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A51788 Præparatio evangelica, or, A plain and practical discourse concerning the soul's preparation for a blessed eternity being the substance of several sermons preach'd at Leeds / by Timothy Manlove ... Manlove, Timothy, d. 1699. 1698 (1698) Wing M455; ESTC R6789 123,238 196

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working our Hearts to that temper whereof the Psalmist's Words are very expressive Psal 73.25 WHOM HAVE I IN HEAVEN but Thee c. When this is done then is the Heart of the Old Man broken then the Soul stands no longer at such an unkind distance from God as it did before But being begotten of him hath an ingenious Child-like Affection towards him O my God I can resist no longer thou art stronger than I and hast prevailed thy Love hath overcome me victorious Grace has got the day Other Lords besides thee have had Dominion over me But by Thee only will I make mention of thy Name Isa 26.13 Thus they cry Abba Father and feel at length how good it is to draw near to God Psal 73.28 In this it is that true Grace Holiness or real Godliness doth principally consist Namely in such an inclination of the Will towards God it is the giving our Hearts to him which before were most unreasonably and wickedly alienated from him 'T is this which he doth especially call for insist upon and expect from us this he sets most by and without it will not accept of any thing else that we can offer Prov. 23.26 My Son give me thine Heart This is more than all whole Barnt-offerings and Sacrifices Mark 12.33 Thus the wandering Soul is brought back to its proper Center and Best 'T is an honest Friendly good-natured Disposition of Heart God-wards always tempered with dutiful Reverence to so adorable a Majesty who needeth not such poor silly Worms as we but will be gracious to whom be will be gracious and will shew Mercy on whom he will shew Mercy Exod. 33.19 Thus the design of the Gospel is to bring us into Fellowship with God 1 John 1.3 That henceforth we may converse with him as our best and dearest Friend And confidently expect from him all that Kindness and Faithfulness which belongs to such a Relation and what may we not hope for from such a Friend such a Father Nothing shall be wanting that 's fit for him to give or for us to receive Luk. 19.31 Son thou art ever with me and all that I have is thine The Love of God to his People as one observes cannot be overset it knows no difficulties The greater the Performance or Vouchsafement the more sutable to Divine Love Again this great Change is an opening of our Hearts towards God which before were shy reserved estranged shut up against him Tho they were always his by Title yet not till now by Consent before he had jus ad rem a right to them now he hath jus in re an actual Interest in them and Possession of them The Everlasting Doors are now opened and the King of Glory is entered in Psal 24. Thus we give unto God the things that are God's How shall I make it plainer 'T is a sincere deep inward hearty prevailing Love to him who is Love and Goodness it self This is the Life and Substance of all true Religion the fulfilling of the Law in one Word LOVE Without this thou hast only the shadow of Holiness but really art nothing 1 Cor. 13.2 The Truth is the Will is the first Subject of moral Good and Evil 'T is turned from God by Sin yea and set against him Grace reduceth and reconciles it to him again so that the tendencies of the renewed Soul are towards God that it may know him more love and serve him better be brought yet nearer to him and more fully conformed to his Will It detests all thoughts of Happiness in which the Enjoyment of God is not included or rather which is not wholly included in that Enjoyment He says unto the Lord Thou art my God I cannot take up with any thing else for my Portion and Supreme Good my Soul panteth after thee longeth for thee and is even weary of it self to find any Remnants of its old Aversion from thee These are my daily Groans O that I could ascend more Send forth O Lord thy powerful attractive Love let that holy Flame consume my Dross that the nobler part may know in home its rest it s all How precious are thy Thoughts unto me O God how great is the sum of them I knew in some measure long since that none but God could make me compleatly happy I have often heard of this by the hearing of the Ear but now I know it better mine Eye sees it I find and feel that my Soul is otherwise affected towards thee than i● was before Thus the Passage betwixt the Head and Heart is opened thus the Will is determined for God And those Truths which before only hovered in the Brain or Imagination sink down work into the very Soul and attemper it to themselves I have been somewhat large upon this Head but all 's little enough to make unregenerate Persons understand these things tho still they pretend to love God But I proceed 4. The sensitive Passions or Affections must also be sanctified so as to fall in with the superior Faculties especially the Will and be subservient to them in order to the great Ends of Holiness or Religion That is they must be devoted unto God exercised upon him and for him The rational and sensitive Appetite are so nearly connexed at least in this Life that the Acts of the former so far as we perceive them always take in somewhat of the latter and are commonly described accordingly Moreover the Passions of Affections are oft-times an occasion or means to awaken and excite our Reason and Will to do their duty and therefore of exceeding great use if rightly managed and improved And tho the great Work of Grace lies principally in the higher Faculties of the Soul as intellectual Namely in the vital active Power Vnderstanding and WILL And must there be mainly sought and enquired after viz. Whether we have an high Estimation of God and do resolvedly and rationally cleave to him endeavouring to act sutably in our Lives and Conversations c. Again tho it must be granted that our Passions are not so apt to be moved by spiritual and invisible Objects as by sensible things that are near us c. and withal that they are many times strongest where Judgment is weakest and very uncertain too as depending much upon the Constitution of the Body c. Yet I must needs say that those Persons whose Affections move sensibly and freely toward other things but scarce stir at all as to the best and highest Objects are certainly in a weak and languid State of Soul if not quite dead If we be indeed risen with Christ then as we ought so we shall in some measure set our Affections on things above Col. 3.1 2. If the Will be predominantly for God 't is not to be supposed but that the Affections will in some degree go along with it and if they move but slowly it will be matter of Grief and will put us upon earnest Strivings to raise them to a