a cross; from whence his mighty love shoots the most piercing darts into our breasts. We see him there in such flames as offered him up entirely to do the will of God; and, if we come near them, will touch us so sensibly, that we shall be disposed to make ourselves also a devout oblation to him. His body broken, his blood shed, his very life sacrificed for our safety, are there so evidently and distinctly set before our eyes; that as it will be hard for us not to be tenderly affected with his astonishing love to us, so we are hereby assured of his continued kindness till he bring us to eternal life.

We do not indeed behold him there as sitting on the throne of his glory, nor as appearing again the second time to give us salvation; but yet it plainly shows us what he underwent to purchase for us as well as for himself that glory wherein he is, and bids us rest satisfied he will do more for us, even all that he hath promised: of which, by these tokens and pledges of his love, which he hath left behind him when he departed this world, he doth most affectionately assure us. And by partaking of them we become also one body with him, and have communion with him in his death and passion, and all the benefits he hath thereby obtained for his church: among which this is the last and the greatest, that we shall be with him where he is, and see the glory which the Father hath given him. We ought not to doubt of it, being thus incorporate with him, and so united to him, that in him we already live and reign and are glorious; and can no more fail of appearing at last with him in his glory, than the members can fail to be advanced, when the head, to which they are firmly and inseparably joined, is highly honoured and dignified.

As a loving wife, therefore, married to an husband most completely qualified, but gone into a remote country, cannot but fix her thoughts very much upon his coming, and often wish for the happy day which will bring them nearer, and make them meet and live together; and, in the mean time, if she have his picture exactly taken, cannot refrain from looking often on it, and pleasing her eyes and her mind with the very shadow of that dear person; or if she have any token of his love left or sent her, whereby to remember him, is ever and anon taking it into her hands, and imprinting her kisses on it: so it becomes all those to do who pretend any love to our Lord

Jesus; who hath endeared himself to us by such incomparable lovingkindness, and merited so highly of us, that it would be exceeding strange if we should be either insensible of his favours, or let them slip out of our minds, when (among the rest of the expressions of his wonderful love) he hath taken great care to preserve the remembrance of them there.

Our gracious Lord, the Bridegroom of our souls, is gone a long journey, even as far as heaven. He hath espoused us to himself, it is true, in great love, most assured love; but hath left us for a time here in this world, and removed himself so far from us, that though there be nothing so desirable as his company to those who are acquainted with him and have any affection for him, yet they find the distance is so exceeding great between them, that they cannot attain their much wished for enjoyment of him. And therefore every good soul should look towards him, and, sighing within itself, should often say, When will he come, when will he come, and let me have the long desired sight of him? when will he come, and finish what he hath so graciously begun? O that he would come, and take me to him! O that he would come, and satisfy this soul, which is ready to dissolve, and sweetly melt into that blissful union with him! And, till he please to grant this desire, we should often fasten our expecting eyes on the picture he hath left us of himself, drawn, as I may say, by his own hand; which tells us he will certainly come, and requires us to rest assured he will be as good as his word, and give us immortal life in the glory where he is. We should frequent, I mean, the holy sacrament of his body and blood; we should love there to communicate with him and knit ourselves to him; it should be our greatest pleasure to solace ourselves in that representation of him till he comes. We should affectionately receive into our hands those tokens and pledges of his love which he continually sends us by his ministers; we should take them into our mouths, yea, let them into our hearts; and, embracing him in those signs and seals of his grace towards us, should rejoice in his love, till he himself appear, and lay our souls to rest in his bosom for ever.

If there were no other benefit we should receive by this means than that thereby our love will be mightily excited towards him who hath loved us so dearly, it were sufficient to

commend this duty to us: but we shall also grow thereby more confident of his appearing again to perfect his love towards us; and in the mean time be still receiving fresh tokens of the affection he now hath for us. For as the thought of his love hath the greatest power over our hearts; so we need not fear to say, that the love he sees in us is of such force and efficacy with him, that it strongly moves his tender compassions towards us. If any man love me (saith he himself), he shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to hima. O what a word is this, I will love him! how it pierces into the heart! how it stirs and works, how it revives and refreshes there! Can there be any thing greater than this, to be beloved of the Lord of heaven, the Prince of life, the King of glory? What will not he do for those whom he loves, when we see he did not stick to die for them, even before they loved him?

You know that when Lazarus was sick (as I think I have somewhere observed in another treatise) his sisters sent this news to our Saviour, saying, Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick. This was a very short letter, and their grief perhaps would not permit them to write a longer. But they did not fare the worse because they were not more ceremonious in their addresses: this alone did the business. O how great a power was there in these few words! They say no more to move him but only this, Lord, thou lovest him; and what doth not our Saviour do to show they were not mistaken? Up he rises; away he goes to the place of his abode; there needed no more prayers to bring him thither. And though there were many dangers in the way, as the story relates, though to go thither his disciples thought was to cast himself into a shower of stones, though the Jews, he knew very well, sought to take him and kill himd; yet love being as strong as death carried him through all impediments: he could not choose but go when he heard this charming word, he whom thou lovest is sick.

By which we may learn that to obtain the favour and grace, the help and assistance, the comfort and the presence of our blessed Saviour, we need no long petitions, no great address of

a John xiv. 21, 23.

b xi. 3.

c Ver. 8.

d x. 39.

words, no courtship nor studied compliments. Let us be able only to tell him that he loves us, and it is enough. If we can but win his good affection, we need no more. We may then remember to him his own dear love more than ours. We may

tell him how much good he hath done us, and that is argument sufficient to move him to do more.

We may relate his graciousness and sweet disposition, when we can perceive in our own hearts but disgusts at ourselves. We may say, O my Lord, I have seen by many arguments the wonderful great good will thou bearest to me. For thou hast instructed my ignorance, pitied my weaknesses, cured many of my diseases, delivered me from the power of temptations; I cannot tell what thou hast done for me, O most merciful Saviour, who art still going on, by innumerable ways, to testify thou lovest me. And this humble devout acknowledgment will certainly invite a further effusion of his favours. For it is a pleasure to him to do benefits, especially to those he loves. He rejoices over them to do them good. He loves to accomplish his own good purposes, and delights, as much as they can desire, to perfect what he hath happily begun in them. And therefore we may entreat him to give himself that pleasure, not to lose any of that joy which will so much please and rejoice us also, and make us his debtors, his admirers, his adorers, and lovers to all eternity.

We may desire him, even that it would please him to come again, according to his promise; because he loves us, and because he loves to finish his works of love: and we may be confident he will, and bring his rewards with him. Though he stay we think a great while (for certain reasons which he best knows) before he come, as he stayed two days after he heard of Lazarus his sickness, (notwithstanding the love he had for him, and his intentions to rescue him from death;) yet we ought not to be discouraged, if we be sure he loves us, but believe that he will appear at last, and that he will raise us up, though we lie dead in our graves, and have lain so perhaps many years, and that he will bid us come forth, and go along with him whither his endless love will lead us.

CHAP. XVIII.

A continuation of the former argument, concerning the mighty power of the divine love, and the benefit we have by loving our Lord's appearing.

HAVE we not great reason then to love him, and to love his appearing, since that will be the best argument of his love to us; and his love, you see, will prove such an assurance of all his blessings? What will move us, if this cannot do it? Need there any thing more be said to draw our affections towards him? If there do, then let me assure you that love will even transform us into him.

There is nothing more discernible in this passion, than that it assimilates us unto the thing or person which we love. Which should teach us indeed to have a great care what and whom we love, but should excite us to love him, our dearest Lord, without any measure; because nothing is so desirable as to be like to him, and nothing can prepare us so surely for his glorious appearing. "In that which every man loves, in that he lives," saith St. Austine upon those words of the great apostle St. Paul, not I live, but Christ liveth in me. So great, so mighty a thing is true love, that it carries the heart from the place where it is, and translates it thither where it loves. If thou lovest thyself merely, then thou livest altogether in thyself: but if thy heart be set on any other person or thing, then thou livest in that which hath engaged thy affection: and if it be Jesus whom thou lovest in sincerity, it is certain that in him also thou livest.

Of so great importance it is that we love aright: for he that loves ill lives ill; and he that loves well cannot but live well too. But there is no danger at all in loving our Lord and his appearing and therefore we need not stand to ask ourselves whether we should love him or no; or how much we shall love him; or with what passion and concernment we should set our hearts upon his coming again to take us into his glory. There is nothing to hinder us from loving here as much as ever we are able; no fear our affections should be too far engaged, as

[In Gal. ii. 20. tom. iii. col. 950.]