The Life of Faith. I Dire& r a. Lally, What meafore of Lightfoever God vouch. fafetb you, labour to turn it all into Love ; and make it your ferions care and bufinefs to know God, that you may love bim, and to love God fo far as you know him. For he that defireth fatiifad#ion in his doubts, to no better end, than to pleafc his mind by knowing, and to free it from the difquiet ofuncertainty, hath an end to low in all his (tu dies, that he cannot exp:6t that God and his grace (hould be called down, to ferve filch a low and bale dcfign. That faith which is not employed in beholding the love of God in the face of Chrift, on purpofe to increafe and exercife our love, is not indeed the true Chriftian Faith, but a dead opinion. And he that hath never fo weak a faith, and ufeth it to this end, to know Gods amiablenefr, and to élove bim, doth take the molt certain way for the confirmation of his faith. For Love is the clofe(t adherence of the foul to God, and therefore will let it in the clearce light, and will teach it by the fweet convincing way ofexperience and fpiritual tafte. Believing alone is like the knowledgeof ourmeat byfeeing it : And Love is as the knowledge of our meat byeating and digefting it. And he that hath taftedthat it is fweet, bath a fironger kind ofperfwafion that it is tweet, than he that only feeth it ; and will much more tenacioully hold his apprehenfion : It is more poffiblc to difpute him out of his belief, who onlyfeeth, than him that alto tafteth and concctleth. AParent and childwill not fo ea- fily believe any falle reports ofone another, as lrangerts or ene- mies will ; becaufe Love is a powerful refifter of Poch hard conceits. And though this be delulory and blinding partiali- ty, where Love isguided by mifiake ; yet when a found under- ftanding leadeth it, and Love hath chofen the trueft objeél, it is the naturally perfeetive motion of the foul. And Love keepeth us under the fulleft influences of Gods Lave; and therefore in the reception of that grace which will increafe our faith: For Love is that a$ which the ancient Dodo's were wont to call, the principle of merit, orfirft me- ritorious aîf of the foul; and which we call, the principle of rewardable ass. God beginneth and loveth us fire, partly with a Loveof complacency, only as his creatures, and alto as U 2 in
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