A09950:1025
The Breastplate of Faith and Love
The breast-plate of faith and love. A treatise, wherein the ground and exercise of faith and love, as they are set upon Christ their object, and as they are expressed in good works, is explained. / Delivered in 18 sermons upon three several texts, by the late faithful and worthy minister of Jesus Christ, John Preston, Dr. in Divinity, chaplain in ordinary to his Majesty, Master of Emmanuel College in Cambridge, and sometimes preacher of Lincolns Inn.The breast-plate of faith and love. A treatise, wherein the ground and exercise of faith and love, as they are set upon Christ their object, and as they are expressed in good workes, is explained. / Delivered in 18 sermons upon three severall texts, by the late faithfull and worthy minister of Iesus Christ, Iohn Preston, Dr. in Divinity, chaplaine in ordinary to his Maiesty, Master of Emmanuel Colledge in Cambridge, and sometimes preacher of Lincolnes Inne.
London: printed by W. Jones for Nicolas Bourne, 1630London: printed by W. Iones for Nicolas Bourne, 1630
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Again, remember to pitch your love upon the person;2 not to love him for by-respects for other matters, but set your eye upon the very person of Christ, to behold him in his glory, in his pureness, in his attributes, in all his excellencies, and so to love him, for that will continue; for if you love the Lord because he deals well with you, because you have hope he will save you, because you have escaped such and such judgements through his providence, if any of these be the ⟨p. 172⟩ground of your love, these are mutable; but if you love him for himself, because of that amiableness that is in him; for my brethren, he is the same, there is no shadow of change in him. Therefore if you love him thus, your love will be constant; this was the case of Job, his love was right, he loved the very person of God, therefore he was willing to take good and evil at the hand of God, and yet his love remained sure: take another man that hath not known God, that is not acquainted with him, it may be when the Lord hath brought him into prosperity, he will forget the Lord, as Demas embraced the present world, the prosperity of such a man draws him from God. Another man, when persecutions and trials come, he forsakes the Lord, because indeed he pitched not his love upon his person, therefore he loves him not constantly. But to go on.
Againe, remember to pitch your loue upon the person;2 not to loue him for by-respects for other matters, but set your eye upon the very person of Christ, to behold him in his glory, in his purenesse, in his attributes, in all his excellencies, and so to loue him, for that will continue; for if you loue the Lord because he deals wel with you, because you haue hope he will saue you, because you have escaped such and such judgements through his providence, if any of these bee the ⟨p. 172⟩ground of your love, these are mutable; but if you love him for himselfe, because of that amiablenesse that is in him; for my brethren, hee is the same, there is no shadow of change in him. Therefore if you love him thus, your love will be constant; this was the case of Iob, his love was right, he loved the very person of God, therefore hee was willing to take good and evill at the hand of God, and yet his love remained sure: take another man that hath not knowne God, that is not acquainted with him, it may be when the Lord hath brought him into prosperity, he will forget the Lord, as Demas embraced the present world, the prosperity of such a man drawes him from God. Another man, when persecutions and trialls come, he forsakes the Lord, because indeede he pitched not his love upon his person, therefore hee loves him not constantly. But to goe on.