to theE P H E S I AN S. hi1l1. Yea, thou maiO: comfort thy felf againO: Imperfect holinefs in this, That~ when God chafe thee, that tirO: view he took of thee, that tirO: Idea wherein San:. V. thou wert reprefented to him, was, as he meant to make thee, even perfectly ~ holy; fuch thou camefi up be!ore him .in his firfi intention ~bout thee, even clothed with all thofe Jewels and embelhfhments winch he meant one day to beflow upon thee. What is the reafon that God is willing to pard~n us, and that he pleafeth himfelf 1n us now? He knows that though we be lintul now, yet 1t will not be long ere we fhall be perfectly holy before !urn. ClmO: cleanfeth us, to prrjfnt Uf to himfelf aglorious Church witbotlt (pot or wri11kle, And on the other fide, if it be meant of Imperfect holinefs, as the Means to the End, there may thefe two Obferntions be raifed from that: r. Without Holinefs here, there is no happinef~ to be expected hereafter. Objfrv: 1 : Without God's Mercy we cannot be faved; and Without Hohnefs we are not under Mercy, 1 Prt.r.2. He bath chofen us toobedimce.of the Truth. And with– out Pt<rity or Holinefs no man fhall fee God. ~. The grourid of all true Obedience is Love,. [To be holy before him i11 love,] 06forv. 2; Faith worki by Love. As no duty is plealing to God withou~ Faith, fo neither without Love. It was not the Reafon why God chafe us, but the End unto which he chafe us; [He bath ordai11ed Uf to br holy 6rfore him i11 love.] · There remains one Obfervaticn more, that is general to both Interpretations; Obferv. 1• namely, That the foundation of God's Love is not lovelinefs in us. Though in our Love we cannot love a Creature (as, not a Child) until it is and hath a Being; and not then neither, unlefs we fee fomething lovely in it, which may draw our our affections towards it : yet God can refolve to love fuch Creatures, as he can make thus and thus love!y, and fo ordain them to be holy before him, that he may delight in them. He can therefore take things Pol]i6!e (in refpect of Bring,) that is, which he cmt, or bath in his power to make and create; and he can aforehand refolve thus and thus to love them, (which we cannot do.) And the Reafon..of- this is, For that his Love is only from his own Will, as our beino- his Creatures alfo is: and fo, the firfi Objetts of Elettion may be Res creabiles: 110" ta1lttlm qtlt£ A{!tt creat.efont~exiftullt; Things that arc lo.okt upon by him but as yet to be created, not only thofe that are fuppofed attually to exia. SER-
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