The excellency of a gracious spirit Delivered in a treatise upon the 14. of…The excellency of a gracious spirit Deliuered in a treatise upon the 14. of…

Seventhly, to follow God fully, is ¹to follow him only, so as to be willing to dedicate, to devote whatsoever God lets us still to enjoy, to God ⟨p. 286⟩alone: If we have any gifts, any estate, any esteem in the world, all shall be employed for God alone, all shall be laid out for him. As we must be willing to lose all things for him, when he calls for them, (of which before) so we must endeavour to use all things for him, while we do enjoy them. To follow God fully, is to follow him as the highest good, as the only good, as the All-sufficient good, as the Fountain of all good, as the Rule of all good; to follow him so, as to follow nothing else but God; not only to follow God chiefly, that is more than to follow any thing else, but to follow him only. But how is that? I mean thus; we must follow God in our following any thing else, we must follow all for God, in reference to God, in subordination under God, and then we cannot be said to follow the creature, but it is God that is followed in it. As when God is followed in reference and subordination to any good in the creature, it is not then ⟨p. 287⟩God, but the creature that we follow; so when the creature is followed in subordination to God, it is God, and not the creature that is followed. As thus; when David was in the dry Wilderness, no question, he desired water; yet, Psalm. 63. 1. I thirst after thee, O Lord, in a dry and barren Wilderness, where no water is: He doth not say, I thirst after water, but after thee; be cause he sought all in reference to God; and so it was God alone that he thirsted for. When we desire nothing, when we seek after nothing, when we let out our hearts to nothing,, use, enjoy nothing, but in order to God; when all the good, comfort, sweetness, desirableness in any creature is in the reference it hath to God, so far as God is in it, as God is honoured, or enjoyed by it; when God alone is lifted up in the heart, in the use of every creature, this is to follow God fully. Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve; thou shalt follow ⟨p. 288⟩the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou follow. Christ chargeth the Jews, in