An Expojition of the EpijUe Se:n,'1fl.' . Yea, he took up fo much Loveat the firtl:, that his Wifdom, and all in him, ~ ISfet on work to O:udy_ aud. contnve ways how to commend that Love. And therefore that word, m Tzt. 3· 4·.wh1ch we trannate Kmdnefs, as it fianifies benig11itatem, fo it fignifies an heroical Study, os It were, mGod, all fort ofways to deferve we\! of Mankind. It was fo great, that he knew not how to exprefs it enough ; for do but confider a littlewith your [elves : He began to love Adaflt upon the terms of a providential Love, but that was not good enough, he muft have thofe of Mankind he loves, to Heaven. He was not content with dire[{ ways of loving, that is, to love them in their Head JtftJs Chritl:, as he loveth the Angels, and fo no more ado; but to fhew the more love, lets them f.1ll into Sin become enemies to him, and then fends his Son. And, my.Brethren, the truth is, this coO: Jefus Chritl: dear, meerly that God might fhew forth the more love . for we might not have been Sinners, and tho Sinners,yet we might have been faved :-v•thout any fatisfatlion. But it was a digreffion of Love, as I may truly call it, It was an e_xcurfion of Love, that as Man bemg finful fought out mar.y inventions; [o God bemg lovmg, he fought out a world of mvenuons, for to fhew his Love. Now do but think with your [elves, that the very firtl: thought of love that God had towards you, the very fio(f glance of Love he took up, fhou\d be fo much as that all forts of ways that his Wifdom caninvent, and that in an eternity oftim~ too,fhould be httle enough to vent and retail that Love, whtch thus in the lump he took up. My Brethren, this mutl: certainly be a great Love. · And I will add but this to it, That his Love was fo greedy, (mark what I fay unto thee,) when he firft began to love thee, that the next and main thing that he thought of, that he had in his eye, as I may fpeak, in order and degree, tho all" was but one afr, it was that happinefs he meant to give thee in Heaven. He cloth ~sit were over-leap, ( fo greedy was his Love) all the means between, they comem, as I may C1y, m a fecond thought. If, I t1y, they do allow an mtenti– on of the end afore the means, if God intended the end afore the means, he in– tended that happinefs which thou fhalt have firtl:. Therefore obferve what the Scripture fpeaks, tho it faith, that God ordained11r to believe, and ordainccl11r 1111to SanOiji"cation, yet ordinarily it expreiTeth it thus, he hath ordaimd ttJ unto Lift. And the place is emphatical, 2 ThejJ2.1 3· God bath from the begin11ing ordai11ed yme to Salvation; mark, he joins you and Salva1ion together, and then comes in the means, througb Santliji"cation ef the Spirit, a11d belief of the Tmtb. But I f.1y, his eye was fo intent upon thy good, that look what is thy cbiefetl: good, what he means to make thee in Heaven, that he pitcheth firtl: upon. And fo much now for that aGl:. Let u•next confider the Time, He loved 111; this carries us to the time paft. So that if you ask me, when this Love did begin? The truth is, if I may fo fpea)<: with reverence, he loved thee ever finee he bath been God: ]er. 31, 3· I have loved thee 1vith an everlafling Love; and unto everlatl:ing there can be nothing added. God, he is from everlatl:ing, and his Love is from everlafling. He may · be faid to have loved thee ever fince he loved himfelf, or ever fince be loved his Son, in whom he chafe thee. As he was God from the beginning, and as Chritl: was the Word of Life from the beginning, Jobn \·I. So he hath ordained thee unto Salvation from the beginning, 2 Thef!.o.I 3· And the Schoolmen do rightly fay in th!s, that the liberty of God's Will cloth not lie as Man's dorh, that it was a while fufpended, no, not for a moment : There was never an afrual fufpenfi– on, for then there were an imperfefrion, only there was Libertas potmliflif, he might have cart it otherwife; but there never was any time, in which there was in his Heart a vacuity oflove to thee,or unto any one whom he loveth. How infi– nitely cloth this endear the Love of God to thee, and make it great! Ifone h~ve loved you from his Infancy, that no fooner he began to have a thought of love, or to love himfelf, but he loved you, and pitch'cl his heart upon you, how great . will you account this Love! ]ohn makes a great matter of ir, I ]ohn 4· 10. Herei11 is Love, ([peaking of the Love ofGod) that we loved not God, b11t he /{rl)ed w firft: We did not begin, but he began ; and when did he begin? Even fi·om eternity, when he loved himfelf, and loved his Son• .. And
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