Cli. 4. God is Loin,. I. j worldly Dottrine fitted to a worldly Interest and Ear, and therefore worldly Men believe them. 6. Weare of God : he that know- eth God, heareth us ; he that is not of God, heareth not us. Hereby know we the fpirit of truth, and the fpirit of errour. 6. We are of God, and can prove our Mif= fion by his atteftation to our Do Brine, as be- ing fromGod ; and therefore all that truly know God, will receive andown our Dottrine as God's, and us as his Apoftles :, but he that is not ofGod, havingnot the fame Spirit, re- ceiveth not the fame holy Doctrine, nor us. Thus differ the Spirit ofGod, and of Errour. 7. Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God ; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. 8. He that loveth not, know- eth not God; for God is love. 7, 8. And as true Faith in Chrit, and open eoofeOinp him, is one fgn; fo true Chrittian LOVE is another, to know that our Dottrine and Spirit is of God ; therefore be Cure that you unfeignedly love one another : Mot cer- tainly LOVE is ofGod, (common Love is his common gift, and holy Love is his fpecial Grace) and every one that Lovett, Saints -vs Saints, as well as Men as Men, fincerely for the Love ofGod, and goodnefs in them, is fo far like God (who as the God ofNature, loveth Nature, and as theGod of Grace, loveth Holi_ nefs) and therefore is a regenerate Childof God, and bath true Faith and Knowledge of God, or elfe he could not love him in his Saints. And whateverthey pretend, they have no true effettual Loveof the mollt holy God, or of his Will, who love not his Holiness" in his Children, andare not dear to one another; for LOVE is not a meet Quality in God, but his very Effence : GOD IS LOVE. Note, I know no sentence more worthy to be written in Letters ofGold, or rather writ- ten on all our Hearts: but the other two prime Attributes written in this Epiftle muft be con- joyn d, GOD is LIFE, LIGHT and LOVE : And LOVE is Complacency, and includeth in- flnite Joy or Pleafure. 9. In this was manifefled the love of God towards us, becaufe that God fent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live thrc ugh him. 9. And God's Effential LOVE Both tend to Communication ; he is good, and doth good : ha loveth us, not with a harren Love, as Hypo_ ogles do, but he chofe thismolt wonderful glu- öhn bbd is Love. Ch. 4 rifying way of publick manifefting his Love to us, even by fending his Son into the World, that we might live- through him. Io. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and fent his Son to be the propitiation for our fins. xo. And the Glory of.God's Love to us, is not only that he confequendy loved as for to ving him, but that he antecedently loved us, (that we might lovehim) and (while we were in Sin and Enmity) freely lent his Son to be the Propitiation for our Sins. 11. Beloved, if God fo, loved us,we ought alfo to love one another. II. And God's great works, and glorious manifestations of himfelf to us, are purpofely to be (as theSeat to the Wax) tomake us like him in our degree : And he therefore chore this afonilhing way of revealing ,his Love to us, that by it we might be brought to love hiMñ, andone another for hit . 12. NO m. ñ hath feen God at any times If we Icve one another, God dwelleth inus, and his love is per- fefted in üs. 12. It is God himfelfthat his Love obligeth us to love. But as we fee him but in the Glafs or Image of his Nature and Hoünefs in Man, Ici we muft lave him as we fee him Beret even in the Nature and HolinefiofMatt and if tvt thus holly love oneanother as" God's Image, God by his Spirit dwelleth in us, for it is his Spi: it of Love that maketh us thus love: And his Love to us attaineth its end, which was to Make us like him in Love, 63 that Chciftis to would study this well f ) I;. Hereby knowwe that we dwell in him, and he in its, becaufe he bath given us of his Spirit. t ;. By this lure Evidencewe know,that God and we do. as it were, dwell in each other; and have bleifed communion, because he heir given us this Spirit ofholy Love. 14. And we have feen, and do teftifie, that the Fat'ier fent the Shit to be the Saviour of the world. 14. And we are the Preachers of Faith and Love ; as we have feen, fo we teftifie, that God the Father glorified his Love, by fending his Son to be the Saviourofthe fioful World. 15. Whofoever (ball 'confefs, that Jesus is theSon of God,God dwelleth in him, and he in God. r 5. It cannot he that any Man can roundly believe fuch afionifhing Love; that God was matiifefted in fell, or that the Father Pent Hïs Son into fleib, by his Do`.trinc,Example, Suffe- r:nga
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