A Divine Cordial, Chapter 10
CHAP. X. An Exhortation to love God.
Vse 3. THe third Use is of Exhortation,Vse 1. Exhortation. and it hath three Branches. 1. Let me earnestly perswade all, who bare the name of Christians, to become Lovers of God, Psal. 31.33.1. Branch O love the Lord all ye his Saints. There are but few that love God: Many give him an hypocritical kisse, but few love him. 'Tis not so easie to love God as most imagine. The Affection of love is natural, but the Grace is not. Men are by nature foreign God-haters, Rom. 1.30. The wicked would flye from God; they would neither be under his rules, nor within his reach; they fear God, but do not love him. All the strength in men or Angels, cannot make the heart love God: Ordinances will not do it of themselves, nor Judgements; it is only the Almighty and Invincible power of the Spirit of God can infuse love into the soul; this being so hard a work, it calls upon us for the more earnest prayer and endeavour after this Angelical grace of love *Impium est Deum non diligere, cui vicemrepen…r… non possumus, etiamsi diligamus. Austin. To excite and inflame our desires after it, I shall prescribe twenty Motives.
1. Without this all our Religion is vain. 'Tis not duty, but love to duty, God looks at; 'tis not how much we do,1. Motiv. but how much we love. If a servant doth not his work willingly, and out of love, it is not accepted. Duties not mingled with love, are as burdensom to God, as they are to us. David therefore counsels his son Solomon to serve God with a willing mind, 1 Chron. 28.9. To do duty, without love, is not sacrifice, but pennance.
2.2. Love is the most noble and excellent grace, it is a pure flame kindled from Heaven, by it we resemble God who is love. Believing and obeying do not make us like God, but by love we grow like him, 1 Iohn 4.16. Love is a grace doth most delight in God, and is most delightful to him. That Disciple which was most full of love, lay in Christs bosome. Love puts a verdure and lustre upon all the Graces: the Graces seem to be eclipsed, unlesse love shine and sparkle in them: Faith is not true, unless it work by love; the waters of repentance are not pure, unlesse they flow from the Spring of love. Love is the savoury meat God loves, it is the Incense makes all our Services fragrant and odoriferous; it is Vinum aromaticum, the Spiced Wine, and the juice of the Pomgranate.
3. Is any thing unreasonable that God requires? 'tis but our love;3. if he should ask our estate, or the fruit of our bodies, could we deny him? but he asks only our love; he would only pick this flower; is this an hard request? was there ever any debt so easily paid as this? we do not at all impoverish our selves by paying it. Love is no burden. Is it any labour for the Bride to love her Husband? Love is delightful; Non potest amor esse, et dulcis non esse *Bern..
4. God is the most adaequate and compleat object of our love:4. all the exellencies that lye scattered in the creatures, are twisted together, and united in him; he is a Magazine of blessings; he is Wisdome, Beauty, Love, yea the quintessence of Goodnesse; he is Optimus Maximus; there is nothing in God can cause a nauseating or loathing; the Creature doth sooner surfeit than satisfie; but there are fresh beauties sparkling forth in God; the more we enjoy of him, the more we are ravished with delight.
There is nothing in God to dull our affections, or quench our love, no infirmity, no deformity, which do usually weaken and cool love. There is that delicious sweetnesse in God, as may not only entice, but command our love. If there were more Angels in Heaven than there are, and all those glorious Seraphims had an immense flame of love burning in their breasts to eternity, yet could they not love God equivalently to that infinite perfection and transcendency of goodnesse which is in him. Surely then here is enough to tempt us to fall in love with God; we cannot spend our love upon a better object.
5. Love doth facilitate Religion, it oyls the Wheels of the affections,5. and makes them more lively and cheerful in Gods service; love takes off the tediousness in duty. Iacob thought seaven years but little, for the love he did bear to Rachel. Love makes duty a pleasure. Why are the Angels so swift and winged in Gods service? it is because they love him. Love is never weary. He that loves Gold is never weary of telling it; and he that loves God, is never weary of serving him.
6. God desires our love. It were much for a King to desire the love of a woman that is deformed and leprous.6. We have lost our beauty, and stained our blood, yet the King of Heaven is a Suitor to us. What is there in our love that God should come a wooing for it? What is God the better for our love? he doth not want it, he is infinitely blessed in himself; if we deny him our love, he hath more sublime creatures who pay the cheerful tribute of love to him. God doth not need our love, yet he seeks it.
7. God hath deserved our love;7. how hath he loved us! Our affections should be kindled at the fire of Gods love. What a miracle of love is it, that God should love us, when there was nothing in us lovely! Ezek. 16.6. When thou wast in thy blood, I said unto thee, live. The time of our loathing, was the time of Gods loving. We had something in us to provoke fury, but nothing to entice love. What an Hyperbole of love was it to give Christ to us*Si amor augeatur in fonte, necesse est & in fluxu. Gulielm. Parisiens.? That Christ should dye for sinners, God hath set all the Angels in Heaven a wondring at this love. St Austin saith, The Crosse was a Pulpit, and the lesson Christ preached in it, was love. O the living love of a dying Saviour! per vulnera viscera— Me-thinks I see Christ upon the Crosse bleeding all over, me-thinks I hear him say to us, reach hither your hands, put them into my sides, feel my bleeding heart, see if I love you not? and will you not bestow your love upon me? will you love the world more than me? did the world appease the wrath of God for you? have not I done all this? and will you not love me? 'Tis natural to love where we are loved. Christ having set us a Copy of love, and written it in his Blood, let us labour to write after so fair a Copy, and imitate him in love.
.88. Love to God is the best self-love. 'Tis self-love to get the soul saved; by loving God we forward our own salvation: 1 Iohn 4.16. He that dwelleth in love, dwelleth in God, and God in him. And he is sure to dwell with God in Heaven, that hath God dwelling in his heart. So that to love God is the truest self-love; he that doth not love God, doth not love himself.
9. Love to God evidenceth sincerity,9. Cant. 1.4. The upright love thee. Many a child of God fears he is an Hypocrite; dost thou love God? When Peter was dejected in the sense of his sin, he thought himself unworthy that ever Christ should take notice of him, or employ him more in the work of his Apostleship; see how Christ goes about to comfort him, Iob. 21.15. Peter, lovest thou me? As if Christ had said, Though thou hast denied me through fear, yet if thou canst say from thy heart thou lovest me, thou a…t sincere and upright. To love God is a better sign of sincerity, than to fear him. The Israelites feared Gods Justice, Psal. 78.34. When he slew them, they sought him, and enquired earnestly after God▪ … all this to? vers. 36, 37. Nevertheless, they did but flatter him with their mouth, and lyed to him with their tongue; for their heart was not right with him. That repentance is no better than flattery, which a…iseth only from fear of Gods Judgements, and hath no love mixed with it. Loving of God evidenceth that God hath the heart; and if the heart be his, that will command all the rest.
10. By our love to God,10. we may conclude Gods love to us. 1 Iohn 4.9. We love him, because he first loved us. O saith the …oul, if I knew God loved me, I could rejoyce; dost thou love God? then thou mayst be sure of Gods love to thee. As it is wi… Burning Glasses; if the Glass burn, it is because the Sun hath first shined upon it, else it could not burn: So if our hearts burn in love to God, it is because Gods love hath first shined upon us, else we could not burn in love. Our love is nothing but the reflex of Gods love.
11. If you do not love God, you will love something else,11. either the world or sin; and are these worthy of your love? Is it not better to love God than these?
First, It is better to love God than the World, as … in these eight particulars.
1. If you set your love on worldly things, they will not satisfie: You may as well satisfie your body with air, as your soul with earth, Eccles. 5.10. Iob. …0.22. In the fulness of his sufficiency, he shall be in straits. Plenty hath its penury. If the Globe of the world were yours, it would not fill. Adam had two sons, Cain and Abel: Cain signifies possession, Abel signifies vanity; to shew us that in all our possessions there is vanity; and will you set your love on that which will never give you content? is it not better to love God? he will give you that which shall satisfie, Psal. 17. ult. When I awake, I shall be satisfied with thy likeness. When I awake out of the sleep of death, and shall have some of the rayes and beams of Gods glory put upon me, I shall then be satisfied with his likeness.
2. If you love worldly things, they cannot remove trouble of mind; if there be a thorn gotten into the conscience, all the world cannot pluck it out. King Saul being perplexed in mind, all his Crown-Jewels could not comfort him, 1 Sam. 28.15. — But if you love God, he can give you peace when nothing else can foreign. Cyril.; he can turn the shadow of death into the morning, Amos 5.8. He can drop in Christs blood, which is a cooling Julip; he can whisper his Love by the Spirit, and with one smile scatter all your fears and disquiets.
3. If you love the world, you may love that which may hinder you from Heaven. Worldly contentments may be compared to the Waggons in an Army; while the Souldiers have been victualling themselves at the Waggons, they have lost the Battel, Mark 10.23. How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the Kingdom of God? Prosperity to ma…y, is like the sail to the Boat, which quickly overturns it: So that by loving the world, you may love that which will endanger you *In hoc mundo viscosa omnia, & obsessa laqueis., but if you love God, there is no fear of losing Heaven; he will be a Rock to hide you, but not to hurt you: By loving him we come to enjoy him.
4 You may love worldly things, and they cannot love you again. You love Gold and Silver, but your Gold cannot love you again; you love a picture, but the picture cannot love you again; you give away your love to the Creatu…e, and receive no l…ve back; but if you love God, he will love you again, Iohn 14.23. If any man love me, my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. God will not be behind-hand in love with us; for our d…op we shall receive an o…ean.
5. When you love the world, you love that which is worse than your selves. The soul (as Damascen saith) is a sparkle of Celestial brig…ness, it carries in it an Idea and resemblance of God; while you love the World, you love that which is infinitely below the worth of your souls. Will any one lay out cost upon sackcloth? when thou layest out thy love upon the world, thou layest out gold upon dung, th…u hangest a Pearl upon a Swine, thou lovest that w…ich is inferiour to thy self. As Christ sp…aks in another sence of the Fowls of the ai…, Matth. 6.26. Are not ye much better than they? So I say of wo…ldly things, Are not ye much better than they? You love a fair house, a beautiful picture; are not you much better than they? but if you love God, now you place your love on the most noble sublime object, you love that which is better than your selves: God is better than the Soul, better than Angels, better than Heaven:
6. You may love the world, and have hatred for your love, Iohn 15.19. Because ye are not of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Would it not vex one to lay out money upon a piece of ground, and instead of b…inging forth Corn or Grapes, it should yeild nothing but Nettles? Thus it is with all sublunary things; we love them, and they prove Nettles to sting. The world is a Step-mother, instead of giving the breast it draws out the sword; we meet with nothing, but either disappointment or discourtesie, Iudg. 9.15. Let fire come out of the Bramble, and devour the Cedars of Lebanon. While we love the Creature, fire comes out of this Bramble to devour us: But if we love God, he will not return hatred for love, Prov. 8.17. I love them that love me. God may chastise, but he cannot hate. Every Believer is part of Christ, and God can as well hate Christ as hate a Believer.
7. You may over-love the Creature. You may love Wine too much, Silver too much, but you cannot love God too much. If it were possible to exceed, excess here were a vertue; but it is our sin we cannot love God enough, Ezek. 16.30. How weak is thy heart? So it may be said, How weak is our love to God? 'tis like water of the last drawing from the Still, which hath less Spirit in it. If we could love God far more than we do, yet it were not proportionable to his worth: So that there is no danger of excess in our love to God.
8. You may love worldly things, and they dye and leave you. Riches take wings, Relations drop away *foreign. Ignat.. The Romans painted the vanity of worldly things in the form and shape of a man; in his right hand a Rose, in his left hand a Lilly, under his feet Wormwood: An Emblem of the world: The Rose is sweet, the Lilly fair, but both fading; and under the feet Wormwood; at death all the delights of the world will be bitter. There is nothing here abiding *Fuit tempus & avidissimos sui deserit, nec quod futurum est, meum est, nec quod fuit; in puncto sugientis temporis pendeo, &c. Senec. Epist 72.; the Creature hath a little honey in its mouth, but it hath wings, it will soon flie away; —Vitae primordium, mortis prodromum—But if you love God, he is a portion for ever, Psal. 73.26. As he is called a Sun for comfort, so a Rock for eternity, he abides for ever. Thus we see it is better to love God than the world.
Secondly, It is better to love God than sin. What is there in sin that any should love it *foreign? 1. Sin is a debt. Forgive us our debts. It is a debt which binds over to the wrath of God; why should we love sin? doth any man love to be in debt? 2. Sin is a disease, Isa. 1.5. The whole head is sick. And wilt thou love sin? will any man hug a disease? will he love his plague-sores? 3. Sin is a pollution. The Apostle calls it foreign, filthiness, Iames 1.21. It is compared to Leprosie, to poyson of Asps, to Vomit. Gods heart riseth against sinners, Isa. 11.8. My soul loathed them. Sin is a mishapen Monster; lust makes a man brutish, malice makes him devillish. What is in sin to be loved? shall we love deformity? 4. Sin is an enemy. It is compared to a Serpent, Prov. 23.32. It hath four stings, S…ame, Guilt, Horror, Death. Will a man love that which s…eks his death? Surely then 'tis better to love God than sin *foreign. Olympiad.. God will save thee, sin will damn thee; is not he bewitched who loves damnation?
12.12. The relation we stand in to God calls for love. There is near affinity, Isa. 54.5. Thy Maker is thy Husband: And shall not a Wife love her Husband? He is full of tenderness; his Spouse is to him as the Apple of his Eye, he rejoyceth over her as the B…idegroom over the Bride, Isa. 62.5. He loves the Believer as he loves Christ, Iohn 17. ult. the same love for quality, though not equality. If God be an Hu…band, shall we not love him? Affinity requires affection. Either we must love God, or we give ground of suspicion that we are not yet married to him.
13.13. Love is the most abiding grace. This will stay with us when other graces take their farewel. In Heaven we shall need no Repentance, because we shall have no sin; in Heaven we shall not need Patience, because there will be no affliction; in Heaven there shall need no Faith: Faith looks at things unseen, Heb. 11.1. but then we shall see God face to face; and where there is vision, there needs no Faith.
But when the other Graces are out of date, love continues; and in this sence the Apostle saith, Love is greater than Faith, because it abides longest, 1 Cor. 13.8. foreign, Charity never faileth. Faith is the Iacob's Staff we walk with in this life, 2 Cor. 7.5. We walk by Faith; but we shall set this Iacob's Staff at Heavens door, and only love shall enter. Thus love carries away the Crown from all the other graces. Love is the most long-lif'd grace, it is a blossom of Eternity. How should we strive to excel in this grace, which alone shall live with us in Heaven, and shall accompany us to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb?
14. Love to God will never let sin thrive in the heart.14. Some Plants will not thrive when they are near together, as the Laurel and Vine: The love of God withers sin: Though the Old man live, yet as a sick man, it is weak, and draws its breath short. Love, like the water of Iealousie, makes the thigh of sin to rot. The Flower of love kills the Weed of sin; though sin doth not dye perfectly, yet it dies daily. How should we labour for that grace, which is the only aqu…-fortis to destroy sin.
15.15. Love to God is an excellent means for growth of grace. 2 Pet. 3. ult. But grow in grace. Growth of grace is very pleasing to God. Christ accepts the truth of grace, but commends the degrees of grace; and what can more promote and augment grace, than love to God? Love is like watering of the Root, which makes the Tree grow: Therefore the Apostle useth this expression in his prayer, 1 Thes. 3.5. The Lord direct your hearts into the love of God. He knew this grace of love would nurse and cherish all the graces.
16.16. The great benefit which will accrue to us, if we love God, 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. The Eye hath seen rare sights, the Ear hath heard sweet Musick; But eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor can the heart of man conceive, what God hath prepared for them that love him! Such glorious rewards are laid up, that (as Austin saith) Faith it self is not able to comprehend. God hath promised a Crown of life to them that love him, Iames 1.12. This Crown encircles within it all blessednesse, Riches, and Glory, and Delight; and it is a Crown that fades not away, 1 Pet. 5.4. Thus God would bribe us to love him by rewards.
17. Love to God is Armour of proof against error.17. For want of hearts full of love, men have heads full of errour: Unholy Opinions are for want of holy Affections. Why are men given up to strong Delusions, but because they received not the Truth in love? 2 Thes. 2.10, 11. The more we love God, the more we hate those Heterodox Opinions that would draw us off from God into Libertinism: The more a man loves health, the more he hates Mercury.
18. If we love God,18. we have all winds blowing for us, every thing in the world shall conspire for our good: We know not what fiery Tryals we may meet with, but to them that Love God all things shall work for good: Those things which work against them, shall work for them; their Cross shall make way for a Crown; every Wind shall blow them to the heavenly Port.
19.19. Want of love to God is the Ground of Apostacy. The Seed in the Parable which had no root, fell away: He who hath not the love of God rooted in his heart will fall away in time of temptation. He who loves God, will cleave to him, as … to Naomi, Ruth 1.16. Where thou goest I will go, and where thou dyest I will dye. But he who wants love to God will do as Orpah to her Mother-in-Law, she kissed her, and took her farewel of her. That Souldier who hath no love to his Commander, when he sees an opportunity he will leave him, and run over to the Enemies side. He who hath no love in his heart to God, you may prick him down for an Apostate.
20. Love is the only thing, in which we can retaliate with God.20. If God be angry with us, we must not be angry again; if he chide us, we must not chide him again; but if God love us, we must love him again: There is nothing in which we can answer God again, but love; we must not give him word for word, but we must give him love for love. Thus we have seen twenty Motives to excite and enflame our love to God.
Quest. How shall we do to love God?
Answ. 1. Study God: Did we study him more, we should love him more. Take a view of his superlative Excellencies *foreign. Merc. Tris…egist., his Holiness, his incomprehensible goodness: The Angels know God better than we, and clearly behold the splendour of his Majesty, therefore they are so deeply enamoured with him.
2. Labour for an Interest in God, Psal. 36.1. O God, thou art my God; That Pronoun My, is suavissima amoris illecebra, a sweet Load-stone to Love; a man loves that which is his own. The more we believe, the more we love: Faith is the Root, and love is the Flower that grows upon it, Gal. 6.5. Faith which worketh by love.
3. Make it your earnest request to God that he will give you an heart to love him; *Dilectio Dei, donum Dei. Aust.this is an acceptable request, sure, God will not deny it. When King Solomon asked wisdome of God, 1 Kings 3.9. Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart: Vers. 10. The speech pleased the Lord. So when thou cryest to God, Lord, give me an heart to love thee, 'tis my grief I can love thee no more; O kindle this fire from Heaven upon the Altar of my heart; sure this prayer pleaseth the Lord, and he will pour of his Spirit upon thee, whose golden Oyl shall make the Lamp of thy Love burn bright.
2 Branch2. I proceed to the second Branch of Exhortation: You who have love to God, labour to preserve it; let not this love dye, and be quenched. As you would have Gods love be continued to you, let your love be continued to him. Love, as fire, will be ready to go out: Rev. 2.4. Thou hast left thy first love. Satan labours to blow out this flame, and through neglect of Duty we lose it. When a tender body leaves off cloaths, it is apt to get cold: so when we leave off duty, by degrees we cool in our love to God. Of all graces, Love is soonest apt to decay; therefore we had need be the more careful to preserve it. If a man hath a Jewel, he will keep it; if he hath Land of Inheritance, he will keep it; what care then should we have to keep this grace of Love? 'Tis sad to see professors declining in their love to God: Many are in a spiritual consumption, their Love is decaying.
There are four Signs, whereby Christians may know their love is in a Consumption.
1. When they have lost their tast. He that is in a deep Consumption, hath no tast; he finds not that savoury rellish in his meat, as formerly: So when Christians have lost their tast, they find no sweetness in a promise, it is a sign of a spiritual Consumption, 1 Pet. 2.3. If so be ye have tasted the Lord is gracious. Time was, when they found comfort in drawing nigh to God; His Word was as the dropping honey, very delicious to the pallat of their soul: but now it is otherwise, they can tast no more sweetness in spiritual things, than in the white of an Egg, Job 6.6. This is a sign they are in a Consumption; to lose the tast, argues the loss of the first love.
2. When Christians have lost their Appetite. A man in a deep Consumption, hath not that Stomack to his meat, as formerly. Time was when Christians did hunger and thirst after righteousness, they minded things of an heavenly aspect, the Grace of the Spirit, the blood of the Cross, the Light of Gods Countenance; they had a stomack to Ordinances, and came to them as an hungry man to a feast; but now the case is altered, they have no Appetite, they do not so prize Christ, they have not such strong affections to the Word, their hearts do not burn within them; a sad presage they are in a consumption, their love is decaying. It was a sign Davids natural strength was abated, when they covered him with cloaths, and yet he gat no heat, 1 Kings 1.1. So when men are plyed with hot Cloaths, I mean Ordinances, yet they have no heat of affection, but are cold, and stiff, as if they were ready to be laid forth; this is a sign their first love is declined, they are in a deep Consumption.
3. When Christians grow more in love with the World, it argues the decrease of spiritual love. They were once of a sublime Heavenly temper, they did speak the language of Canaan; but now they are like the fish in the Gospel, which had money in its mouth, Mat. 17. ult. they cannot lisp out three words, but one is about …; their thoughts and affections (like Satan) are still compassing the earth; a sign they are going down the hill apace, their love to God is in a Consumption. We may observe, when Nature decays and grows weaker, persons go more stooping: And truly when the heart goes more stooping to the Earth, and is so bowed together, that it can scarce lift up it self to an Heavenly thought, it is now sadly declining in its first love. When Rust cleaves to Mettal, it doth not only take away the brightness of the Mettal, but it doth canker and consume it: So when the earth cleaves to mens souls, it doth not only hinder the shining lustre of their graces, but it doth by degrees canker their graces.
4. When Christians make little reckoning of Gods Worship; Duties of Religion are performed in a dead formal manner; if they are not left undone, yet they are ill done; this is a sad Symptom of a spiritual Consumption; Remissness in Duty, shews a decay in our first love. The strings of a Viol being slack, the Viol can never make good musick: When men grow slack in Duty, they pray as if they prayed not, this can never make any harmonious sound in Gods Ears. When the spiritual Motion, like that of the Eighth Sphea…, is …ow and heavy, and the Pulse of the soul beats low, it is a sign Christians have left their first love.
Let us take heed of this spiritual Consumption; 'tis dangerous to abate in our love. Love is such a grace as we know not how to be without. A Souldier may as well be without his weapons, a Limner without his pensil, a Musician without his Viol, as a Christian can be without love. The body cannot want its …tural heat. Love is to the soul, as the natural heat is to the body, there is no living without it. Love doth influence the graces, it excites the affections, it makes us grieve for sin, it makes us cheerful in God; it is like oyl to the wheels; it quickens us in Gods service. How careful then should we be to keep alive divine love!
Quest. How may we keep our love from going out?
Answ. Watch your hearts every day; take notice of the first declinings in grace; observe your selves when you begin to grow dull and listless, and use all means for quickening; be much in prayer, meditation, holy conference. When the fire is going out you throw on fuel: So when the flame of your love is going out, make use of Ordinances, and Gospel-promises, as fuel to keep the fire of your love burning.
3 Branch.3. Let me exhort Christians to encrease in love to God; let your love be boiled up higher, Phil. 1.9. And this I pray, that your love may abound, foreign. more and more. Our love to God should be as the light of the morning; first there is the Crepusculum or day-break, then it shines brighter to the full Meridian. They who have a few sparks of love should foreign blow up those divine sparks into a flame. A Christian should not be content with so small a dram of grace, as may make him scruple whether he hath any grace or no, but should be still improving the stock. He who hath a little gold would have more; you who love God a little, labour to love him more. A godly man is like a dropsie man, the more grace he drinks in, the more he thirsts: He is contented with a very little of the world, yet he is never satisfied, but would have more of the Spirits influence, and labours to add one degree of love to another. To perswade Christians to put more Oyl to the Lamp, and encrease the flame of their love, let me propound these four divine Incentives.
1. The growth of love evidenceth the truth. If I see the Almond tree bud and flourish, I know there is life in the root. Paint will not grow; an hypocrite, who is but a picture, will not grow; but where we see love to God encreasing and growing bigger (as Elisha's cloud) we may conclude, it is true and genuine.
2. By the growth of love we imi…ate the Saints in the Bible: Their love to God, like the waters of the Sanctuary did rise higher. The Disciples love to Christ at first was weak, they fled from Christ, but after Christs death it grew more vigorous, and they made an open profession of him. Peters love at first was more infirm and languid, he denied Christ, but afterwards how boldly did he pr…ach him! Acts 4.10. yea, when Christ put him to a trial of his love, Iohn 21.16. Simon, lovest thou me? Peter could make his humble, yet confident appeal to Christ, Lord thou knowest that I love thee. Thus that tender plant which before was blown down with the wind of a temptation, now is grown into a Cedar, which all the powers of hell could not shake.
The growth of love will amplifie the reward. The more we burn in love, the more we shall shine in glory: The higher our love, the heavier our Crown.
4. The more we love God, the more love we shall have from him. Would we have God unbosom the sweet secre…s of his love to us? would we have the smiles of his face, the kisses of his lips? Oh then let us strive for higher degrees of love. Saint Paul counted Gold and Pearl but dung for Christ, Phil. 3.8. Yea, he was so inflamed in love to God, that he could have wished himself accursed from Christ, for his Brethreo the Iews, Rom. 9.3. Not that he could be accursed from Christ; but such was his fervent love, and pious zeal for the glory of God, that he would have been content to have suffered, even beyond what is fit to speak, if God might have had more honour.
Here was love scrued up to the highest pitch, that it was possible for a mortal to arrive at; and behold how near he lay to Gods heart! the Lord makes known the Arcana Coeli, he takes him up to Heaven a while, and lays him in his bosom, where he had such a glorious sight of God, and heard those foreign, unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter, 2 Cor. 12.4. Never was any man a loser by his love to God.
5. If our love to God doth not encrease, it will soon decrease: If the fire be not blown up, it will quickly go out. Therefore Christians should above all things endeavour to cherish and excite their love to God. This Exhortation will be out of date when we come to Heaven, for then our light shall be clear, and our love perfect; but now it is in season to exhort, that our love to God may abound yet more and more.