The divine life in three treatises

4. Are you not prone to overvalue and overlove your friends? If so, is not this the meetest remedy for your disease? In the loving of God, we are in no danger of excess; and therefore have no need of any thing to quench it. And in the loving of the godly purely upon the account of Christ, and in loving Saints as Saints, we are not apt to go too far. But yet our understandings may mistake, and we may think that Saints have more of sanctity then indeed they have; and we are exceeding apt to mix a selfish common love with that which is spiritual and holy; and at the same time, when we Love a Christian as a Christian, we are apt not only to Love him (as we ought) but to overlove him because he is our friend, and Loveth us. Those Christians that have no special Love to us, we are apt to undervalue and neglect, and Love them below their holiness and worth: But those that we think entirely Love us, we Love above their proper worth, as they stand in the ⟨p. 317⟩esteem of God: Not but that we may Love those that Love us, and add this Love to that which is purely for the sake of Christ; but we should not let our own interest prevail and overtop the interest of Christ, nor Love any so much for Loving us, as for Loving Christ: And if we do so, no wonder if God shall use such remedies as he seeth meet, to abate our excuse of selfish love.

O how highly are we apt to think of all that Good which is found in those who are the highest esteemers of us, and most dearly love us; when perhaps in it self it is but some ordinary good, or ordinary degree of goodness which is in them! Their Love to us unresistibly procureth our Love to them: And when we Love them, it is wonderful to observe, how easily we are brought to think well of almost all they do, and highly to value their judgements, graces, parts and works: when greater excellencies in another perhaps are scarce observed, or regarded but as a common thing: And therefore the destruction or want of Love, is apparent in the vilifying thoughts and speeches, that most men have of one another; and in the low esteem of the judgements, and performances and lives of other men: (much more in their contempt, reproaches and cruel persecutions.) Now though God will have us increase in our Love of Christ in his members, and in our pure Love of Christians as such, and in our common charity to all, yea and in our just fidelity to our friend; yet would he have us suspect and moderate our selfish and excessive Love, and inordinate partial esteem of one above another, when it is but for our selves, and on our own account. And therefore as he will make us know, that we our selves are no such excellent persons, as that it should make another so laudable, or advance his worth, because he Loveth us; so he will make us know, that our friends whom we overvalue, are but like other men: If we exalt them too highly in our esteem, it is a sign that God must cast them down. And as their Love to us was it that made us so exalt them; so their unkindness or unfaithfulness to us, is the fittest means to bring them lower in our estimation and affection. God is very jealous of our hearts, as to our overvaluing and overloving any of his Creatures: what we give inordinately and excessively to them, is some way or other taken from him, and given them to his injury, and therefore to