JANEWAY. 275 and prayer to God for you all is, that you may be saved. This will best appearin his own words, in a letter addressed to them. " Distance of place," says he, " cannot at all lessen that natural bond whereby we are one blood; neither ought it to lessen our love. Nay, where true love is, it cannot. Respecting my love towards you, I can only say, that I feel it better than I can express it. But love felt and not expressed is little worth. I desire, therefore, to make my love manifest in the best way lean. Let us look on one another, not as brethren only, but as members of the same body, of which Christ is the head. Happy day will that be, when the Lord will discover this union ! Let us, there- fore, breathe and hunger after this, that so we may all meet in Christ. If we be in Christ, and Christ in us, we shall be one in each other. " You cannot complain of the want of instruction. God hath not been to us as the dry and barren wilderness. You have had line upon line, and precept upon precept. He hath planted you by the rivers of waters. It is indeed the Lord alone who maketh fruitful ; yet we are not to stand still and do nothing. There is a crown worth seeking to obtain. Seek then by earnest and constant prayer. Keep your souls in a praying frame. This is a great and necessary duty ; yea, a very great privilege. If you can saynothing, come and lay yourselves in humility before the Lord. Through mercy I have experienced what I say ; and you may believe me when I say, that there is more sweetness to be got in one glimpse of God's love, than in all that the world can afford. Oh, do but try ! Oh, taste and see how good the Lord is ! " Beg of God to make you sensible of your lost and undone state by nature, and of the excellency and necessity of Christ. Say unto God, Let -me be any thing in the world if I may be enabled to value. Christ, and bepersuaded to accept of him as 'he is tendered in the gospel. Oh that I may be delivered from the wrath to come ! Oh, a blessing for me, even for me !' and resolve not to give it up till the Lord hath in some measure satisfiedyou. Oh ! my bowels yearn towards you. My heart works. Oh that you did ' but know with what affections I now write to you, and what prayers and tears have been mingled with these lines ! The Lord set these things home, and give you a heart to apply them to yourself. " Give me leave to deal plainly with you; and come
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