The Love andgood Wordofothers denied. 2 35 It is Gods higheft honour to beer highlieft ft andft elleemed anfcen, danent d Good eft beloved, as being the moft pfe : And Proud men in this would afpire to his Prerogative ; andmuch affe6t to be beloved of all : and fain they wouldfit neer mens hearts, and be thedarlings of the world. This a fine, but dangerous fin : and I doubt many that are guilty of it, never well confidered that it is a fin, and fo great a fin as indeed it is. Deny your felves in this. It is God that muft be Loved of all, and not you : You muft be content to be hated of all men for his name fake!, that he may be loved. Mens hearts were not made to be your throne, but Gods. Your work is to Love, and not ambitiouily to feek for love. So far as your inrereft in mens affeciions doth conduce to Gods ho- nour, and fervice and their good defire it, and (pare not : But fee that thefebe really your ends. But for your felves take heed of defiring or feeking for mens Love. They are apt enough to have inordinate affe6tions to the creature Without your temptations. To Love God in you, and Love you for God, is their duty which youmay provoke them to in feafon : But feek not for any neerer intereft in them, nor for fuch a love as terminateth in your felves. Nature is exceeding ambitious ofbeingbeloved : but Real not Gods due. You are to be Tutors and follicitors for him, to win the hearts ofas ma- ny to him as you can : and not to fpeak for your felves in his (lead. Thanfully accept of mens Ordinate Love to you, if you have it : but if they deny it for you, for the fake of Chrift, and turn it into hatred, doyou deny your felveshere- in, and remember that its no more then you were forwarned of ; and no more then your Lord and his worthieft fervants have endured : What a Pattern is Fail that tels his converts, hefeek! not theirs but dotal, as parents lay up for the children, and not childrenfor the parents, andwouldgladly Ifend, and-$e 4en for them, though the more he love , the lefs he were beloved] 2 Cor. 12 14, See that youLove God and them, and that is your duty do that andyou neednot take care for the Love of men toyou. Their Love is none of your felicity,and therefore their hatred depriveth you not ofyour felicity : for that lieth only in theLove of God. Here therefore felfmull bedenied. H h z C 11 A P,
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