First of all, the way to love God is to have a heavenly light to discover tvhat we are in ourselves and our emptiness ; for being as we are, we can never love God till we see in what need we stand of his favour and. grace, that we are damned creatures else.
Now when we come to have our ej^es opened to see our sinfulness and emptiness, we will make out to God, and make out to his mercy in Christ above all things. Indeed, the first love is the love of dependence, before we come to a love of friendship and complacency with God ; a love to go out to him, and to depend upon him for mercy and grace and all. A love that riseth from the sense of our misery, and goes to him for supply.
There is a sweet concm'rence of misery and mercy ; of emptiness and fulness ; of beggary and riches.
Now when we see our own misery^ and beggary, and sinfulness ; and then a fulness in God to supply ; of riches to enrich us every way y then this breeds a love. This is the way to all other loves that follow. And where this is not premised, and goes before, a man will never dehght in God. In Luke vii. 47 that good woman she loved much. Why 2 Much was forgiven her ; many sins were forgiven her.
So when the soul shall see what need it hath of forgiving mercy, of par- doning mercy, and how many great debts God hath forgiven us in Christ, there will be a great deal of love, because there is a great deal forgiven. And we must begin indeed with seeing the infinite mercy of God before any other attribute of God, and then we shall love him after. This is the first thing. There is no soul that ever loves God so, as the poor soul that hath been abased with the sense of sin and its emptiness, that it is empty of all goodness ; and then sees a supply in the mercy of God in Christ. Those souls love God above all.
Another way to love God is to consider of his wonderful goodness, to
19G A GLANCE OF UEAVEN.
meditate and think of it. He is good and doth good. It is a communi- cative goodness. Let us think of liis goodness, and the streaming of it out to the creature. The whole earth is full of the goodness of the Lord. What are all the creatures but God's goodness ? We can see nothing but the goodness of God. What is all the creatures but Dens cxplicatiis, God unfolded to our senses ? He offers himself to our bodies and souls ; all is God's goodness.
And then see this goodness fitted to us. It is a fit goodness that comes from God. He is good and doth good, and so fitly he proportions his goodness. For he hath fitted every part of us, soul and body, with good- ness ; all the senses with goodness. What do we see but goodness in colours ? What do we hear but his good, in those delights that come that way ? We taste and feel his goodness. Against the cold we have clothing ; in hunger we have food ; in all necessities, in all exigencies, we have fit considerations of God for all necessities whatsoever outward.
But then for our souls, what food hath he for that ? The death of Christ, his own Son, to feed our souls. The soul is a spiritual substance ; and he thought nothing good enough to feed it but his own Son. We feed on God's love in giving Christ to death ; and on Christ's love in giving himself to death.
The soul being continually troubled with the guilt of some sin or other, it feeds on this ; it is nourished with Christ every day more and more, espe- cially at the sacrament. Thus we see how God hath fitted his goodness to us. And then in particular dangers how he fits us with several deliverances ; so seasonably as we may see God's love in it.
Then as God's goodness is great and fit, so it is near us. It is not a goodness afar off, but God follows us with his goodness in whatsoever con- dition we be. He applies himself to us, and he hath taken upon him near relations, that he might be near us in goodness. He is a father, and everywhere to maintain us. He is a husband, and everywhere to help. He is a fiiend, and everywhere to comfort and counsel. So his love it is a near love. Therefore he hath taken upon him the nearest relations, that we may never want God and the testimonies of his love.
And then again this goodness of God, which is the object of love, it is a free goodness, merely from himself; and an overflowing goodness, and an everlasting goodness. It is never drawn dry ; he loves us unto life everlasting. He loves us in this world, and follows us with signs of his love in all the parts of us, in body and soul, till he hath brought body and soul to heaven to enjoy himself for ever there. These and such like con- siderations may serve to stir us up to love God, and direct us how to love God.