The ground-work of a clear conscience is love:1 for Faith giveth assurance of Gods love: a sense of Gods⟨p. 254⟩ love worketh love to God: as fire causeth heat, so love causeth love,m We love God, because he loved us first. And this love stirreth us up to endeavour to have a clear conscience before God. I may not unfitly resemble Faith, love, and a clear conscience, to the sap, bud, and fruit of a tree:n the tree is Christ, the several branches are particular Christians: the sap which runneth through all the several branches, and is the very4 life of them, is the Spirit: that which receiveth and conveyeth the sap into every branch is Faith: the bud which first sprouteth out, isp Love: the fruit which cometh out of that bud, and manifesteth all the rest, is that clear conscience which now we speak of: both fruit and bud spring out of the sap; yet the fruit cometh immediately out of the bud: so both love and a clear conscience come from Faith, but a clear conscience immediately from love. Our love to God is it which maketh us careful to please him, fearful to offend him. Wherefore first make trial of Faith by love: for mark what Christ said of the poor penitent sinner,a Many sins are forgiven her, for she loved much. What? was her love the cause of the forgiveness of her sins? No: it was a fruit, a sign, a proof thereof: her sins being forgiven, and the pardon of them revealed to her heart & conscience, she loved Christ, and in testimony of her love washed, wiped and kissed his feet.b We love God because we are first loved: yea because thec love of God is first shed abroad in our hearts by the holy Ghost, whereby we have a sense of Gods love to us. Now because God who cannot be seen, hath left us a visible image of himself, even our brother, whom he hath set in his own steed, therefore our love to God moveth us also to love our brother, and sod endeavour to keep a clear conscience before God and men. eSaint John doth⟨p. 255⟩ much press the love of our brother, as an evident fruit and sign of our love to God.11 Among other notes of true Faith, this especially is to be observed, as a trial of the weakest Faith: when other notes fail, this may stand a poor Christian in great steed. The Faith of many is so weak, that it doth not pacifi• their conscience, nor breed any joy in them, yet it worketh love:
THe ground-worke of a cleare conscience is loue:1 for Faith giueth assurance of Gods loue: a sence of Gods⟨p. 254⟩ loue worketh loue to God: as fire causeth heate, so loue causeth loue,m We loue God, because he loued vs first. And this loue stirreth vs vp to endeauour to haue a cleare conscience before God. I may not vnfitly resemble Faith, loue, and a cleare conscience, to the sappe, bud, and fruit of a tree:n the tree is Christ, the seuerall branches are particular Christians: the sap which runneth thorow all the seuerall branches, and is the very4 life of them, is the Spirit: that which receiueth and conueyeth the sappe into euery branch is Faith: the budde which first sprouteth out, isp Loue: the fruit which commeth out of that bud, and manifesteth all the rest, is that cleare conscience which now we speake of: both fruite and budde spring out of the sappe; yet the fruit commeth immediatly out of the bud: so both loue and a cleare conscience come from Faith, but a cleare conscience immediatly from loue. Our loue to God is it which maketh vs carefull to please him, fearefull to offend him. Wherefore first make tryall of Faith by loue: for marke what Christ said of the poore penitent sinner,a Many sinnes are forgiuen her, for she loued much. What? was her loue the cause of the forgiuenesse of her sinnes? No: it was a fruit, a signe, a proofe thereof: her sinnes being forgiuen, and the pardon of them reuealed to her heart & conscience, she loued Christ, and in testimony of her loue washed, wiped and kissed his feete.b We loue God because we are first loued: yea because thec loue of God is first shed abroad in our hearts by the holy Ghost, whereby we haue a sence of Gods loue to vs. Now because God who cannot be seene, hath left vs a visible image of himselfe, euen our brother, whom he hath set in his owne steed, therefore our loue to God moueth vs also to loue our brother, and so
- 1Love the ground of a clear conscience.Loue the ground of a cleare conscience.
- m1 Joh. 4. 19.1 Ioh. 4. 19.
- nJoh. 15. 5.Ioh. 15. 5.
- 4Hab. 2. 4. Gal. 2, 20.
- pGal. 5. 6.
- aLuke 7. 47.
- b1 Joh 4. 19.1 Ioh 4. 19.
- cRom. 5. 5.
- dAct. 24. 16.
- e1 Joh. 3. 17. & 4. 20.1 Ioh. 3. 17. & 4. 20.
- 11Love of our brother, a note of the weakest faith.
