First, That we may love him with a pure unmixed love. It is true, it is the person of Christ as God and man that is the proper and ultimate object of our love towards him ; but a clear distinct consideration of his natures and their excellencies is effectual to stir up and draw forth our love towards him. So the spouse in the Canticles, rendering a reason of her intense affections towards him, says that "he is white and ruddy, the chiefest of ten thousand;" that is, perfect in the beauty of the graces of the Holy Spirit, which rendered him exceeding amiable. So also Ps. xlv. 2. Would you, therefore, propose Christ unto your affections, so as that your love unto him may be sincere and without corruption, as it is required to be, Eph. vi. 24, that you may not lavish away the actings of your soids ujDon a false object, and think you love Christ, when you love only the imaginations of your own breasts? — consider his human nature, as it was rendered beautiful and lovely by the work of the Spirit of God upon it, before described. Do you love him because he was and is so full of grace, so full of holiness, because in him there was an all-fulness of the graces of the Spirit of God? Consider aright what hath been delivered concerning him, and if you can and do, on the account thereof, delight in him and love him, your love is genuine and spiritual ; but if your love be merely out of an ap- prehension of his being now glorious in heaven, and there able to do you good or evil, it differs not much from that of the Papists, whose love is much regulated in its actings by the good or bad painting of the images whereby they represent him. You are often pressed to direct your love unto the person of Christ, and it is that which is your principal duty in this world ; but this you cannot do w'ithout a distinct notion and knowledge of him. There are, there-
188 THE GENERAL WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT [BOOK IL
fore, three things in general that you are to consider to this pur- pose:— 1. The blessed union of his two natures in the same person. Herein he is singular, God having taken that especial state on him, which in no other thing or way had any consideration. This, there- fore, is to have a specialty in our divine love to the person of Christ. 2. The uncreated glories of the divine nature, whence our love hath the same object with that which we owe unto God absolutely. 3. That perfection axidifidness of grace which dwelt in his human nature, as communicated unto him by the Holy Spirit, whereof we have treated. If we love the person of Christ, it must be on these con- siderations; which whilst some have neglected, they have doted on their own imaginations, and Avhilst they have thought themselves even sick of love for Christ, they have only languished in their own fancies.
Secondly, We are to know Christ so as to labour after conformity unto him. And this conformity consists only in a participation ot those graces whose fulness dwells in him. We can, therefore, no other way regularly press after it, but by an acquaintance with and due consideration of the work of the Spirit of God upon his human nature ; which is therefore worthy of our most diligent inquiry into.
And so have we given a brief delineation of the dispensation and work of the Holy Spirit in and towards the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, the head of the church. His preparation of a mystical body for him, in his powerful gracious work on the elect of God, doth nextly ensue.
CHAPTER V.
THE GENERAL WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE NEW CREATION
WITH RESPECT UNTO THE MEMBERS OF THAT BODY
WHEREOF CHRIST IS THE HEAD.
Christ the head of the new creation — Things premised in general unto the re- maining work of the Spirit — Things presupposed unto the work of the Spirit towards the church — The love and grace of Father and Son — The whole work of the building of the church committed to the Holy Spirit — Acts ii. 33 opened — The foundation of the church in the promise of the Spirit, and its building by him alone — Christ present with his church only by his Spirit — Matt, xxviii. 19, 20;Actsi. 9,10,iii. 21;Matt. xviii. 19,20; 2 Cor. vi. 16; 1 Cor. iii. 16, compared — The Holy Spirit works the work of Christ — John .\vi. 13-15 opened — The Holy Spirit the peculiar author of all grace — The Holy Spirit worketh all this according to his own wll — 1. His will and pleasure is in all his works — 2. He works variously as to the kinds and degrees of his opera- tions— How he may be resisted, how not — How the same work is ascribed unto the Spirit distinctly, and to others with him — The general heads of his operations towards the church.
We have considered the work of the Spirit of God in his laying the foundation of the church of the New Testament, by his dispensa-