2. The person of Christ, as vested ivith our nature, and undertaking the work of mediation, is the first object of the Father's love wherein there is any mixture of any thing without himself.
The first love of God the Father to the Son is that which we call ad intra, where the divine persons are objects of one another's act- ings;— the Father knows the Son, and the Son knows the Father; the Father loves the Son, and the Son loves the Father; and so, con- sequently, of the Holy Ghost, the medium of all these actings.
But now, I say, the first act of the love of God the Father wherein there is any thing ad extra, or without the divine essence, is the person of Christ considered as invested with our nature. And had not the love of God been fixed in the first place in all things upon the person of Christ, there would have been no redundancy to us, nor communication of love unto us. From the first eternal love of God proceeds all love that was in the first creation; and from this second love of God, to the person of Christ as incarnate, proceeds all the love in the second creation. See how God expresses it in a pro- spect of what he should be, Isa. xlii. 1, " Behold my servant, whom I uphold ; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth." And this is sin- gular in the whole Scripture, that God spake the same words twice from heaven immediately ; and they were these, " This is my be- loved Son, in whom I am well pleased," — at his baptism, Matt. iii. 1 7, and at his entrance on his sufferings, Matt. xvii. 5 ; — which was the voice which came from " The excellent glory." I would observe this unto you, because I think it is what God would have us take notice of, the emphasis in the words, " Behold my servant, mine elect, my Son, my beloved Son ! " What of him ? — " In whom I rest, in whom I am well pleased and delighted." All of them emphatical words. Saith God. " Let the sons of men (I speak it from heaven again and
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again) take notice of this, that the infinite love of my whole soul is fixed on the person of Jesus Christ as incarnate/' Aud you will find the Lord Jesus Christ pleading this as the ground of that trust com- mitted unto him, and all that he received, John iii. 35, " The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand." John v. 20, " The Father loveth the Son, and showeth him all things that him- self doeth : and he will show him greater works than these/' He lays the foundation of all the trust that God the Father committed unto him in the peculiar love of the Father to him, as the Son incarnate.
Truly, I shall not go beyond this foundation to manifest to you that the person of Christ is the complete, adequate object of the love of the Father. The great satisfaction of the soul of God, wherein he rests and delights, consists in love to Christ as incarnate.
I will make but this one inference from it: — proportionable to the renovation of the image and likeness of God upon any of our souls, is our love to Jesus Christ. He that knows Jesus Christ most, is most like unto God ; for there the soul of God rests, — there, is the complacency of God : and if we would be like to God, have pledges in ourselves of the renovation of this image upon us, it must be in the gracious exercise of our love to the person of Jesus Christ. And pray let me observe it to you, the world, that is full of enmity to God, doth not exercise its enmity against God immediately under the first notion of God, but exerciseth its enmity against God in Christ : and if we return to God by the renovation of his image, we do not exercise our love to God immediately as God, but our love to God by and in Christ : " That ye through him might believe in God." Here is a trial, brethren, of our return to God, and of the renova- tion of his image in us, — namely, in our love to Jesus Christ. There God and man do meet, — there God and his church above and below centre. The Lord grant that this ordinance may be the means to stir up our hearts more to the exercise of this grace !
DISCOURSE XXIII.1
I shall speak to them who have a mind to be found performing their duty, but, it may be, it doth not occur to them what is parti- cularly required of them. They are such as are least acquainted with this mystery that I would have most respect unto, that nothing of God's provision in his house may be lost to his children for want of understanding aright to come to his table, where he makes this provision.
1 Delivered July 8, 1677.
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I pray you, brethren, exercise your thoughts unto the institution of this ordinance, wherein you exercise your obedience; unto the proposition of Christ in this ordinance, wherein consists the peculiar acting of your faith; and unto the exhibition of Christ in this ordi- nance, which is the ground of your thankfulness.