2Q2 'The Harmony of tbe Vivine AttributeJ ~ Chrirt was pe rfett. In rhe Dignity of the Perfon obey ing, it ex<eeded the Obedience Chap. 18, of all the Angels, as much as the Di vine Per[on exceeded all created. The difficulty of l../"'V""\.J the Command is greater than ever was put Up bn Servant or SubjeCl : He w11.r obedient to the Death of the Crofs, that is, Death with difhonour and torment, the Evils that are mort contrary to the Humane Nature and Appetite. Ana the compleatnefs of his Will in obeying, is mort ev ident. For if Chrirt had defired deliverance from hi s Perfecurors, he had certainl y obtained it. He tell s his Difciples, that upon his .Rtquert his Father would fend twelve Legions of Angels for his refcue. But he reflgned the whole Power of hi s Will to his father's; Not my WiU, but thy WiU be done, was his Voice at hi s private Pailion in the Garden. He fubmitted the att and exercife of his Will, N ot what I will, but what thou wilt, he faith in another Evalfgelift. He yielded not only the Facul ty, and Exercife of his Will to do what God enjoyned, bur in that manner which was pleafing to him; Not tU I wiU, hut as thou wilt, he exprelfes in the words of a tbird. Now what is there in Heaven or Earth that can move our Wills to entire Obedience, if this mar\'elous Patern cloth not affett us? Let the fame lv!ind be in you that wa.r itt Chrifl, faith the Aportle. How glorious is it to do what he did , and what a reproach to decl ine what he fulfered, who had the Holinefs of God to give excellency to the Attion, and the Infirmity of Man to endure the fbarpnefs of the Pailion! 3· Love ro Mankind is exprefs'd by our Saviour in a peculiar manner. for although God is infinite ly good to us, yet he doth not prefer the Happinefs of Man before his own Bleffednefs. The Salvation of the whole World were not to be purchafed with the lea f\ diminution of the Divine Felici ty. But the Son of God [offered the extremert Evi[, to procure the mof\ fovereign Good for us, who were in Rebellion again(\ his Laws and Empire. Briefly, The LifeofChriO: contains all our Duties towards God and Man ex• prefiinthe mortperfett manner, orMotivestoperformthem. We may clearly fee in his deportment, innocent Wifdom, prudent Simplicity, compailionate Zeal,' perfe([ Pati ence, the courage of Faith, the joy of Hope, the tendernefs and care of Love, incomparable Meeknefs, Modefty, Humility and Purity. He fpent the Night in Communion with God, and the Day in Charity to Men. He perfealy hated Sin, and equally lo'ved Souls. The nearer\ and readier\ wiy to Perfettion, is a ferious regard to his Precedmt: For the Caufes of all Sin are-eitherthe defireof what he defpifed, or the fear of what he fulfered. He voluntarily deprived himfelf of Riches, Honours, Pleafures, to render them contemptible, and endured outrages of all forts, the contrttdillion of Sinners, and the fbarpefi Sufferings to make them tolerable. He afcended Moont Calvary to his Crofs, before he afcended from Mount 0/ivet to his Throne: He was naked before he was cloathed (fJ c'm •m· with a robe of Light, and Crowned with Thorns before with Glory (f). And thus he ;:: :;j::;,:t powerfully tea~hes us tofoll?w his ~eps ~hofofferedfor us. If a PhJ/ician .of great e- {Jfo~:;~n:~~7; ~=~~~r ~~ ~f~;~~a~~=~:!;~~: P~\~;; t~e~~~~~f~~dat~e;~~~a7e~u:~a~~it~e~s~ 3~~ ;:,::,e ~~~:/[. nied himfelf the enjoyment of worldly Delights, and endured the worll: of temporal Eqlle conrrmp- viis, nothing canbe more etfeQual to convince us, that the Pleafares of theWorld are not ;::;-;,,;:~s confiderable as to our )aft End, and that prefent Afflictions a!e fo far from being inconfi• ~~~~f::.~.:~a· ne~'~ fo!~~' ~~sf~~~=~~~~~!!~~~,n~~~:~e~Jt~;h~~~su~!~~f~ds to difcover our Duty, 1:~~~t i11°:;~~.r but inables and excites to perform it. As the Eye in beholding vifible Objell:s receives impi&ati_oni.r, their Image, fo by contemplatillg the Graces that are confpicuous in our Redeemer, we ~;:ijl(t {c~:~~ derive a Jimilitucle from them. We all, faith the Apofile, 2 Cor. 3· 18. with open face tia f,,; beholding as in a Glafs the Glory of the Lord, that is, by viewing in the Gofpel the Life &~e;ftfee!;r~~ofChrift wh_!ch was glorious in Holinefs, We are. chtmged into the fame ~mage from Clod"!' ~;""' ry to Glory, evm as by the Spirit of the Lord : that IS, gradually fa{iuoned m Grace accor- ~~;£:Ji~. di1nt~ ~i~ajti~~~e~~re powerfully move and perfwade us to Holinefs, than to confider the Prefiden t that Chrirt bath [et before us ? For how honourable is itto be 1 ike the Son of God, by Conformity to Chrirt we partake of the Divine Perfettions. T he King of Hea"en will acknowledge us for his Children; _when we bear the refemblance of our elder Brother. BeGdes the morive of Honour, Love dot!Hfirongly incllne to follow HoJi nefs in imitation of our Redeemer. This is one difference between 'Knowledge and Love, the Underfrand ing draws the object: to it felf, ,and transforms ir into its own like· nefs. thus material ObjeLts have an immaterial exifre-nce in the mind when it contem# plat;s them: But Love goes forth to the Objett loved; the Soul is more where it loves than where it li ves; that is, there is more of its intelleaual Prefence, its Thoughts and Defi res, and it always affettsa refemblance to it. Thus L?ve h.wnb.led God , a~d ma~e him like to us in Nature ; and Love exalts Man, by makmg hnn hke to God 111 Hoh- , nefs;
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