Looking unto Jesus a view of the everlasting gospel, or, the souls eying of…

1. Consider the Project. The great God having entertained thoughts within himself, to communicate himself out of his aloneness everlasting, he lays this plot, that all he would do in that respect, it should be to the praise of the glory of his grace. ¹O my soul consider, meditate and muse on this plot of the Almighty; it is contained by the Apostle in a very few words, do thou weigh them all: here is, 1. The Praise. 2. The glory. 3. Of his Grace. 1. Praise is a setting forth of this or that, by word, or deed, or gesture; it contains in it reverend respect, an high esteem, a strong admiration. 2. Glory is the glorious being, or essence of God, the glory of God in himself. Sometimes we read of the glory of his power, that is, his glorious essence which is most powerful, and sometimes of the glory of his Majesty, that is, his glorious essence which is most Majestical;² and sometimes of the glory of his grace, that is, his glorious essence, which is most gracious and merciful; but, 3. Why the glory of his grace? mercy and grace meet both in love, only they differ thus, mercy is love as it helps the miserable, and grace is love as it gives good things, freely without desert; here then is the great design which God from everlasting carried on, that the glorious essence of his free love, free-grace, should be especially manifested to his Saints, that so thy might admire it, esteem it, honour it, and sound forth the praises of it. All the other designs of God were but subservient unto this. Some reckon up three great designs of the Almighty communicating himself; as 1. The glory of his Saints. 2. The glory of Christ. 3. The glory of himself, and especially the glory of his grace. 1. That his Saints should be glorious, and to that purpose he made heaven and earth, and he makes them Lord of all,³ all things are yours. 2. That Christ should be glorious, and to that purpose he makes the Saints, and gives them to Christ, all things are yours, and you are Christs. And certainly saith the Apostle, at the last day, Christ shall come to be glorified in his Saints, and to be admired in all them that believe. 3. That God himself should be glorified; he made all things for himself. —Bring my sons from far, and my daughters from the ends of the earth, even every one that is called by my name, for I have created him for my glory.