Use 1. Now this should stir us up to be fulhj 'persuaded of his love, that Mves us so much. Christ's love in us, is as the loadstone to the iron. Our hearts are heavy and downwards of themselves. We may especially know his love by this, that it di'aws us upwards, and makes us heavenly minded. It makes us desire further and further communion with him. Still there is a magnetical attractive force in Christ's love. Wheresoever it is, it di'aws the heart and affections after it.
Use 2. And we may know fi'om hence one argument to prove the stability of the saints, and tJie immortaUty of the soul, because Christ calls the church his love. The want of love again, where it is entire, and in any great mea- sm-e, is a misery. Christ therefore should suffer, if those he hath planted his love upon, whom he loves truly, either should fall away for ever, or should not be immortal for ever. Christ will not lose his love. And as it is an argument of persevering in grace, so is it of an everlasting being, that this soul of ours hath ; because it is capable of the love of Christ, seeing there is a sweet union and communion between Christ and the soul. It should make Christ miserable, as it were, in heaven, the place of happiness, if there should not be a meeting of him and his spouse. There must there- fore be a meeting ; which marriage is for ever, that both may be for ever happy one in another, Hos. ii. 20.
Use 3. Let us often ivaiin our Jiearts ivith the consideration hereof, because all
our love is from this love of his. Oh the wonderful love of God, that both such
transcendent majesty, and such an infinite love should dwell together. We
say majesty and love never dwell together, because love is an abasing of the
* That is, ' preserving.' — G.
78 BOWELS OPENED. [SeEMON VII.
soul to all services. But herein it is false, for here majesty and love dwell together in the heart of one Christ, which majesty hath stooped as low as his almighty power could give leave. Nay, it was an almighty power that he could stoop so low and yet be God, keeping his majesty still. For God to become man, to hide his majesty for awhile, not to be known to be God, and to hide so far in this nature as to die for us : what an almighty power was this, that could go so low and yet preserve himself God still ! Yet this we see in this our blessed Saviour, the greatest majesty met with the greatest abasement that ever was, and all out of love to our poor souls. There was no stooping, no abasement that was ever so low as Christ was abased unto us, to want for a time even the comfort of the presence of his Father. There was an union of grace ; but the union of solace and comfort that he had from him was suspended for a time, out of love to us. For he had a right in his own person to be in heaven presently. Now for him to hve so long out of heaven, and ofttimes, especially towards his suffering, to be without that solace (that he might be a sacrifice for our sins), to have it suspended for a time, what a condescending was this ? It is said, Ps. cxiii. 6, that God stoops ' to behold the things done here below.' It is indeed a wondrous condescending, that God will look upon things below ; but that he would become man, and out of love to save us, suffer as he did here, this is wondrous humihty to astonishment ! We think humility is not a proper grace becoming the majesty of God. So it is not indeed, but there is some resemblance of that grace in God, especially in Christ, that he should, to reveal himself, veil himself with flesh, and all out of love to us. The consideration of these things are wondrous effectual, as to strengthen faith, so to kindle love. Let these be for a taste to^direct our meditations herein. It foUows,
' My dove.' We know when Christ was baptized, the Holy Ghost appeared in the shape of a dove. Mat. iii. 16, as a symbol of his presence, to discover thus much: (1.) That Christ should have the property and dis- position of a dove. 'And be meek and gentle.' For mdeed he became man for that end, to be 'a merciful Saviour.' ' Learn of me, for I am meek and lowly,' Mat. xi. 28, 29. ' And I will not quench the smoking flax, nor break the bruised reed,' &c.. Mat. xii. 20, said he ; and therefore the Spirit appeared upon him in the shape of a dove. As likewise, (2.) To sfiew ivhat his office should be. For even as the dove in Noah's ark was sent out, and came home again to the ark with an olive branch, to shew that the waters were abated ; so Christ was to preach deliverance from the deluge of God's anger, and to come with an olive leaf of peace in bis mouth, and reconciliation, to shew that God's wrath was appeased. When he was born, the angels sung, ' Glory to God on high, on earth peace, and goodwill towards men,' Luke ii. 14. Now, as Christ had the Spuit in the likeness of a dove ; so aU that are Christ's, the spouse of Christ, have the disposition of Christ. That Spirit that framed him to be like a dove, frames the church to be a dove ; as the ointment that was poured on Aaron's head : it ran down upon the lowest skirts of his garments, Ps. cxxxiii. 3.