Sunbeams of Gospel Light, Sermon 1
A HEAVENLY TREATISE OF DIVINE LOVE.
Sermon I.
1 COR. 16. 22.
If any man love not the Lord Iesus Christ, let him bee Anathema, Maranatha, Let him bee had in execration, or let him be excommunicated unto the death.
THese words have little dependance on the words before going; which are these, The salutation of me Paul with my owne hands. It was the custome of the Apostle, that the Church might not deceived with counterfeit Epistles to set his name to those hee wrote: And that he would not doe alone, but did alwayes adde some gracious sentence, as commonly this, The grace of our Lord Iesus Christ be with you all. And there he addes that sentence, which so suits with the spirit and mind of S. Paul, that it might easily shew it to be S. Pauls Epistle; a man so abounding in the love of the Lord, as hee is zealous against such as love him not. We shall finde, in al S. Pauls preaching, that faith and love, were that which he drave at; those two roots, those two pillars on which the Church is built, from whence all the rest flow: Hereby teaching Ministers what they should beat at, what should bee their aime: A…d so people are taught hence what to doe: they must water these two roots well, and then the branches will flourish. Our wisedome should bee to looke to these; for these being strong, all will be strong: If these bee weake, all will be weake If any man love not the Lord Iesus, let him bee had in execration; yea, accursed unto the death. His scope is to commend love to the Corinthians. If I should cast about me to commend some speciall thing unto you now at the closing up of my Epistle, I know nothing better then this Love of the Lord Iesus. And there are two reasons why you should love him, first ye were in a miserable and accursed condition if you doe it not. And the second is from the object you are to love, he is the Lord and so may well challenge your love; Iesus your Saviour, and so hath well deserved it: so that we have here an exhortation, and two reasons of it. The words have little difficulty. Somewhat I will say of the two words in the originall Anathema & Maranatha. The word Anathema signifies the separatiō of a thing unto destruction. Maranatha is a Syrian word, signifying cursing; takē from the Hebrew root, and signifies more then Anathema. The Apostle doubles this curse to shew the greatnes of the punishment It is a great punishment which he would expresse in two languages. The generall doctrine we will observe from these words, is this, That to love the Lord Iesus is so necessarily required of us, that hee is Doctrine. 1worthy to be cursed that doth it not. Sometimes in Scripture the promise is made to faith, sometimes to repentance, sometimes to love. Love is so required, that without it, a man is worthy to be accursed; yea, and shall be cursed. I will but open and apply this; not standing to prove it. And First, I will shew what love is in generall: Secondly, what this love of the Lord Iesus is; to shew which there will bee showne how it is wrought: And thirdly, how they come to bee worthy to be accursed, that love him not. And first for the first. Love is among the affections, which are planted in the Will; and it may be described thus, It is a disposition of the Will and Heart What love is in generall.of man, whereby it turnes and inclines to some good, which it apprehends to bee agreeable to its owne nature. The Will is carried to nothing, but that which is apprehended to bee good. Now this love is a principall act of the Will: and it must bee an agreeable good to him, whose Will inclines unto it; for an envyous man may confesse the excellencies of another man, but hee hates them; he suffers by them; they seeme not to be an agreeable good to him. And this may bee illustrated by the contrary. Hate is that whereby a man turnes from a thing which he apprehends contrary to himselfe. This Love shews it selfe How love shews it selfe.in two effects: first, it desires the preservation of what it loves, that it may be kept safe: secondly, it desires Vnion with it, that they may draw neerer one to another. That you love, which you desire may bee yours, with which you desire conjunction: Now sometimes a thing may bee neerer, sometimes too far off; therefore it desires such a neerenesse as may stand with its convenience. And this is common to all love; if you love a Glasse, you will take care that it bee kept cleane, and whole, and for your use: so, if you love a Horse, you will take care that he bee well, and in good case, and that he be yours. The same we see in the love of a Father to his Sonne, of one friend to another. This is the nature of Love. Now Hate contrariwise, desires the destruction of that which is hated, that it may bee taken out of the world; and if that cannot bee, it desires separation from it, as far as may bee. And thus you have seene the nature of Love in generall. Now there are divers kindes of Love: There is a Love The kindes of Love.of Pitty, whē you desire the preservation of a mans person, and the removing of some ill quality; As, our Saviour mourned in Spirit, for the hardnesse of their hearts; hee did pitty them, and yet was angry with their sinne.
There is a Love of Desire, when a thing is dered to bee kept safe for our use: And this is for 3the inferiour faculties, as the sigh loves a pleasant object should be continued.
There is a Love of Complacence, when wee looke on a thing, in which all the faculties are 4pleased; not onelyonly the inferiour, but the superiour, as the Minde and the Will.
There is a Love of friendship, when a man loves where he is loved again, when love is reciprocall; there is an intercourse of Love.
There is a Love of dependance, when wee love him on whom we depend; and thus we love God, when wee looke upon him, as on whom all our good depends: so that we love him more than our selvs, because our good depends upon him, more than on our selves.
Wee will adde the qualities of Love; there is 1 The qualities of Love.a naturall Love, planted in us by nature: as the of parents to their children, of one man to another: this love is indifferent, not good in it selfe; good no otherwise, than directed on a good object.
There is a sinfull Love, arising from sinfull habits, 2which seeke things convenient to it. As nothing is better than love on a right object, so nothing worse than love on a wrong object. As naturall Love puts us in the condition men: so this sinfull Love makes men worse than beasts, and equals them with the Divell.
There is a spirituall Love, arising out of holy qualities, which seekes an object agreeable to it. 3And this makes a man above a man, and in some sort equall with the Angels. Men are as they love. GOD judges us by our affections, wee are judged by what we love. He that loves wickednesse, is truly a wicked man; he that loves holinesse, is truely holy. This foundation that wee have laid, though it may seeme somewhat remote, yet ye shall find it of use to hold up this building, before wee have done with the point.
The s…cond thing that wee have to declare, is, 2 What this love of the Lord Iesus is.What this love of the Lord Iesus is. Now the best way to shew what this is, is to shew how it is wrought: now for the working of it, there must be two Antecedent things which must make way for it; and they are Humiliation and Faith: for every one beleeves not this to bee needfull; and if they doe beleeve it, yet they may bee opposite to it, because it is not agreeable to their nature, That a man must be broken so, and moulded again, before hee can have this love which is wrought by Humiliation and Faith. And they are wrought on this manner, when we preach the Gospell, and offer Iesus Christ unto you: for the duty of a Minister, is nothing but this, to offer Iesus Christ himselfe unto the world. To us a Child is borne; To us a Sonne is given: for, unto you is borne a Saviour, that is, Christ the Lord. This is the summe of the Esa. 9. Luke ….Gospell; this is the newes which we bring: God hath given us his Sonne; wee offer you not forgivenesse Iohn 3. 16.of sinne, But the Lord Iesus. And when he hath given us him, will hee not with him give us all things also? Christ must first bee given, and when you have him, you shall have all: in him Rom. 8.are the promises, yea and Amen. First have Christ, 2 Cor. 1. 20.and then the promises belong unto you, not before. The Gospell is no…hing but this; we are to manifest, that God the Father is willing to give you his Sonne. We are his Spokesmen, to beseech you to take him, that you would take him as your 2 Cor. 5.husband, to be ruled by him: none, before you are humbled, can marry you to Christ. You must bee divorced from all other things, and beleeve that Christ will take you; and this is Faith, the other Humiliation. And then when you can receive him, you will love him. Now when we preach thus unto the world, what answere doe wee finde? Why, there are some that will not beleeve that there is such a Lord: and then our worke is to perswade, that Christ is such a Lord; and this was the Apostles worke, and theirs at the beginning. But when wee intreat you to take Christ for your Lord, your answer is, as theirs who were invited to the feast. This, and this excuse they have to hinder them, to beleeve, that a Christ is propounded, and men regard him not, they will not looke after him. Now, that Christ may be received, there is required Humiliation and Faith: Humiliation opens their eyes, by the Law, and spirit of bondage, that they see themselves miserable men, men condemned to dye. Now when God hath discovered our misery unto us, and wee rightly apprehend what our estates are, then we beginne to looke on Christ as a condemned malefactour on his pardon; as a Captaine on him that comes to redeeme him; as a Widdow that thought she should live well enough alone, but now when all her goods as seized upon, and they are now to carry her to prison, would bee content if any one would marry her. When a man shall see what hee is without Christ, one that is condemned, that must perish if hee have him not; then he lookes on Christ, as upon one most desirable, to prize him, to thirst for him; and if hee know that Christ will then receive him, oh then he cannot but love him; for Love (as hath beene said) is to a good apprehended; fit for us. Now without this, wee will thinke of Christ, as if wee might bee well enough without him: But when the heart is thus prepared by Humiliatiō, oh that all the World would vanish for Christ! Then comes the Gospel, and tels us that Christ is willing to take us, to redeeme us, to be ours. And then when we take him, the match is made up: and thence arises this conjugall Love. The Apostle praies for the Ephesians, that Christ may dwell in their hearts by Faith, Ephes. 3. to unite them to Christ, to marry him; then presently it follovvs, That ye may bee rooted and grounded in Love: so that Love followes this, and not a flash, but it rootes us in Love. The act of justifying Faith, is the taking of Christ for rest. Now when yee have taken him thus, then you will love him, and then all that followes will be effects of this love: so that this love of the Lord Iesus, is this; to wit,
A holy disposition, arising from Faith, whereby wee cleave unto the Lord Iesus Christ, with full purpose of heart, to serve and please him in all things.
Whereby wee cleave to him. Love inclines, and knits our hearts to him, as it did Davids to Ionathans. And so Barnabas exhorted them to cleave unto the Lord with full purpose of heart, Act. 11. Neither is this idle; but makes a man desirous to please the Lord in all things. A man is saide to love the Lord, when out of a perswasion that Christ is most desirable, and willing to receive him, hee cleaves to the Lord with a desire to serve and please him in all thinges. Faith that begets Love, is not onelyonly a perswasion that the Lord will be mercifull, and forgive us: (For a prisoner may see the Iudge willing to pardon him, and perswade himselfe that hee shall be pardoned, and yet love not the Iudge, because hee lookes not on the Iudge, as on an amiable person,) but a receiving and resting upon his amiablenesse. There is another affection; when the heart is so framed, it apprehends Christ for its onelyonly good, its happinesse. Faith is not onelyonly an act of the minde, to beleeve that God will pardon us; but of the Will and heart also, to take Christ for our Husband; so that all the parts of the heart are inclined and bent after hem. If you beleeve with all your heart, saith Philip to the Eunuch, Act. 8. If a Spouse should see one willing to have her, that is not enough to make up the match; she may not thinke him fit, shee may bee unwilling. But suppose there bee one that shee loves above all, whom she thinkes to bee most fit for her, yea she thinkes she shall bee undone if she have him not: but yet she is not sure that hee will have her, but thinkes it is very probable that hee may be induced unto it. So this is Faith, when a man sees Christ onelyonly worth his love, he would gladly bee divorced from all, so that he might have Christ oh he cannot bee without him, yet there is somewhat betwixt them, he cannot firmly beleeve that Christ loves him, but yet doth not thinke that hee is wholly averse from him. Though thy perswasion bee not full, yet if you have this thirst and desire, this hungering after Christ, you may bee comforted. This shuts out such as have a perswasion of the pardon of their sinnes, and yet have not this love, this prizing, this desiring after Christ; and takes in such as doe thus love and prize him, yet finde not that full perswasion of his love; so that this love is that which follows Humiliation and Faith, the breaking of the heart, and the moulding of it up againe: when wee see our need of him, and his willingnesse to receive us, then wee will take him, which cannot bee without this love to him.
Now wee come to the third thing, the reasons why they are worthy to bee accursed unto 3 Why they are worthy to be cursed that love not the Lord Iesus.the death that Love not the Lord Iesus. This may seeme strange and harsh. What then becomes of all unregenerated men? The Apostle meanes, sure, such as continue in their not loving the Lord, or such as have sinned against the holy Ghost. But the former sence I take to bee the best, neither is this any strange thing: for it is one part of the Gospel. There are two parts of the Gospel, If you beleeve, you shalbe saved; if you beleeve not, you shalbe damned. Sometimes it is Marke …0.if you repent you shalbe saved; or if you doe not you shall perish, so if you love you shalbe saved; if you love not, you shalbe accursed: now why should hee pitch on such a frame of words to expresse their condition?
Because when Christ shall come and bee a suter to us, when he shall woe us, and offer himselfe 1 Reason.to us, and wee will have none of him, then the Sonne waxes angry. When he shall offer himselfe unto us, and none will kisse him, then hee Psal. 2.waxes angry unto the death, and they perish in the way. The greatest love not answered, turnes to the greatest hatred: so when the Father sent to Mat. 22.call them to the feast that were invited, and they refused it, this made him wrath; when wee shall come to preach Christ to men, when this light hid from the beginning of the world shall shine, and you shall despise it and contemne it, know that now is the axe laid to the roote of the tree. God will beare it at your hands no longer. Now if a man will not Love the Lord Iesus, let him be had in execration, yea let him bee accursed unto the death.
If a man did not keepe the Law, he was to be 2cursed, now there was a double keeping of the Law: A Legall, which answeres the exact rigour of the Law; an Evangelicall, which is an earnest endeavouring to keepe the Law, and to make a mans heart as perfect as may be. Now there being more mercy in this, there is a greater curse on the breach of it. Now Love is the fulfilling of the Law; and not to love the Lord, is, not to keepe the Law, and therefore the Curse follows it.
If a man love not the Lord Iesus, it is because 3he loves something better than him. It may be you love your Wealth more than Christ: And are you not worthy to be cursed for it? It may be you are lovers of pleasure more than of God, and doth not this deserve a Curse? It may bee you love the praise of men, before that of God; and is not this to bee accursed? Adultery was punished with death; and what punishment then is enough for the going a whoring from such a God, after such vanties?
Againe, Cursing belongs to Hypocrites; Woe be unto you Seribes and Pharisees, Hypocrites, Matthew 23. Now, what a man doth not out of love, is done out of hypocrisie; which is, to doe the outward action without the inward affection: as counterfeit gold hath the same stamp and colour with true gold. But as wee cast away counterfeit silver and gold, set it apart to destruction, nayling them up, that they may bee knowne, so will God deale with such as serve him outwardly, without this love to him.
Love is that which commands all in a man. It is as the rudder to a shippe; all followes love. 5When a man love not the Lord, all go's from him. Now when the whole man shall go from the Lord, is not such a one worthy to bee cursed, yea to bee had in execration to the death?
If this love of the Lord be so necessary, then see what a sinne it is, what an execrable thing it Vse 1. It is a great sin, not to love the Lord Iesus.is, not to love the Lord; and what you are to thinke of your selves, if you love not the Lord. When Iesus Christ shall bee propounded unto men, and this light is great, but men do… resist it, and not embrace the Lord: when we see this, we should have such a spirit as Paul, (for this was out of the abundance of his zeale) wee should, I say, bee stirred against such with an holy indignation, Act. 17. Doe not I hate those that hate thee? Psal. 139. yea I hate them with a perfect hate. This thou hast, that thou hatest the workes of the Nicholaitans, which thing also I hate, Revelations 2. And this was a signe of Lots sincerity, that his righteous soule was grieved, and vexed with the uncleane conversation of the Sodomites, 2 Peter 2. If you can see Christ scorned and re jected, and his Word slighted, and his bloud trampled on, and you your selves are not moved with it, you are not of Pauls spirit, who speaking of some, whose God was their belly, whose glory was their shame; of whom (saith hee) I have told you often, and now tell you weeping, that they are the enemies of the crosse of Christ, Philip, 3. Whence came this, but out of the abundance of his love to Christ, and mankinde? I wish yee would all looke to your selves, whether you are in this number or not, of those that love not the Lord. This is such a sinne, as the curse is doubled upon it: And the punishment is but to shew the measure of the sinne. Hee thunders not out his curse against him that opposeth the Lord, or resisteth him, but against him that loveth not the Lord. The Apostle, as Moses, gets him up to the Mount Ebal; and whom doth he curse? Even all such as love not the Lord Iesus. This Doctrine throughly considered, may let in a crevice of light to thee, that now thou maist looke on thy selfe, as on an execrable thing which God hates; and thou maist see GOD, even stretching out his power to confound thee, yea thou maist see the Gospel cursing thee.
But what terrour is there in the preaching of the Gospel, you will say?Ob.
O much more (my Brethren) than may bee expressed; for the curse of the Law was not so Sol.peremptory; though we have plaine words for it, yet it was not without all condition. But God sweares to this curse, as if wee were thus cursed if wee would continue not to love him. The Law is the proper instrument of humbling, yet the Gospel humbles more; for sinne is the matter of Humiliation. And there bee sinnes against the Gospel, yea greater sinnes than against the Law: when thou hearest the curse of the Law, Cursed be he that continueth not in every thing that is written in the booke of the Law; to doe them, Galathians 3. You will say, you wil go to Christ, & he shall do it for you: But when the Gospel curses such as love not Christ, to whom will you goe to love God? Another man cannot love for you. And if you thinke this be too harsh, let this verse sound oft in your eares.
If any man love not the Lord Iesus Christ, let him be accursed unto the death.
This cannot bee altered, it is the Word of God; aske then thy selfe this question, whether thou lovest the Lord, or no? And put not your selfe off with your Hope, but try your Love; for Love will have sensible strings in the heart; it will drive you close to the Lord, to keepe in with him, to have communion with him.
Dost thou then feele, that thou art never well, but when thou art with him, and yet dost thou Signes of Lovenot love him? Dost thou walke with God, as 1Enoch did? Will any of you say, that a Wife loves her Husband, which with her good will, will never be with him?
Love is also very dilligent and laborious, you will never leave, till you get neere him whom you 2love; no labour will be tedious, to get his favour; many yeeres seeme a few daies to Iacob, to serve for Rachel, because he loved her.
Againe, Love is not of a deferring nature, but 3is impatient of all delayes.
Againe, Love is content with it selfe; it doth not need to be hired to love, Amor est sibi ipsi 4dulce pabulum: it carries its meate in its owne mouth. If you love the Lord Iesus, you would not aske what wages you should have to love him.
Againe, Love is a strong impulsive quality, it 5carries you on impetuously unto the Lord, it is a fire that breakes through thicke and thinne: so that he that loves, cannot sinne wilfully, if hee would; hee cannot but obey, hee cannot doe any thing against the Gospel, he must doe all things for it. The Love of Christ constraines me, saith S. Paul, 2 Corinthians 5. Looke how a man is carried with a strong streame, or by a strong man whom hee cannot resist; so his love compelled him; I preach, and preach, and men thinke mee mad, but I cannot but doe it: the love of Christ constraines me, and as it constraines me, so there is nothing more different than constraint, and not to doe it. The effects of this Love are so violent, as if they were compelled; but for the manner of working, nothing is so contrary to it as compulsion; for you love him, and are carried to it, as a stone to the center, you would doe no otherwise.
So endeth the first Sermon.