The divine life in three treatises

8. To walk with God, is to live as in his presence, and that with desire and delight. When we believe and apprehend that wherever we are, we are before the Lord, who seeth our hearts and all our ways; who knoweth every thought we think, and every word we speak, and every secret thing which we do: As verily to believe that God is here present and observeth all, as we do that we our selves are here: To compose our minds, our thoughts, our affections to that Holy reverence and seriousness as beseemeth man before his Maker: To order our words with that care and gravity as beseems those that speak in the hearing of the Lord. That no mans presence do seem more considerable to us then his presence: As we are not moved at the presence of a fly, or worm, or dog, when persons of honour ⟨p. 169⟩and reverence are present, so should we not comparatively be moved at the presence of man, how great, or rich, or terrible soever, when we know that God himself is present, to whom the greatest of the sons of men, is more inconsiderable then a fly or worm is unto them. As the presence of the King makes ordinary standers by to be unobserved, and the discourses of the learned make us disregard the babblings of children, so the presence of God should make the greatest to be scarce observed or regarded in comparison of him: God who is still with us should so much take up our regard, that all others in his presence should be but as a candle in the presence of the sun. Therefore it is that a believer composeth himself to that behaviour which he knoweth God doth most expect, and beseemeth those that stand before him: when others accommodate themselves to the persons that are present, observing them, pleasing them, and showing them respect, while they take no notice of God at all, as if they believed not that he is there. Hence it is that the men of God were wont to speak (though reverently yet) familiarly of God, as children of their Father with whom they dwell, as being indeed fellow-citizens with the Saints, who are his household: Abraham calleth him Gen. 24. 40. [The Lord before whom I walk.] And Jacob, Gen. 48. 15. God before whom my Fathers Abraham and Isaac walked.] And David resolveth, Psal. 116. 9. [I will walk before the Lord in the land of the living.] Yea God himself is pleased to use the terms of gracious condescending familiarity with them. Christ dwelleth in them by faith, Eph.