Casuistical morning-exercises the fourth volume /

2. The formal nature of this Love; and here I shall premise, that it is best understood and known by its own exercised, and experienced vigour. Sensation helps us to the clearest, and most lively apprehensions, the most accurate Definitions and Descriptions, that can be given us by the most sagacious and exact Persons can never tell you to such degrees of satisfaction in your information; what Health or Sickness, Hunger or Thirst, Pain or Ease, Light or Darkness, Sweetness or Bitterness, &c. are, as one hours experience of your own will do. Men that are born blind, have not by all the advantages of reading to them, or discoursing with them, such clear discerning of light, as a little opening of their own Eyes will help them to; Beauty and Melody are and must be seen and heard before they can be duly understood; but as far as I am able, I shall adventure to describe it thus.

Love is the Pleasure of the Heart or Will in the discerned and valued excellency of its object. So as delightfully to make it accommodate it self unto the Nature, Pleasure, and concerns thereof. Or it is the endearment of apprehended excellence, so as to sweeten all our contemplations, and esteem thereof; our motions towards it, our reposes in it, our sufferings and adventures for it, and our reposes and abode therein. Here we may briefly note these things. 1. When its Object doth evidently transcend our reach and pitch in excellence, ⟨p. 325⟩then the formal Act of Love is a delightful Admiration of Perfection. Infinite Wisdom, Power and Goodness cast us upon the heights and depths of wonder and astonishment, and entertain us with the highest satisfactions in our severest, and most awful Contemplations thereof; these ravishing views or thoughts of the incomprehensible source and abyss of Perfection, which is Essential Goodness, and the very height thereof, (for what is Goodness, but the height of Excellency?) affect us with the most reverend sense thereof. 2. Where excellency appears as capable of being shadowed forth by imitations and resemblances, and challenges our Conformities thereunto, the formal act of Love is a pleased attempering of it self unto its much valued and endeared object; joyfully loving and endeavouring a correspondency and agreement with all the communicable excellencies and allurements of such a valuable and admired pattern and exemplar; thus love is an ambitious imitation of admired worth, pleasing it self in all it's gradual approaches to it's Object, in it's attainments of what most resembles him, whose mirrors we so much long and please our selves to be: Thus our Christian love (our Love to God, and unto Christ his Image) in it's nature, it's operations, and attainments is but the impress of Divine Perfections upon our selves, with all the solaces, which arise in and from our thus transformed selves. 3. When excellency appears upon the Theatre, showing it's lustre in exquisite performances and Productions, bearing the Signatures of that Name, whose works they are, (as the Invisible things of God are known, by the things that are made, even his Eternal Power and Godhead,