the ignorant to convert sinners by all means to win souls to JESUS may manifest a greater love than was absolutely necessary to his own salvation and he that makes it his business and delight to prevent quarrels or make reconciliations to comfort and defend the afflicted and oppressed to visit hospitals and relieve the poor and to spend all his substance in pious uses for the honour of God and Religion and for the present and future happiness of men may exceed what God would have rewarded and by shewing so great a love enrich his crown of glory and recompence I only mark the head-springs or store-houses of those arbitrary gifts wherewith men may honour God and enrich themselves the several emanations and offerings which may proceed from them being free and innumerable cannot be specified and should not be imposed Where there is love there is a willing mind and 2 Cor. 8.12 where there is a willing mind a man in other cases as well as in charity is accepted according to what he hath and not according to what he hath not Some husbandmen sow that they may have wherewith to pay their debts 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. S. Johan Clim Grad 26. §. 43. which marks the labours and offerings of penitents who endeavour to make what satisfaction they can for their injuries to God or man Some sow that by the expected crop they may increase their wealth which represents the good works of more innocent persons who aspire to a great reward and a glorious crown Some sow that they may have something wherewith to express their gratitude and make presents to their kind land-lord or benefactor whereby is signified the best of Christians who in all things seek and design the glory of their Lord. And others sow that they may be thought diligent and receive commendations from the passers by these are an emblem of the most imperfect Christians who in Gods service seek their own glory and of whom our Blessed Saviour says that they have their reward However all must sow and every one as he doth it sparingly or bountifully so shall he reap at last But heaven is a cheap purchase give we never so dear for it The Gospel reveals and offers a glorious kingdom great and eternal felicities Decay of Christian Piety but he that expects their possession because he reads and believes them is like him that should fansie the whole world shall be his because he hath the History or the Map thereof CHAP. XIV The true notion of Free-will Offerings vindicated with an Exhortation to abound in the work of the Lord. HEre it may be proper to insert the caution of an ancient Rule Be sure thou first observe that which is commanded Cupiens divinum adimplere consilium ante omnia serva mandatum Athan. before thou dost aim at Counsels Neglect not a duty because thou dost offer freely and art over-zealous in other things Thus the covetous worldling gripes and niggardly detains because he designs to build alms-houses at last and thus the factious zealot breaks the second with the first Table of the Divine Law making Religion an excuse for his uncharitableness and disobedience But if we love JESUS with hearty affection we shall be far enough from thus mocking God and deceiving our selves for love that doubles upon us all obligations of duty doth also oblige us to these free-will offerings They are not amends for our omissions or exchanges in lieu of our obedience but they are the fulfilling of that law of Gratitude we now live under The infinite mercies of the Gospel put upon us infinite obligations to do in requital for God all that possibly we are able But the Gospel is a Law of liberty all its extent and measures are not in all particulars minutely and expresly defined So then by these free-will offerings we must not understand any thing like supererogations or things to which we are no ways obliged or that exceed what God hath done for us or what he will reward or that are done without his help without whom we can do nothing any of these notions is impious and implies a contradiction But by them is to be understood the expression of our acknowledgments and of that love we owe infinitely in things not expresly commanded and not under necessity Of such saith the Apostle I speak not by commandment but by occasion and to prove the sincerity of your love 2 Cor. 8.8 They that like the Macedonians have first given themselves to the Lord may well with them be willing to offer to God to their power and beyond their power To this purpose S. Paul saith of himself that his preaching the Gospel of Christ was altogether his duty and wo unto him if he fulfilled it not but his doing it willingly for nothing in the Regions of Achaia for that he had a reward and that was his boasting and his glorying of which no man should rob him To this purpose also the ancient Fathers have said many things That some good works we do verius virtutis amore liberaque electione quam ulla omnino legis coactione rather by a free choice and love than by precept That thus to do things for God beyond express commandments was highly acceptable and highly rewarded 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Chrys That to abstain from that which is evil In licitis cavere jugum necessitatis est permissa vincere munus arbitrii is absolutely required and farther to deny our selves for Religions sake is a free oblation And much more to the same purpose is frequently to be met with in those true and devout lovers of the Blessed JESUS whose affection and gratitude to him nothing could fully express or confine And now by these and first by holy Scripture it manifestly appears that the true notion of Free-will offerings in nothing favours humane pride or derogates from Gods Glory Can the Beggar merit or presume anythng if he throws away the dirt in his hand for to receive Gold and if with David we pour out to God that water we thirsted and might lawfully have drunk that we may more largely drink the water of life which God freely gives us shall we therefore exalt our selves Let us then endeavour by all means to make it appear that we are sensible how infinitely we are obliged to love and serve JESUS Let us not as the Son of Sirach adviseth consult with a coward in matters of war consult with an irreligious age in matters of Piety and Religion and let us not think it enough to do as the most do When first the Christian Faith was preached in the world and men understood what Christ had done for them and what he had promised they thought nothing too much nor too good for him They cheerfully parted with temporal pleasures honours and riches with their liberties their limbs their bloud their very lives that they might be faithful to JESUS and come to reign
a cup of water given for his sake should not go unrewarded and that their reward would be great bountiful and most excellent far above their deserts and even above their wishes and apprehensions an angelick nature a glory bright as the Sun it self an eternal life an heavenly an endless kingdom his own joys should be their portion and their recompence And we find also the Holy Apostles assuring those whom they brought to work in their Lords vineyard that they should certainly have their hire and be paid most generously for their work God will render to every man according to his deeds to them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory honour and immortality shall be rendred eternal life Rom. 2.6.7 Every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour 1 Cor. 3.8 And S. Paul to incourage the Corinthians tells them that we Christians are entred into a race at the end whereof we may see the Laurel palmam in stadio positam a glorious prize an incorruptible crown if we will run and strive for it 1 Cor. 9.24 and he likewise tells the Ephesians that whatsoever good thing any man doth the same shall be receive of the Lord whether he be bond or free Eph. 6.8 S. Peter also teacheth that we should be moved and encouraged by the greatness of the promised reward to forsake our lusts and wholly devote our selves to God exceeding great and glorious promises are given unto 〈◊〉 that by these you might be partakers of the Diviae Nature having escaped the pollution that is in the world through lust 2 Pet. 1.4 Christ is become the author of eternal salvation to themt obey him Heb. 5.9 And so the result of all these may be comprehended in the exhortation of S. Paul My beloved Brethren be ye stedfast unmovable always abounding in the work of the Lord forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord 1 Cor. 15.58 In this sense good works are meritorious in that they procure us a reward a reward infinitely greater than their own desert Let us not therefore as the Apostle exhorts be weary in well-doing for we shall reap in due season if we faint not Gal. 6.9 Let us compare together the returns of vice and vertue how unlike are the fruits of them and let us bear this short saying in our minds if we do ill the pleasure is soon past the grief and punishment abide long upon us if we do well the trouble is soon ended the joy and reward of it remain for ever Let us pray with S. Paul the Lord direct our hearts into the love of God and the patient waiting for Christ 2 Thes 3.5 who when he comes brings his reward with him and to this let us add this Collect of the Church Grant us grace O Lord so to follow thy blessed Saints in all vertuous and godly living that we may come to those unspeakable joys which thou hast prepared for them that unfeinedly love thee through Jesus Christ our Lord Amen CAAP. IV. That Love hath a secret pleasure and reward in it self with a meditation to that purpose BUT Though it may encourage us to love that gracious God who gives so very much for that little we are able to do yet Love it self is not mercenary charity doth not seek her own saith S. Paul 1 Cor. 13.5 we may desire our promised reward and set our affections upon it as it is a demonstration of Gods infinite love and goodness or because it will be the expressing of our duty and thankfulness when we shall love and glorifie and adore God perfectly and for ever or rather because the reward is God himself who will be to every faithful servant his exceeding great reward Gen. 15.4 as well as to faithful Abraham rewarding sincere obedience with the fruition of himself being all in all to his Saints But still I say Love is not selfish but free and generous if nothing were to be gained by it it would have great satisfaction in shewing it self the work and labour of love is a noble pleasure to a pious heart When he thus reflects on his obedience and thinks with himself By the performance of this duty by this act of vertue I serve my dearest Lord I oblige my best friend I express my love to him whose infinite kindness to me hath conquered my heart whom I love as my own soul to whom I wholly give my self and for whom I desire both to live and die O happy soul who feelest what an exceeding joy it is to love JESUS or rather unhappy soul who canst shew so little love to JESUS Unhappy necessities of a frail body unhappy distractions of a troublesome world Why am I by you deprived of the continual pleasure of waiting continually on my Divine and most loving Master But blessed be my gracious Lord that I might have more opportunities of pleasing him and expressing my affections to him he hath made vertues of necessities he hath turned nature into grace and of humane duties he hath made acts of Religion In relieving mine own and others wants if I observe the rules of sobriety and charity he takes occasion thence to bless and reward me as if he were thereby glorified In discharging the duties of my place and calling if I am diligent and faithful though my work be never so mean he owns it as a service done to him Servants saith S. Paul obey your masters in all things and do it heartily as to the Lord and not to men knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance for ye serve the Lord Christ Col. 3.22 23. If I am conscientious in all my ways and works he takes it as a mark of my love and part of my duty to him O that the constant course of my conversation might speak the sincerity of my affection to my blessed Lord. Dearest JESUS the Cross thou didst bear for me was heavy and painful to extremity but thy yoke is light and pleasant thy service is perfect freedom O let it be my delight and daily employment as it is my duty to serve and obey thee to follow thy blessed example and be instrumental in winning hearts to thee let me love thee so intirely that I may love nothing but thee nothing but for thy sake Fac precor Domine me gustare per amorem quod gusto per cognitionem sentiam per affectum B. Ansel quod sentio per intellectum Amen CHAP. V. Reflections on the vanity of temporal things with some holy resolves and ejaculations COnsider O my soul how deceitful how vain is this present world how inconstant and unsatisfying how vexatious and troublesome Doth not thine experience tell thee that the more thou lovest the best of earthly thing the more crosses and sorrows befal thee the more thou enjoyest of them the more weary thou art the farther from happiness and true contentment I have observed that
with him They made it appear by their patient cheerful and magnanimous sufferings that they valued nothing but JESUS and Eternity We are not now exposed to the same dangers for the profession and belief of Christianity but we may make our love and zeal appear by our contempt of the world and aspiring after heaven by our charity to men and abounding in the work of the Lord by keeping the Commandments as well as dying for the Creed the same Lord and Saviour that requires our Faith to the one demands our obedience to the other And now if we spend our time in the hearty observance of our Lords Precepts and intimations in doing and inlarging our duty to the utmost of our power if we thus confess him before men by living to him then are we prepared to die for him and he will certainly own us as much as if we had Our Crown now this way may be enriched and our love shewn and perfected as well as by the flames of Martyrdom And O happy we that we can come and more happy yet if we do come to sing Allelujah and eternally praise our gracious Redeemer with the noble Army of Martyrs where the love we had here shall fill our hearts with divine joy Vbi tota virtus erit O anima videre quod amas summa felicitas amare quod vedes Aug. and be increased to the proportions of our endless and unspeakable Bliss The Lord direct our hearts into the love of God and into the patient waiting for JESUS our Master 2 Thes 3.3 I need not here insert cautions against vain glory and self complacency after we have done the most we are able for if it proceeds not from the love of God it is nothing worth and if it doth it will never bring pride nor vanity Charity vaunteth not it self and is not puffed up 1 Cor. 13.4 Only in the words of a pious Saint If we had died a thousand times for JESUS 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. S. Johan Clim Grad 23. 11. yet we should not have repaid him the least part of what we owe his infinite mercy and condescension for vast is the difference betwixt the blood of God and the blood of his creatures and servants if we judge according to the dignity and not to the substance of it What hast thou that thou hast not received remember what JESUS saith to all Christians He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me Mat. 10.37 and whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath he cannot be my disciple Luk. 14.33 We can never do too much for JESUS but we may easily do too little though the most we can do will never merit heaven yet the least shall not obtain it 't is safe and impossible to exceed but 't is easie and dangerous to be defective O God who hast prepared for them that love thee such good things as pass mans understanding Sixth Sund. after Trin. pour into our hearts such love towards thee that we loving thee above all things may obtain thy promises which exceed all that we can desire through Jesus Christ our Lord Amen I have now assigned Love its full task to repent and mortifie our lusts to serve and obey God and to abound in good works even free-will offerings I have no more for it to do I would only have it to encrease to grow towards perfection to be constant and to endure unto the end To help this forward I have here added a meditation on the exaltation of our Blessed Saviour some useful directions for the ordering of our lives and four concluding Considerations whereby to assist direct and encourage the sincere lover of JESUS in the discharge of this great and blessed duty the work and labour of Love Let us consider one another to provoke unto Love and to good works Heb. 10.24 CHAP. XV. Meditation on the Exaltation of the Blessed JESVS LIve and reign sweetest JESU for ever My dearest Lord I heartily â—ejoice in that great power and glory to â—hich now thou art exalted When I conâ—â—der what thou didst do to rescue us from Misery and to make us happy how thou didst lay by thy glories to intitle us to them becamest poor to pay our debt becamest weak to die and to vanquish our enemies When I consider this Ita ne summus omnium unus factus est omnium quis hoc fecit amor dignitatis nescius dignatione dives affectu potens suasu efficax quid violentius triumphat de Deo amor Bern. I cannot but admire the greatness of thy charity whereby thou wert moved thus to relieve and succour us in suffering and abasing thy self I cannot also but be transported with joy that in thy conflict with our enemies thou didst obtain the victory and thereby a Kingdom that shall have no end Lord if thou hadst perished in our quarrel if death had still detained thee what grief what remediless anguish had it been to our souls not only to see our hopes frustrated but also to see him opprest and overcome who with so much pity and generosity ingaged for our deliverance But thou livest dearest Lord thou art triumphant thou hast got the keys of death and of hell Thou art the head and Saviour of the Church Thou art the Judge of all men Thou art the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords Thou sittest at the right hand of the Majesty on high above all principalities and powers All power is given to thee in heaven and in earth At thy Name O Blessed JESU every knee must bow and that we do most willingly gladly acknowledging that thy name is exalted above every name Thou alone hast redeemed and hast power to save us Thou alone hast the might and right to command us Unhappy they that will not worship thee and submit to thy government Unhappy they that impart thine honour to created beings and will not wholly depend upon thee Blessed be God that we have a Saviour whom without idolatry we may love and worship to whom we may offer our humble petitions and at whose feet we may prostrate our selves Blessed be God that he himself would become our Saviour Had an Angel or man been able and deputed to work our Redemption our love and gratitude might have been excessive and provoked God to jealousie But now Blessed JESU we cannot humble our selves too low before thee we cannot exalt thee too high we can never exceed in paying our acknowledgments to thee Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honour and glory and blessing Unto him therefore that loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood and hath made us Kings and Priests unto God and his Father to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever Amen Rev. 5.12
and 1.6 Blessed Lord I rejoice that thou hast the disposal of me I willingly submit my self to thy good pleasure both to obey and to suffer I desire that my heart and all my affections may wholly be subject to thee O why is thy name dishonoured thy Church persecuted thy holy Religion despised or perverted and thou thy self rejected and rebelled against even by many of them that have sworn allegiance to thee O that it were in my power to advance thy Kingdom here among my Fellow-Servants to bring all men in subjection to thee But first my Blessed Lord let me sincerely submit to thy will in all things Let never one of my words or actions send thee that impious message of the rebellious Citizens We will not have this man to reign over us Luk. 19.14 but now thou art absent I beseech thee let me observe thy laws and own and reverence thy power in them to whom thou hast imparted it thy Church and Ministers Thou art my King dearest JESU let me never see that hour that I shall not heartily love and humbly obey thee Consider O my Soul how great is the happiness and honour to be one of the retinue of so great so good a Master Let nothing cast thee down thou shalt certainly reign above if thou art faithful here below Jacob and his sons were in fear to perish with hunger because they knew not that Joseph did reign in Aegypt but my timorous heart why shouldst thou fear any thing when thou knowest that JESUS doth reign in heaven God hath given him power over all flesh that he might give eternal life to all that will sincerely give themselves to him If thou art his thou canst not want to be protected and provided for All his servants are certainly prefer'd all his souldiers come to be Kings the Crown of life the Kingdom of heaven the glories of eternity are the recompences laid up for his humble subjects Live and Reign sweetest JESU for ever When I do consider that Legions of Angels millions of blessed Souls perpetually adore thee with the greatest extasie of love and divine joy that all pious men throughout all the world express their love and gratitude by daily worshipping and obeying of thee that all thy wicked enemies are seiz'd with fear and trembling before thee When thus I see thee blessed Lord with the eyes of my faith on the Throne of highest Majesty encircled with glory and power I then disdain the world and am raised above my self transported with pleasure to see thy labours and sufferings thus justly rewarded to think that mine for thee shall have the same reward according to the utmost of my capacity And now my gracious Lord this I make my request if I can add nothing to thy highest glory yet let me enter in and partake of thy joy for they that love thy name shall be joyful in thee Psal 5.12 CHAP. XVI Two general directions about the manifesting of our love to God IT is a Maxim in Morals quod cor non facit non fit what the heart doth not is reputed as not done it can deserve neither praise nor reward and it can signifie nothing to any purpose of vertue Now the heart is the fountain of humane affections and the seat of love so that the meaning is that what is not done out of love is insignificant and wholly unacceptable Which truth holds in Religion also God earnestly requires the heart of all his worshippers and without it he doth accept neither their services nor their oblations Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and these words which I command thee this day shall be in thy heart Deut. 6.6 Love therefore must carry us through the whole course of our lives through all our duty that our actions bearing its stamp and signature may be pleasing to God and to us profitable So that in the discharge of our several callings in our intercourse with others at home or abroad and in the most common actions of our lives still we must act as being acted by a sincere love to God It is one of the best of those ancient Rules which were given to ascetick persons Let charity which abides for ever In omnibus quibus utitur transitura necessitas superemineat quae permanet charitas Reg. Aug. influence and govern the use we make of time and other transitory things let it go along with us in all our ways and we shall certainly go right But this like other general Rules will signifie nothing except it be applied to particulars My love to JESUS must appear in what I do this day and what I shall do to morrow The justice and charity of the words I speak and the work I am about must justifie it that indeed I own JESUS for my Lord his Gospel for my Rule and his love for my comfort and encouragements Let charity which abides for ever direct us in our use of transitory things It is the advice of some spiritual directors that we would single out some one eminent Christian vertue to the study whereof we should more particularly addict our selves and examine our growth in grace by our proficiency in it This may be much for our ease and for our advantage For the Duties and Graces of our Religion are very numerous not to be attained and attended to all at once and as they stand together whereas if we make choice of any one single which leads us to all the rest and includes them all our Christian advancement will be with greater speed and less difficulty and we shall be masters of all other vertues by having bent our strength and endeavours on the practice of one Such a one I am sure is the love of God the love of the Blessed JESUS which if well followed and attended to will bring us to the highest perfection to which any Christian can arrive in this life Let it therefore be our chiefest care to beget and entertain in our hearts that most blessed love and then to express and perfect it by these two general Rules 1. In all our actions to have respect to Gods will and to seek to fulfil it rather than our own This is recommended to us by the Example of our Blessed Saviour who professed that he came not to do his own will but the will of him that sent him and this was his great demonstration of love to the Father That the world may know that I love the Father Probatio dilectionis exhibitio est operis Greg. and as the Father gave me Commandment even so I do arise let us go hence Joh. 14.31 He would go and deliver himself into the hands of his crucifies rather than not comply with that order he had received from God his Father And thus if we chuse Gods will where it is most contradictory to our own desires we shall make it appear that indeed we love him Abraham was