Thirteenthly, That love that accompanies salvation, shews itself hy breathing after more clear evidence and full assurance of Christ's love to the soul. Divine love would fain have her drop turned into an ocean, her spark into a flame, her penny into a pound, her mite into a million. A soul that truly loves, can never see enough, nor never taste enough, nor never feel enough, nor never enjoy enough of the love of Christ ; when once they have found his love to be better than wine, then nothing will satisfy them but the kisses of his mouth : Cant. i. 2, ' Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth.' Not with a kiss, but with the kisses of his mouth. A soul once kissed by Christ, can never have enough of the kisses of Christ ; his lips drop myrrh and mercy ; no kisses to the kisses of Christ. The more any soul loves Christ, the more serious, studious, and industrious will that soul be to have the love of Christ discovered, confirmed, witnessed, and sealed to it.'* That is a sweet word of the spouse : Cant. viii. 6, ' Set me as a seal upon thy heart, as a seal upon thy arm ; for love is strong as death.' Set me as a seal upon thy heart ; that is, let me be deeply engraven as a seal into thy heart and affections ; let the love and remembrance of me make a deep impression in thee, and set me as a seal or signet on thy arm.
[1.] The seal, you know, is for ratifying, confirming, and making sure of things. Oh ! says the spouse, establish and confirm me in thy love, and in the outward expressions and manifestations of it.
[2.] Seals among the Jews were used not as ornaments only, but as monuments of love that were continually in sight and remembrance. Oh ! says the church, let me be still in thy sight and remembrance as a monument of thy love. In the old law, you know, the high priest did
• Founder of the New Academy. — G.
' The more a virgin's love is drawn out to another, the more she desires to be con- ^rmed and assured of his love to her.
490 HEAVEN ON EARTH. [ROM. VIII. 32-34,
bear the name of Israel eugraven on stones upon his heart and shoulder for a memorial, Exodus xxviii. 11, 12, 21, 29. Ah ! says the church, let my name be deeply engraven upon thy heart, let me be always in thy eye, let me be always a memorial upon thy shoulder.
[3.] Great men have their signets upon their hands in precious esteem : Jer. xxii. 24, ' As I live, saith the Lord, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah were the signet upon my right hand, yet would I pluck thee thence.' Ah ! says the spouse. Oh highly prize me, Lord Jesus ! highly esteem of me ; oh let me be as dear and precious unto thee as the signet that thou earnest about with thee, or as signets are to great men that wear them !
Lastly, That love that accompanies salvation, shews itself by woi'k- ing a true lover of Christ to commit his richest treasures, his choicest jewels, to the care and custody of Christ} Where we love we will trust, and as we love we will trust. Little trust speaks out little love, great trust speaks out great love. The lovers of Christ commend to Christ's care their pearls of greatest price, their names, their lives, their souls, their crowns, their innocency, their all. It was a notable saying of Luther, ' Let him that died for my soul see to the salvation of it.' Caesar received not his wounds from the swords of enemies, but from the hands of friends, that is, from trusting in them. Oh, but the lovers of Christ shall never receive any wounds by trusting in Christ, by com- mitting their choicest jewels to his care; for he hath a powerful hand and a wise and loving heart ! Christ will hold fast whatever the Father or the saints put into his hand.
And thus I have shewed you what that love is that doth accompany salvation.
I come now, in the sixth place, to shew you what prayer that is that doth accompany salvation. But I see that I must contract what re- mains into a narrow room, lest I should tire out both the reader and myself, which, that I may not, I shaU endeavour by divine assistance to mind brevity in what remains.
Now, that prayer doth accompany salvation, I have formerly shewed. Now I am briefly to shew you what prayer that is that doth accompany salvation, and that I shall do in these following particulars.
(1 .) The first property. First, Prayer is a divine worship wherein we speak to- God in faith, humility, sincerity, and fervency of spirit, through the mediation of Christ, begging those good things that we and others want, deprecating that we and others fear, and giving thanks for tlcai we and others have received} Prayer is a speaking to God face to face ; it is Jacob's ladder by which the soul climbs up to heaven ; it is Noah's dove that goes and returns not till it brings assurance of peace.
But not to please you with notions, you must remember that that prayer that accompanies salvation is such prayer as hath in it all the requisites of prayer. Now there are four requisites in prayer.
' Pb. xxxi, 15, 80 Job, so Paul ; 2 Tim. i. 12, and iv. 7, 8 ; Micah vii. 8, 9 ; Deut. vi. 22.
* The matter of prayer may be reduced to these heads: (1.) petition ; (2.) deprecation; (3 ) intercession ; (4.) expostulation. There are other distinctions in regard of the
Rom. VIIL 32-34-.] heaven on earth. 491
[].] Tlie first requisite. First, The person must be righteous : James V. 16, 'The fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much ;' John ix. 31, ' God heareth not sinners.' The Jews urge it as a proverb, An unclean person poUuteth his own prayers. Good motions from a bad heart make no music in heaven ; the sweet words that drop from a leper's lips are but lies in the account of God, Hosea xi. 12.
1 have read of a jewel, that, being put in a dead man's mouth, loseth all its virtue. Prayer in the mouth of a wicked man that is dead God- wards, Christ-wards, heaven- wards, and holiness- wards, is a jewel that loseth all its virtue: Ps. L 16, 17, 'But unto the wicked God saith. What hast thou to do to declare my statutes, or that thou shouldst take my covenant into thy mouth ? seeing that thou hatest instruc- tion, and casteth my words behind thee.' Bias, an heathen, being at sea in a great storm, and perceiving many wicked wretches with him in the ship, calling upon the gods, ' Oh,' saith he, ' forbear prayer, hold your tongues ; I would not have the gods take notice that you are here ; they will sure drown us all, if they should.'^ You are wise, and know how to apply it.^