Richard Baxter's Catholic theology plain, pure, peaceable, for pacification of the dogmatical word-warriors who,…Richard Baxter's Catholick theologie plain, pure, peaceable, for pacification of the dogmatical word-warriours who,…

Ans. I suppose it is mis-printed, for the sense should be [He may love God more]. But, 1. I doubt of the antecedent: That Sinner loveth himself as the End of his sinning for his friend: For it is to gratify that proud or selfish humour by which he loveth his friend for the Likeness, Love or Usefulness of that friend to himself; and so his love is finally for or to himself. 2. When he sinneth he doth not practically think that the hurt to himself or the wrong to God is so great an evil, as the pleasure of Sin is good.

Ans. I suppose it is mis-printed, for the sence should be [He may love God more]. But, 1. I doubt of the antecedent: That Sinner loveth himself as the End of his sinning for his friend: For it is to gratifie that proud or selfish humour by which he loveth his friend for the Likeness, Love or Usefulness of that friend to himself; and so his love is finally for or to himself. 2. When he sinneth he doth not practically think that the hurt to himself or the wrong to God is so great an evil, as the pleasure of Sin is good.

But his instance more poseth me; viz. that a mortal Sinner (or ungodly man) may choose rather to be annihilated, and his friend too, than Christ should be blasphemed by all the world, or than God (per impossibile) should perish, or lose his Omnipotency, &c. (for some Romans dyed for their Countries): Therefore he concludeth, that Thus to love God above our selves or all, is not enough to Salvation; but we must also love God above all ut sinem ultimum & qui sit ratio & mensura diligendi caetera; Ita, viz. quod omnia refer at homo in Deum, nolitque am are nisi quantum Deo placuerit, & eadem velit abdicare & perdere ut satisfaciat divino beneplacito & Sanctae ejus voluntati, ut sit ei quantum ad amorem liberum attinet Deus omnis in omnibus, & dicat, vivo jam; non ego, sed Christus vivet in me; against it, He must not only so love God as that he would die rather than God ⟨p. 105⟩should die or suffer (were it possible); but so as to love him as the end of all our lives, and to love the pleasing of his blessed Will in the glorifying of him, better than all things that can stand in any competition:] And I think this to be a necessary truth: I dare not say that every man is Godly that had rather die than God, or the Sun, or the Earth, or his Country should perish. God's Being is not, as such, our End: But his Will (or his Essence as it is his Will) is the Beginning, Governor, and End of all; And it is the Pleasing of this Will of God (in the Glory of our holiness and obedience, in which his holiness and other perfections are resplendent) which must be loved above all. As a man may choose to die, or at least lose all that he hath, rather than his Father should die or be for ever tormented; and yet will not forbear fornication and drunkenness to please his Father's will; because he practically thinketh that the bare displeasing of his Father doth not so much hurt him, as his sinful pleasure doth himself good; so is it in the present case. (And I may add that, God is not loved as God, that is, as perfectly holy and just in governing the world and him, by any bad man: But as he is the God and Preserver of Nature, Nature may love him; but not as he is a most holy Governor) which is essential to the Relative notion of our God.