A09950:955
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.
And yet, to come to one more, if you love §4pleasures more than God, and wealth more than God, you hate God: For so you have it, Mat. 6.1 No man can serve two Masters, but either he must hate the one and love the other, &c. That is, when you love other things, though you think you do not hate the Lord, yet, I say, in that you love pleasures, and love the world, and the things of the world, in that you love your lusts, and the objects of them; in doing this, you hate the Lord. Now if this be your case, if upon these expostulations that I have propounded, if upon these rules of examining your selves, you find that you do not love the Lord, if this be your condition, (as it is your wisdom to deal strictly with your selves; for hence it is, brethren, that the souls of men perish, because they will not see and search into their estates, they will not come to this examination of themselves, it is a painful thing to them, men are backward to examine themselves in private; what is the reason of that phrase in the Psalm, Examine your selves upon your beds, but because examination should be when a man is most retired? I say, if you find it to be so, as it is the case of many) then it should open a window to you, to see what you have deserved at the Lords hands, how just it were that the Lord should cast you off: For when you are ⟨p. 134⟩enemies to the Lord, can you think much at it? My brethren, what a condition is that man in, that hath the great God of heaven and earth to be his enemy?
And yet, to come to one more, if you love §4pleasures more than God, and wealth more than God, you hate God: For so you have it, Mat. 6.1 No man can serve two Masters, but either hee must hate the one and love the other, &c. That is, when you love other things, though you thinke you doe not hate the Lord, yet, I say, in that you love pleasures, and love the world, and the things of the world, in that you love your lusts, and the objects of them; in doing this, you hate the Lord. Now if this be your case, if upon these expostulations that I have propounded, if upon these rules of examining your selves, you finde that you doe not love the Lord, if this be your condition, (as it is your wisedome to deale strictly with your selves; for hence it is, brethren, that the soules of men perish, because they will not see and search into their estates, they will not come to this examination of themselves, it is a painfull thing to them, men are backward to examine themselves in private; what is the reason of that phrase in the Psalme, Examine your selves upon your beds, but because examination should be when a man is most retired? I say, if you finde it to be so, as it is the case of many) then it should open a window to you, to see what you have deserved at the Lords hands, how just it were that the Lord should cast you off: For when you are