathen cannot love him because they do not know him because they hear not of him but any man especially that lives under the means of Grace any mean man any noble man any ignorant man any learned man any man of any sort of any age of any calling of any place or Nation where they have so often and so long heard of Christ that his blessed name is become too common in their prophane polluted mouths If any such man 4. Love not tho he often talk of him tho he pray to God mentioning his Name tho he profess him hear daily from him suffer or dye for him and not love him that is 5. The Lord the Lord of Lords the only Potentate the Lord that hath the power of Life and Death able to take up to Heaven and cast down to Hell to damn and save that reigns over Men and Devils that hath all Power committed to him that is 6. Jesus the only mighty alsufficient Saviour that came from Heaven to Earth to get and purchase for men a passage from Earth to Heaven that suffered bled and died to save Sinners from Sin from Hell from Everlasting Burnings when there is no other Name under Heaven by which Sinners can be saved than the Name of Jesus who is also 7. Christ anointed of the Father designed from all Eternity and sent in the fulness of time to bring about and accomplish the work of man's Redemption that was furnished with all manner of qualifications to bring Souls to Eternal Glory and yet those that have their Names from him called Christians from Christ and yet not love him shall be 8. Anathema cursed Wretches miserable Caitiffs devoted to damnation separated from God cast to Devils when 9. Maran-atha the Lord comes to be Anathema when Maran-atha is to be accursed indeed and for ever then cursed Men must be with cursed Devils to all eternity CHAP. II. SECT I. The Doctrine and Method FRom this Text thus explained Doct. this Doctrine clearly resulteth That whatsoever man hath not sincere love to the Lord Jesus Christ is in a deplorable condition and shall be accursed when the Lord comes For his Sin is great his Mind is blind his Will perverse his Heart is hard and carnal his Affections corrupt and base and vile and his Soul and Body shall then be doomed down to blackness of darkness to extremity and eternity of misery to pains and punishment that no Tongue can express no Heart conceive no Pen can write how great how terrible how intolerable it will be found to be The method in treating on this Subject is cast into these five general Heads 1. What is the nature of this love to Christ what kind or manner of Love it is without which if man be found he is Anathema and shall be plagued with this heavy Curse at the coming of the Lord 2. That whosoever is without this love to Christ is in such a miserable condition and dying without it shall be damned when Christ shall come is to be demonstrated 3. What are the properties of this Curse that will make it so exceeding grievous and intolerable 4. Why so great a stress is put upon such Love why the Lord insists so much upon the love of man unto his Son that whosoever wants it shall be thus accursed 5. The improving of this Doctrine by practical application In opening of the nature of this Love to Christ I shall not only mention the formal reason of it but also what is presupposed and necessarily requisite to the raising or producing of it in the heart of man my Apprehensions concerning it I shall give you in these twelve following Particulars which being taking up and laid together will contain a description of this Love 1. This Love supposeth the goodness of the Object 2. It includes or implies the illumination of the Understanding to see and discern this incomparable goodness in Christ 3. It includes a discovery of the suitableness of Christ unto the Soul in all respects 4. As also a sight of the communicability of that good that is discerned to be so suitable 5. Highest valuation of Christ greatest estimation of him which is called appretiating Love 6. It contains the permanent volition of the Will the setled inclination of the heart towards the Lord Jesus Christ 7. It includes the prevailing and predominant degrees of our love to be to Christ more than to any thing else whatsoever 8. In this Love is the election of the Will choosing Christ
faith so that I could remove mountains and have no charity I am nothing 3. And tho I bestow all my goods to feed the poor and tho I give my body to be burn'd and have not charity it profiteth me nothing Love therefore is above all these for all these without love are nothing 5. Love makes us most like to God for God is love 1 Joh. 4.8 And God loveth Christ above all the men on earth and above all the Angels in Heaven therefore calls him his Beloved Son Mat. 3.17 God loveth All men with a Common Love John 3.16 Tit. 3.4 Holy men with a Special Love Angels with an Higher Love Christ most of all who is the Son of his Love Col. 1.13 So our Love is gradual we ought to love all men with some degrees of Love Holy men and Angels with an higher Love and Christ with the highest Love And when we love as God loves our Love makes us most like to God 6. Love is the highest improvement of the faculties of our Souls 1. We have Vnderstandings to know God and Christ And Love to God and Christ is the highest improvement of all our knowledg for if we know him and not love him the more we know of him the more our knowledge doth increase our sin and will aggravate our condemnation 2. We have Wills to chuse the Lord Jesus Christ and when we chuse him Love is the improvement of our Wills in taking complacency in him who is the Object of our choice 3. We have Consciences that do dictate to us that Christ is best and best for us and then we improve those dictates when we love him else all those dictates of Conscience are lost and come to nothing 4. We have Memories wherein the Sayings of Christ to us the Sufferings of Christ for us and the Benefits of Christ bestowed upon us should be lodged and laid up and when we love him we shall love to remember all these things that we have by him and from him and himself that is Purchaser and the Donor of them But if our Love is predominantly placed upon any thing below Christ all the Powers of the Soul are debased the Reason of man is degraded in contriving the getting of such ignoble and fordid enjoyments as his highest end the Will is debased in chusing of them and the Memory in being stuffed with the remembrance of them forgetting God and Christ and better things so that a man is more a brute than a man without sincere Love to Christ 7. Love is the end of all other Graces and in which they terminate their Operations Our knowledge of Christ endeth in our loving of Christ our believing on him hoping in him trusting to him like so many streams at last run into the Love of Christ 8. Love is the Everlasting Grace that shall abide and be in use and exercise when the actings of other Graces shall cease There are some Graces suitable especially to our state of imperfection in this world To live by Faith to Repent and Mourn for sin to live in hope of the glory that is to be revealed to wait till we be possessed of the Mansions that are above to desire all the good that is promised to us but not yet conferred upon us But hereafter Faith shall be turned into Vision Hope into Fruition Desires into Possession waiting into Obtaining And then we shall thus believe no more nor hope nor desire nor wait but then we shall love still yea more than ever more abundantly yea perfectly without diminution continually without intermission and eternally without cessation in which respect among the three Cardinal Graces Love hath the preheminence 1 Cor. 13.13 Now abideth faith hope charity these three but the greatest of these is charity because it is the longest in duration So that those that love Christ sincerely here shall love him perfectly hereafter and be for ever blessed in that love But those that love him not on earth cannot love him in the other world and for want of such Love shall be accursed for ever CHAP. VI. The Application of the Doctrine THE last thing propounded in the method of this Subject is the Vse and Application of it to bring it down to our own hearts to work this truth upon our Minds Consciences and Affections And now O that God would help me and Christ would help me and the blessed Spirit of God and Christ would so help me and give me lively words a lively Heart lively and inflamed Love to blessed Jesus and your immortal precions Souls that I might speak and apply this great Truth as becomes a man that deth believe every one of you before God in this Congregation this day must be Anathema when Maran-atha if you live and die void of love to Jesus Christ as becomes a man that doth believe you must be blessed or cursed damned or saved for ever as you are prevailed with or not prevailed with to give Christ your Hearts and hearty love as becomes a man that doth believe your Everlasting Stare is much concerned in this one point that now is before us Alas Methinks I do foresee the great multitudes that this Anathema will fall upon Methinks I see the Lord a-coming methinks I hear the Trumpet sounding and the Voice calling to the Dead Arise and come to judgment Come ye cursed Souls that have been in the Infernal Lake and appear before my Bar come ye cursed Bodies awake arise and stand before my Judgment-Seat and let those cursed Souls be again united to those cursed Bodies and now be both cursed together and cursed for ever and let both be inseparably linked together to endure this Curse to all eternity Methinks I see them coming but unwillingly they come but with fear and trembling with horrour and amazement Now what is to do now now Maran-atha and now every one of us that loved not that Lord that now is come must be Anathema O woful Souls O miserable Sinners O cursed Caitifs What shall we now do and whither shall we now go do that we should have asked before this day that the Lord is come Do We should have done that which we did not do and now must go thither whither we would not go O that we might rather cease to be than to be what we must for ever be and go from whence we never must return and feel what will make us cry and roar toss and throw and be for ever restless and the more restless because hopeless and remediless O Sirs my Heart is pained my Bowels roul within me my Joints do shake with trembling for fear lest any of you that pray in this place and hear in this place should fall under this Curse when the Lord shall come The Uses of this Doctrine shall be 1. By way of Inference or Instruction what things from hence may be deduced and learned 2. For Reprehension or Reproof aggravating the Charge against such as love not the
Instant Now there is hope and yet thou wilt not give me thy Love and Heart then there will be no hope and that might even break thy Heart Besides 3. Will it not be universal pain All over no part free Here if thou art pained in thy Head thy Heart may not be sick if pained in more yet not in all but then thou wilt be all over Tormented Thy Vnderstanding will torment thee when thou shalt know the God the Heaven the Happiness thou hast lost and all for want of Love to me and the misery thou hast found Thy Memory will increase the vexation of thy Heart in calling to mind thine opportunities upon Earth how Mercy did intreat thee how Grace did Wooe thee how I called my Spirit strived and Patience long waited for thy Love and yet I could not obtain it of thee Thy Conscience will sting and gnaw thee saying Did not I tell thee this would be the end of thy Refusals Did not I forewarn thee Did not I say it would be thy wisest only way to hearken unto Christ and to set thy Love upon him But thou wouldst not didst not hearken to my voice nor to the voice of Christ intreating of thee for thy Love And at the Resurrection thy Body will be sharer of punishment with thy Soul and all thy Senses be tormented with afflicting Obects Thine Ears in hearing doleful Lamentations â—hine Eyes in seeing a cursed Crew of Damnâ—d Creatures thy Smell afflicted with the stench of burning Brimstone thy Taste in continual drinking of the Cup of Wrath full of Dregs without mixture of Mercy thy Touch in feeling the Fire burning but never consuming of thee It was a Wonder unto Moses that the Bush did burn and not consume on Earth and these brambles shall burn in Hell and not consume which will be a greater Wonder Now tell me poor Sinner saith Christ what is thine Answer Hadst thou rather endure all this than love me Hadst thou rather love the World and thy present Pleasures and hereafter lye in these extream eternal and universal pains than love me and be delivered from them One of these must be be wise therefore in thy choice As Christ takes this course to gain thy Love so do thou join in with Christ by serious consideration for thine own Conviction that thou maist give thy love to him Urge thy self and work it on thy Heart that thou art under the Curse and Threatnings of God which are true terrible intolerable and eternal thou art the Man that art threatned by God with the forest Punishments Plagues Judgments in this Life and in the Life to come thou art the Man that Law and Gospel will condemn if thou finally deny thy love to Christ Think seriously with thy self that thou art under the Wrath of God which is great Wrath Jer. 21.5 Whole Treasures of it Rom. 2.5 Abiding Wrath. Joh. 3.36 Tearing and destroying Wrath. Amos 1.11 Psal 50.22 Ezek. 43.8 Intolerable Nah. 1.6 Most of it to come Mat. 3.7 And Eternal Rev. 14.10 11. Endeavour to get thine Heart affected that while thou lovest not Christ thou hast no Title to Heaven no Actual Hope no Promise no Pledge nor Earnest no Plea no Interest no Warrant to expect Salvation that Hell is thy due Torments thy desert Hell is appointed for thy Lodging Dwelling place The Place is prepared the Fire is kindled Devils are waiting and all Hell is moved to meet thee at thy coming Oh think what manner of Hell it is that thou art every moment in danger of it is hot long large dark deep a restless and remediless Hell When thou hast got a sight and sense of thy Sin and that thou art lost in thy self then II. Consider there is no help for thee in any meer Creature among all the Creation of God none such can prevent thy Damnation set thee in Gods favour bring thee to his Kingdom If thou lookest upwards Angels cannot or downwards Devils neither can nor will Look round about thee all Creatures say There is no help in us for Wrath must be pacified and that cannot be till Justice is satisfied and how shall any meer finite Creature satisfie Infinite-offended-Justice Tears Prayers Reformation cannot satisfie God so that as all other Creatures cannot give relief unto thee so thou thy self canst not help thy self Then III. By serious thoughts dwell upon thy own Mortality and on the consideration of Judgment Heaven and Hell Ponder upon the certainty and the nearness of approaching Death thou mightest dye this Year before the next this Week this Day this Hour before the next and say Oh what will become of me then Where shall I be then What shall I do Nay What shall I suffer then Am I under the Curse and Death at my back Is God angry with me and Death at my heels Have I no Title to Heaven no Reason to hope for it and yet do not know how soon Death might come Am I in danger of Hell and might drop into it any day in the Week any hour in the Day Oh woful case that I am in Wrath is over my head and Hell is under my feet Wrath is ready to fall upon me and I am in danger of falling into Hell I never thought my Heart for want of love had been so bad my danger so great my Soul so black my Self so near to Hell Torments Woe is me that all my Life I have loved loathsom Sin A very Monster Even Sin which is a provocation to the Majesty of God a contradiction to the Will of God an opposition to the Nature of God a rejection of the Son of God a vexation to the Spirit of God and Damnation to my own Soul surely this Love was blind Oh! Will God bear such slightings of his Son Such abusings of his Grace Such contemning of his Mercy Woe is me Can I live without Life And be saved without a Saviour Oh what shall I do And where must I have help By whom may I be relieved restored saved Oh in this distress that I am in if I could but hear of one that could and would relieve and save me of one that could take off the Curse and make me Blessed that could turn away Gods wrath and reconcile me unto him that would save me from Hell and bring me to Heaven then What then distressed Soul Oh then him would I love Love Yea with all my Heart with all my Soul as surely I should have cause to do Love him Did I know such a one his very Name would be precious unto my Soul it should be Engraven on my Heart and I should think I could never love such a one enough Saist thou so Sinner I will tell thee there is one and but one that can and that is full and fit and free to help thee and to save and succour thee in this distress that thou art in Oh good Sir what is his Name that I might apply my self unto him and place
rent 52. And the graves were opened and many bodies of Saints which slept arose And before ver 45. From the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour All wonderful 5. In his Resurrection John 10.18 The Dead were raised by him and he being dead was raised by himself Wonderful 6. In his Ascension Acts 1.9 10 11. The Disciples stood gazing and looking and wondring at his going up to Heaven Now was this wonderful Jesus born in sâ—â—ch a wonderful manner lived doing Wonders dyed with Wonders rose by a Wonder and wonderfully ascended into Glory and all this for the sake and salvation of lost Sinners if ye will not love him will it not be the Wonder of Angels of Devils and all the Creation of God Might not Angels wonder at you and Devils wonder at you and the Saints of God at his coming wonder at you Behold so many of you as will not love this wonderful Jesus shall be the Wonder of the World at the last day 7. Nay yet more he was the Ancient of Days from all Eternity John 8.58 and 17.5 Prov. 8.22 31. and yet he became a Babe for you 8. He was cloathed with Majesty Heb. 1.3 and yet for your sakes did subject himself to greatest Ignominy Isa 50.6 9. He was eminent for Beauty above all men Psal 45.3 And yet for you his Countenance was marred more than any man's Isa 52.14 10. He was mighty in Power by his Word commanded Devils stilled the Sea supporteth the World yet for you dyed like a weak man 11. He was perfect in Holiness without spot or guile and yet standing in your room was greatly accused of Blasphemy 12. He was full of Wisdom Col. 2.3 yet derided and laughed to scorn for you 13. He is judge of all the World and yet for you condemned at the Barr of Men to take away your sins and if ye would love him to prevent your being condemned at the Barr of God All this is wonderful And yet that such a wonderful Person did so wonderfully condescend and after all this should not be beloved by you will be and is wonderful shame 4. To draw your love to Christ consider what he will be to you For relation breeds affection The love of Christ to you should beget love in you to Christ What will he be to thee if thou wilt love him He will be thy Bridegroom and thy Husband the richest Match that can be offered or motion'd to thee He will be thy Shepherd and gather thy Soul unto his Fold and save thee from the destroying Wolf He will be thy Redeemer by price to buy thee out of the hands of revenging Justice and by Power to rescue thee out of the Jaws of the roaring Lion He will be thy Priest and Surety to pay thy Debt and reconcile thee unto God He will be thine Advocate to plead thy Cause against Satan thine Accuser and will continually appear before the Father for thee 1 John 2.2 He will be thy King and Captain to conquer thine Enemies and trample them under thy feet Is there nothing in all these things to gain thy Love to woo and win thy heart to this blessed Jesus How canst thou for shame deny him Canst thou go out of this place this day and not plight him thy truth not give him thy love Oh say this is he whom I will love 5. Moreover let this powerfully draw thy love to Christ what benefits thou mayst have by him in respect of deliverance from evil he would then deliver thee from the guilt and power of sin Matth. 1.21 from the tyranny of Satan Luke 11.22 Heb. 2.14 from the Curse of the Law Gal. 4.4 from the Wrath to come 1 Thess 1.10 Rom. 5.10 and from the sting of Death and Damnation of Hell 1 Cor. 15.54 55 56. in respect of the collation of good he will reconcile thee unto God and bring thee into the Adoption of Children purge thy Heart justifie thy Person procure audience of thy Prayers stand by thee at Death and save thee for ever Now poor Sinner what dost thou think of this Lord Jesus Christ that makes a motion for thy affection Tell me as before God would not thy love be better bestowed upon this Christ than upon the World and Sin Thou darest say no otherwise with thy mouth Oh say so also unfeignedly in thy heart and give it him as thou sayst and I have my end of preaching this lovely Jesus to thee and Christ will have the end of his dying for thee and thou wilt have that good by hearing which was not in thy heart to aim at when thou camest within these doors that camest a slighter of Christ and goest away a lover of Christ that camest from thy house to this with an heart cleaving in love unto the World and Sin but returnest from this unto thy own with the love of sin turn'd out and with the love of Christ entred into thy heart will make thee say O blessed change How much is this new love better than my old O blessed Word that it ever sounded in my ears and God brought it to my heart O blessed day the day of days the best day I ever had This day shall be recorded by me for this day Christ and I did fall in love Some come to a Sermon and by their wandring eyes and roving filthy hearts fall in love with a Creature but I came I confess I know not why nor how and God hath been in mercy pleased to change my heart and love which is the best change I ever made for this is the sweetest love I ever found But it may be this is not yet the happy Case of some others thereto to such I add V. When thou hast got this knowledge of Christ willingly entertain him and heartily receive him as offered in the Gospel and resign thy self to him and when he hath propriety in thee and thou in him love will arise in thy heart to him Faith is the Root and Love is the Flower that groweth upon it and Faith thus implanted will quickly work by love Gal. 6.5 When by Faith he is thy Christ and thy Lord and Saviour he will certainly be the beloved of thy Soul The Foundation of Love is laid in the relation to the person that is the object of love and propriety and interest doth beget it you love that which is your own because it is your own Your Children your Wife your Husband above all others And you will love Christ when once by Faith he is your own Cant. 2.16 I am my beloveds and my beloved is mine Then all other things which now are highly valued by you will be accounted as dross Phil. 3.8 Yea doubtless and I count all things but dross in comparison of the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. VI. Pray much to God to work this Love in your hearts to Christ it is the Fruit of the Spirit and