Benefits will work upon a beast ; as it is Isaiah i. 2, * Hear, 0 heavens ; and hearken, 0 earth : the ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib ; but my people have forgotten me.'
Proud men become baser, and more brute than the very brutes ; benefits will move the very brute creatures. So, I say, these favours to us in particular should move us, except we will be more brute than the brutes themselves.
Especially to move us all, consider some particularities of favours to us more than to others, for specialties do much increase love and respect.
Consider hoiv God hath followed thee with goodness outwardly, when others have been neglected. Thou hast a place in the world, and riches, and friends, when many other excellent persons want all these. There are some common
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fovours to all Christians ; as the favour we have in Christ, forgiveness of sins, sanctification, and such other fovours. But there be some special- ties of divine providence, whereby it appears that God's providence hath watched over us in some particulars more than others ; those be special engagements. And is there any of us that cannot say that God hath dealt specially, in giving them some mercy more than to others ? I add this there- fore to the rest.
Again, to help us to stir up this grace of love, consider those examples of loviuff of those that hare then lived informer times. Take David, and Paul, and other holy men. David wonders at his own love : ' Lord, how do I love thy law ! ' Ps. cxix. 97. And have we not more cause compai'ing the grounds of our affection, when we have more than they in those times ? What ! did he wonder at his love of God's law, when the canon was so short ? They had only Moses, and some few books, and we have the canon enlarged ; we have both the Old and New Testament, shall not we say much more. How do I love thy law, thy gospel, and divine truths ! This should shame us, when they in dark times so loved the truth of God, and we see all clear and open, and yet are cold.
Likewise it is good in this case to converse n-ith those that are affectionate. As face answereth face, so spirit answers spirit; as * iron sharpeneth iron,' so one sharpens another, Prov. xxvii. 17. Conversation with cold ones will make one cold : ' For the abundance of iniquity, the love of many shall wax cold,' Mat. xxiv. 12. Conversing with sinful, cold people casts a damp upon us. But let us labour, if we will be wise for our souls, when we find any coldness of affection, to converse with those that have sweet and heavenly affections. It will marvellously work upon our hearts.
I might say much this way to stir us up, and direct us how to love God.
But indeed nothing will so much enable us to love God as a new nature. Nature will love without provocation. The fire will burn, because it is fire ; and the water will moisten, because it is water ; and a holy man will love holy things, because he is holy ; a spiritual soul will love spiritual things, because he is spiritual. Therefore, besides all, add this, that our natures be changed more and more, that they be sanctified and circumcised as God hath promised : ' I will circumcise your hearts, that ye may love me,' Deut. xxx. 6. There must be a circumcised heart to love God. We must be sanctified to love God ; for if nature be not renewed, there cannot be this new commandment of love. Why is love called a new command- ment, and an old commandment ?
It is called old for the letter, because it was a command in Moses' time : ' Thou shalt love the Lord with all thy soul,' Deut. vi. 5. But now it is a new commandment, because there is abundance of spirit given by Christ ; and the Spirit sanctifies us and writes this affection in our hearts. It was written in stone before, but now is written in our hearts by the Spirit. And now there are new incentives and motives to love, since Christ came and gave himself for us, new encouragements and provocations to love. Therefore it is a new commandment, from new grounds and motions, that are more a gi*eat deal than before Christ. But there must be a new heart to obey this new command of love. The old heart will never love.
Therefore we must, with all the means that may be used, beg the Spirit of sanctification especially, beg the discovery of God's love to us, for our love is but a reflection of God's love. We cannot love God except he love us first. Now, our love being a reflection of God's love, we must desire that he would give us his Spirit to reveal his love ; that the Spirit being a
198 A GLANCE OF HEAVEN.
witness of God's love to us, may thereupon be a Spirit of love and sancti- fication in us.
And let us labour to grow more in the assurance of God's love, and all the evidonoes of it. Let us dwell long in the meditation of these things. The dwelling in the meditation of God's love, it will make us to love him again. As many beams in a burning-glass meeting together they cause a fire, many thoughts of the many fruits of God's love in this world, and what he intends us in the world to come, our hearts dwelling on them, these beams will kindle a holy fire in our hearts.