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

O muse, and meditate, and ponder on this love! it contains in it these particulars: as, 1. The eternal good will of God: what else is the love of God towards the Elect, but his everlasting good will to show them mercy, to do them good, and to save their souls? hence the Angels sung that Anthem at Christs birth, Glory to God in the highest, ¹and on earth peace, good will towards men. 2. The Eternal pleasure and delight of God in the sons of men; the greatest delight that God hath, or ever had, it is in communicating himself to his Son firstly, and next unto his Saints: nay, such delight he takes in letting out his mercy to his Saints: as that he was well-pleased with the death of his own Son, as a means conducing thereunto. O wonderful! one would think that the death of Christ should be the most abhorring to the heart of God of any thing in the world, and yet saith the Scripture, It pleased the Lord to bruise him; ²he took a pleasure and delight in the very bruising of Jesus Christ: the Lord saw this was the way for him to communicate himself in the fullness of his grace unto his Saints, and therefore though it cost him so dear as the death of his own Son, yet he was well-pleased with it. 3. This love of God contains in it a fore-knowledge and approbation of all those effects of his love, whether they be temporal concerning this life, or Eternal concerning the life to come. Concerning these effects of his love, saith John, ³Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God. q. d. Behold it, stand amazed at it, that children of wrath should become the sons of the most high God: for a beggar on the dunghill, a vagabond, a runagate from God, a prodigal, a stranger to God, whom the Lord had no cause to think on, to be made a Son of God Almighty, O divine love! Pause a while, and muse on this! O my soul, that God should fore-know thee from all Eternity with a knowledge of love and approbation, it is admirable to consider, I say it is admirable to consider.

O muse, and meditate, and ponder on this love! it contains in it these particulars: as, 1. The eternal good will of God: what else is the love of God towards the Elect, but his everlasting good will to shew them mercy, to do them good, and to save their souls? hence the Angels sung that Antheam at Christs birth, Glory to God in the highest,