fecution of a doctrine. Many things might here be obferved: As,

ift, None can truly love God, but fuch as are belov ed of him. Many speak of the love of God, as if it were natural to them: but as true love is a fpark of heavenly fire fo there is no love natural to man but the love of fin.

2dly, That God hath a people in the world that love him, because they are loved of him. There is in God a common love, whereby he loved the whole world; and a fpecial love, whereby he loves the faints: and fo there is in the faints a common love, by which they love all God's creatures; and a peculiar love that belongs to God only, whom they prize above all other things.

3dly, That divine love works freely. God does not trade with us upon any terms, conditions, or valuable confiderations in and about us. We can neither buy heaven nor beg it; it must be given. Let not the greatest civilian prefume; let not the greatest prodigal defpair: God's love is firft on the field.

4thly, That as God and his faints love one another, fo the reafon of faints loving God, is God's loving them: there is no reafon of God's love, but because he loves. But there is reafon enough for our love, because HE loved us. The believer loves God upon God's account, and for good reafon; God loves us without any reafon, or any caufe from without himself; but we have all the reafon in the world, why we should love God, Many fay, they love Chrift, but they have not any reafon for it; they that love him know why they do fo. There are three things create love, viz. Beauty, intereft, love. 1. Beauty; and O, but

Chrift is white and ruddy, and altogether lovely. 2. Intereft; the more a man fees Chrift, to be his own, the more he loves him. 3. Love; the love of God: is the great parent of love; it begets love; "We love him, because he firft loved us."But having taken this fhort view of the text, the doctrine I fix upon is this.

OBSERV. God's love to his people is the fource of their love to him. Their love is influenced by the faith of his love; his love is the cause of theirs; "We love him, becaufe he first loved us."

Now the general method that feems most native is,

I. To fpeak of God's love to his people.

II. Of the faints love to God.

III. The influence his love hath upon theirs as the

cause of it.

IV. Apply the whole in fundry uses.

I. To speak of God's love to his people: and indeed to speak of it is to speak of that which is unspeakable and inconceivable, for it paffeth knowledge; only we may notice a few things that the fcripture fays of this love. I would offer fome remarks concerning this love of God; and then fhew more particularly, the import of this expreffion, "He firft loved us."

Ift, I would offer fome remarks concerning the love of God.

Remark 1. That the fountain of this love is God the Father. Love begins in order of nature with the Father: hence, fays Chrift, "I will not fay, that I will pray the Father for you, for the Father himself loveth you," John xvi. 26. Chrift prays for all the fruits and emanations of the Father's love to his people; but not for the Father's love itfelf. You mistake greatly, Sirs, if you do think that Chrift doth purchase and pray for the Father's love to his people; nay, it was the Father's love that fent Chrift to purchase all the fruits and communications of his love. "God fo loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son." The love of God cannot be purchased; there is no need of any mediation. here; I will not fay, that I will pray the Father, in this refpect, for the Father loves you." Here is the fountain of the love. But,

Remark 2. That the channel through which the love of God does run from this fountain, is the LORD JESUS CHRIST. God's love does not vent itfelf towards any finner, to the difparagement of his infinite holinefs and

justice;

justice; and therefore it vents and flows in and through Chrift, "Whom God hath fet forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteoufnefs, for the remiffion of fins that are paft," Romans iii. 23. God hath taken a marvellous way to manifeft his love when he would fhew his power, he makes a world; when he would fhew his wifdom, he puts it in a frame and form that difcovered vaft wifdom; when he would manifeft the grandeur and glory of his name more, he makes a heaven, and puts angels, arch-angels, principalities, and powers therein; and when he will manifeft love, what will he not do? It is a pity we should deny this love; because God hath taken fuch a great and myfterious way of manifefting it in Chrift; his death, his blood, his righteoufnefs; here is the channel.

Remark 3. The ftreams of divine love that flow from this fountain, in this channel, are vaftly great; viz. Pardon, peace, fafety, adoption, juftification, fanctification, audience of prayer, a bleffing on all providences, and everlasting triumph in heaven. I cannot enlarge upon thefe, or any other of the ftreams that flow from this love of God; the ftreams are fo many, fo great, that we fhould lofe ourselves there, as well as in the fountain, if we were to dive thereinto; only we are bleffed in Chrift with all fpiritual bleffings; and this love of God, and all the fruits of it, is to be enjoyed in the fellowship of the Spirit, 2 Cor. xiii. 13.; where we read of the grace of the Lord Jefus Chrift, the love of God, and the communion of the Spirit; where Chrift is firft mentioned, becaufe he is next to us, as being the channel through which the love of God is vented; and this love of God, and grace of Chrift, is enjoyed in the communion and fellowship of the Holy Ghoft; and that this love is from the Father, as the fountain; in the Son, as the channel; by the Holy Ghoft, as the immediate conveyance.

Remark 4. The veffels into which these streams are vented, or this love is poured, are finners; even to them it is declared that he is the Lord, "The Lord God merciful and gracious, pardoning iniquity, tranfgreffion,

and

and fin;" and that "God is love." This motto, that "God is love," is infcribed on the gates of heaven; and none will think strange of that, because the love of God, in bringing any finner of Adam's race there, is manifefted to the higheft. But we would think strange, if one fhould fay, that this is even the infcription written upon the gates of hell, that "God is love;" why? his love to himself, and his own juftice, is manifefted there; yea, not only fo, but millions are damned, because they flight redeeming love; and their confcience galls them, for contemning all the offers of love. But that which concerns us especially, is, that we may read this infcrip. tion daily upon the beautiful gate of the temple; I mean, in gospel-ordinances, that "God is love;" for therein he manifefts his love to finners, even to finners of Adam's family, in the general difpenfation of the gofpel; and particularly to the veffels of mercy, in the fpecial operation of the Spirit upon them in the fulness of time; wherein he hath defigned to pour out his Spirit, and fo to pour in his love. But to omit many things here, I come,

2dly, To fhew the particular import of this expreffion, He first loved us." And,

1. It fays, That his love is eternal love, and from everlasting: "He firft loved us. I have loved thee with an everlasting love," Jer. xiii. 3.; as it is to everlafting, fo it is from everlafting; as it will never have an end, fo it never had a beginning, but it is as ancient as the eternal God is. O! what an amazing thought is this, that God fhould have had thoughts of love towards any poor finners, like you and me, from the beginning of his Being, which is without a beginning! But, to prevent miftakes, you would know that the love of God is twofold; his love of deftination, and his love of approbation: his love of deftination and purpose, whereby he is faid to have chofen us in Chrift, before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy; "Having predeftinated us to the adoption of children," Eph. i. 4, 5.; and this love he is faid to manifeft even before a man's converfion, John iv. 19. "In this was manifefted the love of God

towards

towards us, because God fent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved him, but that he loved us, and fent his Son to be a propitiation for our fin." Again, there is his love of approbation and friendship fuch as that fpoken of, John xiv. 23. "If a man love me, and keep my words, my Father will love him; and we will come to him, and make our abode with him." Now, the object of the former love, to wit, the love of deftination, is every elect foul, and that from all eternity, as well as in time, even before their converfion and union to Chrift; the object of the latter, to wit, his love of approbation and friendship, is every believer united to Chrift, to whom he begins to manifeft his everlasting love perfonally; for, though he loved and approved of them from eternity in Christ, yet they cannot be faid to be actually loved and approved in their own perfons, till once their perfons are united to Chrift. Though God's love be everlasting and immutable as himself is, yet there is a time wherein he begins to manifeft his love: there is no variation or fhadow of turning in God's love; all the change is in the perfon beloved, not in God. It is mere blafphemy to fay, that God begins to love them whom before he hated, in a proper and ftri&t fenfe. It is true, the elect are children of wrath, even as others, by nature, whatever they are by divine deftination, being ever the object of God's love in this fenfe; yet in fome fenfe, he begins to love them, in respect of the manifefting of his love to them, and the outletting of his love upon them; when his love is taken, not fo much for his immanent act, as for his tranfient act, not for any thing in himself, but for what flows from him to them; the love that is in himfelf is ftill the fame, but the acts of love that flow forth to them, these begin to appear, when he manifefts himself to them, as he does not to the world; when he comes to them for their falvation, and reveals his Son in them and here alfo he is ftill before-hand with them; "He first "loved us."

2. "He firft loved us;" it fays, that his love is ante. cedent