Sunbeams of Gospel Light, Soliloquy – Table of contents 3
A SOLILOQVY OF A DEVOVT SOVLE TO CHRIST, PANTING AFter the love of the LORD IESUS.
O Thou Love of all loves, thou chiefest of ten thousand; thou lovedst me before I was, thou dost love me when I am, thou doest love me (if I bee thine) when I am here no more. Thy Loves are better then wine, but mine are worse thē gall and wormewood. Thou lovest mee who deserve lesse then nothing, I love not thee who deservest more then all things. I have hid my selfe from thee as Adam, yet thou hast pierced through the darke cloud, and loved me. Thou hast opened thy selfe in the face of my soule, yet in the sight of this Sun I have not loved thee. No basenesse of mine hath closed thy eyes, and kept thy heart from me: yet every base pleasure, and pleasing lust hath kept my heart and eye from thee. Without my love to thee I cannot have my happinesse applyed, and enjoyed. It is Faith that marries thee to me: but this faith must worke by love, or my marriage will end in a fruitlesse barrennesse, and faithlesse separation. Hitherto therefore I have loved thee, but for lust, not for love. I would have thee save me, but I would not honour, and please thee. I can thus think of my disloyalty towards thee; but thou knewest it before I thought it, and more then I can speake or thinke. Thou doest thinke thoughts of love and peace to me, but I minde the abuse of thy love, and the too late repentance of thee upon my owne termes. How can I be acceptable to thee, (My Love, my Dove, my undefiled,) Thou spreadest out thy hands, and art ready for blessing me: but if I open my head, heart, hand, I am apt to receive nothing but Anathema, Maranatha from thee. Can love come to enmity, heaven to hell? I am hell (my Lord) thou art heaven: I am hatred, thou art Love. Thou shewest hatred, yet in my wisdome am I very enmity. Can I then expect either to have the blessing of Love, or to avoide the curse of not loving? Oh shew me thy face, for it is comly. Thou hast often shewed me thy riches, and I have loved them: but oh shew me thy selfe, that I may love thee. I have seen by goodnes, mer cy, compassion, merit, salvation, and have cried out, (My blessed Iesus) make these mine. Now let me see thy selfe, that thou my beloved mayst be mine, and all those riches in thee. From the sight of thy riches I have desired to preserve my selfe: from seeing thy selfe I shall desire to draw neere to thee, and to cleave to thee for ever. O thou whom my soule desires to love, shew me then where thou liest at noone, that I may see thee! I know where I shall finde thee at the night of my life. I shall finde thee sitting on yonder throne, ready to say, either, Come ye blessed, or, Goe yee cursed. I doe not know whether so short a view shall bring me to heare either the one, or the othre. Shew me then where thou liest at this my noone. Now thy Sun doth shine upon this my tabernacle, and I have some time to behold thy beauty, that I may be in love with thy person: where then shall I finde thee? if I looke to mount Tabor, I see thee in glory, and I cannot but love thee for that. If I looke to the garden, I see thee lying on the cold ground, sweating drops of bloud for mee, and I cannot but love thee for that. If I looke to Golgotha, I see thee nayled to the Crosse, and thy heart broached, that I may drinke thy blood and live, and I cannot but love thee for that. If I looke to mount Olivet, I see thee ascending farre above all heavens, and I cannot but love thee for that also. Indeed in Tabor thou hadst visible glory, but it soone vanished: in the Garden and Golgotha, thou hadst little visible beauty why I should desire thee: and in Olivet, thou wast quite carried out of my sight. If then thou liest for mee no where else, what hope have I to love thee, O thou to be beloved of all. Art thou not in the tents of the Sheperds? Dost thou not walke in the midst of the golden Candlestickes? Doest thou not dwell in the hearts of men by faith? O let mee see thee here below, in the Church, in my selfe. Let thy glory goe before me, that I may love thee for ever, and ever, and be blessed in thee. Thou hast a long time been manifested to me in thy natures, offices, and markes for me, and these draw mee to love thee. Thou hast beene crucified before my eyes, and the vertues of it have beene cleared by the Ministery of the Word, and Sacraments. I have heard and seene the promises, signes, and seales of thy dearest love, and these might allure me to love thee. But (O thou chiefest of ten thousand) why hast thou kept thy selfe at such a distance? why hast thou not been formed in me? why hast thou not dwelt in me, that I might see in thee the glories, and vertues, of thy life, death, resurrection, ascension, and to be sicke of love? Thou hast stood and knockt at the doore of my unworthy heart for this end. Thou wouldest have come in and supped with me after the noonshine of the Gospel, with thine owne banquet. But, alas, there was no roome for thee, because I desired first to feast it out with the base guests of sinfull lusts, before I would give thee entertainement. The cause hath been in my selfe, that I have not beene better acquainted with thee, and so, that I have not loved thee. O wretched soule that I am, who shall deliver me from being an enemy to my self! I have bowed my knees to the Father of thee, the Lord Iesus, that he would grant to me, according to the riches of his glory, that I may have his assistance to empty my selfe of all my wickedguests, that thou mayest come into me, and I may have the better list and leasure to contemplate thy glory, and be grounded in thy love, O my blessed Lord Iesus. Could I but get this, my gaines would be unspeakeable. Whatsoever thou commandest would be sweet, because I love thee. If I could give thee my heart, thou wouldst give it better to me againe: for no uncleane thing can come out of thy hands. But (O my desired love) I have denied thee; therefore, I deny my selfe. I have rejected thee; therefore, I reject my selfe. Doe with me as thou wilt, onelyonly first love me, and let me answer thee with love againe. And why should not I be confident to be heard in this, seeing thou (my love) sittest at the right hand of God making request for me. Speak thou the word, and thy poore servant shall love thee. Say to my soule, My Father hath heard thy prayer, and then, I will love thee dearely. My Lord Iesus, if I love thee, I live: If I love thee not, I perish under a fearefull curse for evermore. And shall it be thus with me, O thou that wilt not the death of poore sinners, who pant after thee? No, no, thy merits and intercession have prevailed with my God. I finde the filth of domineering sinne, in some measure, washed from the windowes of my soule, that the beames of thy glory may pierce it, and draw my love after thee. Now doe I begin to be sicke of love, and earnestly desire thy company here, by grace, and hereafter by glory. I love to heare thee speak (let me heare thy voice for it is sweet) and to speake to others of thee, and thy beauties. Thou hast made mee something willing to doe, and to suffer any thing for thee, Lord perfect this good worke. If I see the meanest persons like thee in thy goodnesse, My delight is in them; I love them the better for thy sake. I dare not wilfully anger thee, and my soule is vexed with them that doe it. Thus the pulses of my soule (by thy blessing) doe begin to beat after thee. But (alas) when I consider how weake I am in thy love to thee my Saviour: when I find a thousand things creep in betwixt thee & home, and steale my heart away from thee: when I feele how easily I am diverted from thee and thy service, what comfort can my poore soule have now? O my Lord Iesus, thou wilt not leave thy own worke, & suffer thy tender plant to wither away! when thou hast sowed thy seed, hast thou not prepared the former and latter raine? Shall I not be able to doe this through him that loveth thee and me? I may not run from thy love, thou art my Lord. I dare not, thou art my Iesus. If thou live, let me know thy love to me. If I live, let me feele my love to thee. Oh shed it more in my heart, that as in beleeving in thee my person is justified, so in loving thee my faith may be justified, and in having faith working by love, I may so constantly walke in thy presence, that with comfort I may sing with the Bride, Come Lord Iesus, come quickly, Even so,
Amen.
FINIS.
TWO TREATISES, VIZ. THE CHRISTIAN FREEDOME, AND THE DEFORMED FORME OF A FORMALL PROFESSION.
By that late faithfull and worthy Minister of Iesus Christ, JOHN PRESTON, Doctor in Divinity, Chaplaine in Ordinary to his Majestie, Master of Emanuell Colledge in Cambridge, and sometimes Preacher of Lincolnes Inne.
LONDON, Printed by I. N. for Iohn Stafford, and are to be sold at his Shop in Chancery-lane, over against the Roules. 1641.
THE CHRISTIAN FREEDOME: OR, The Charter of the Gospel, shewing the priviledge and prerogative of the Saints by vertue of the Covenant. Wherein these foure points of Doctrine are properly observed; plainely proved both by Scripture, and reason, and pithily applied, Viz.
1. That he that is in the state of grace lyeth in no knowne sinne, no sinne hath dominion over him.
2. That sinne though it doth not raigne in the Saints, yet it doth remaine and dwell in them.
3. That the way to overcome sinne, is to get assurance of the Love, and grace, and favour of God, whereby it is forgiven them.
4. That whosoever is under the Law, sinne hath dominion over him.
By that late faithfull and worthy Minister of Iesus Christ, JOHN PRESTON, Doctor in Divinity, Chaplaine in Ordinary to his Majestie, Master of Emanuell Colledge in Cambridge, and sometimes Preacher of Lincolnes Inne.
ROM. 6. 12.
Let not sinne therefore raigne in your mortall bodies, that you should obey it in the lusts thereof.
Printed 1641.
The Names of Doctor IOHN PRESTON his severall Treatises.
1. A Treatise of the Attributes of God containing 17 Sermons upon divers Texts.
2. Foure Treatises viz.
1. A remedy against Covetousnes, upon Coloss. 3. 5.
2. An Elegant and lively description of spiritual life & death, upon Iohn 5. 25.
3. The Doctrine of selfe deniall, upon Luke 9. 23.
4. A Treatise of the Sacrament, upon 1 Ioh. 5. 14.
3. The Saints daily Exercise, or a a Treatise of Prayer upon 1 Thess. 5. 17.
4. The New Covenant in 14 Sermons, upon Gen. 17. 1. 2. VntoUnto which is added 4 Sermons upon Eccles. 9. 1. 2. 11. 12.
5. The Saints Qualification, containing, viz.
1. A Treatise of Humiliation in 10 Sermons, the first 9 upon Rom. 1. 18.
The tenth Preached before the common house of Parliament, upon Numb. 25. 10. 11.
2. Of Sanctification or the New Creature in 9 Sermons upon 1 Cor. 5. 17.
3. Of Communion with Christ in the Sacrament in 3 Sermons upon 1 Corinth. 10. 16.
6. The Doctrine of the Saints Infirmities upon 2 Chron. 30. 18. 19, 20.
7. The Brestplate of Faith and Love, containing 18 Sermons upon three severall Texts, viz. Revel. 1. 17. 1 Thes. 1. 3. Gal. 5. 6.
8. Five Sermons Preached before his Majestie, viz.
1. The New Life, upon 1. Ioh. 5 15.
2. A sensible demonstration of the Diety, upon Esay 64. 4.
3. Of exact walking upō Eph. 5. 15.
4. The Pillar and ground of Truth, upon 1 Tim. 3. 15.
5. Sam. Support of sorrowfull sinners upon 1 Sam. 12. 20. 21. 22.
9. Two Treatises of Mortification, and Humiliation, upon Col. 3. 5. Ephes. 2. 1, 2, 3. Together with the livelesse life, A Treatise of Vivification.
10. His Remaines, containing 3. excellent Treatises, viz.
1. Iudas's Repentance.
2. The Saints Spirituall strength.
3. Pauls Conversion.
11. The Golden Scepter, with the Churches Mariage, being three Treatises in one volume.
12. The Fulnesse of Christ, upon Iohn 1. 16.
13. A Heavenly Treatise of the Divine Love of Christ, in Five Sermons, upon 1 Cor. 16. 22.