AND the fecond is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy Neighbour as thyfelf, Matt. xxii. 39. The Love of our Neighbour is found in the Love of God as in its Principle, Pattern and End; and the Love of God is reciprocally found in the Love of our Neighbour, as in its Effect, Reprefentation, and infallible Mark. --- We take nothing from God when we love our Neighbour for his fake. --- To love him as ourselves, is to love him as we ought to love ourselves, in obferving the Order of Charity; and not as we love ourselves, when we follow our own irregular Inclinations. --- It is but one and the fame Love, which loves God in our Neighbour, and our Neighbour for God's Sake, when we defire that his Name may be hallowed, that his Kingdom may come, and that his Will may be done in our Neighbour, after the fame Manner that we defire it for ourselves. I fee th' exceeding broad Command, O that with all thy Saints I might, BUT put ye on the Lord Jefus Chrift, and make not Provifion for the Flesh, to fulfil the Lufts thereof, Rom. xiii. 14. Faith is the Day of the Chriftian; Grace is his awaking; Jefus Chrift the Garment with which he covers the Shame of his Sins. To put on the Lord Jefus Chrift is to cloathe ourselves inwardly with his Righteoufnefs, and to fuffer nothing to appear outwardly but that Habit, namely his Life, his Humility, his Meekness, and his other Virtues. --- To fatisfy both Reason and Faith, by giving to the Body what Neceffity requires, and refufing it what Senfuality craves, is to obey God himself. ΑΝ ND there fhall in no wife enter into it any Thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh Abomination, or maketh a Lie; but they which are written in the Lamb's Book of Life, Rev. xxi. 27. Let us remember we enter into this holy City only by divesting ourfelves of the old Man, and cloathing ourselves with JESUS CHRIST; and that we have been washed in the Blood of the LAMB, in order to become his Members, that every Thing might be deftroyed which renders us unworthy of GOD. OLAMB of GOD, who blotteft out the Sins of the World, blot out every Thing which displeases Thee in me; write thy Law for ever in my Heart, that I may be written in the Book of eternal Life, as well as in that of the divine Adoption which Thou haft begun in me by thy Grace. Far, far beyond thefe mortal Shores, A bright Inheritance is ours; Where Saints in Light our Coming wait AN ND I saw a new Heaven and a new Earth, for the firft Heaven and the first Earth were paffed away; and there was no more Sea, Rev. xxi. 1. If the World of the old Adam has appeared fo beautiful and magnificent to his Children, good God, how great will be the Splendor, how great the Riches, of That, which is made for Jefus Chrift the fecond Adam! and for his Members! O Jefus, Father of the World to come, render us worthy of this new and eternal World, and give us a Contempt of that which perishes and ruins us. We with our LORD fhall always live, The Glory of His fovereign Grace. No longer let thy Chariot stay, Come, gracious LORD, to Judgement come. (176) St. John Baptift. June 24. If we will come where John is, we must go as he went; Set God before our Eyes, and walk in his Prefence as John did: First, in Sanctity of Perfon, (like an Angel) in Holiness, and Righteoufnefs all the Days of our Life. Secondly, in Diligence of Office. Preparing his Way to us, by being new born; by dying to Sin, that we may live unto God. Acknowledging that the Power fo to do, proceeds from his being present before us; graciously beholding and upholding us. From whole Fulnefs we receive Grace for Grace. First the Grace of Faith and a godly Life; and the Grace of eternal Life: Which God the Father grant, for the Love of God the Son, through the Operation of God the Holy Ghoft: To which holy and bleffed Trinity be all Glory now and for ever, Amen. How beauteous are their Feet, Who ftand on Zion's Hill, How charming is their Voice, How fweet the Tidings are! |