A29368:291
The freeness of the grace and love of God to believers discovered in reference…
The freeness of the grace and love of God to believers discovered in reference to 1. their services and suffering, 2. their consolations, and 3. their salvation and eternal glory : together with the excellency of the fear of God, the goodness and pleasantness of brotherly love, the wisdom of hearing the voice of the rod, repentance the only way to prevent judgements / delivered in several sermons by the late reverend and faithful minister of Christ, Mr. William Bridge ...The freeness of the grace and love of God to believers discovered in reference to 1. their services and suffering, 2. their consolations, and 3. their salvation and eternal glory : together with the excellency of the fear of God, the goodness and pleasantness of brotherly love, the wisdom of hearing the voice of the rod, repentance the only way to prevent judgements / delivered in several sermons by the late reverend and faithful minister of Christ, Mr. William Bridg ...
London: printed for Nath. Crouch, 1671
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Again, The more suitable any thing is to our condition, the more pleasant and sweet it is: Now this brotherly love and union, is a conjunction of suitable things, and is suitable to our condition, and suitable things are delightful unto men, and the more suitable any thing is, the more we delight in it: And this agreement, this union, is every way suitable to our own condition as we are men, and is also suitable to all the creatures, for they run together, and agree together; And it is suitable to us also as we are Christians, it is suitable to Christs command; A new command saith he. I give unto you, that you love one another. It is suitable to Christs own example, who hath loved us; and suitable also to the Gospel, which is a Gospel of peace: Let your conversation be as becometh the Gospel, that you be of one spirit, and of one mind: So I say, this holy agreement is every way suitable, and therefore the more pleasant and delightful, and so it ought to be unto us.
Secondly, As it is pleasant and delightful, so it is a profitable good: Behold how good a thing it is, it is very profitable. ⟨p. 109⟩For is it not profitable for the dew to fall upon Hermon, and upon the hills of Zion, to make them fruitful? Why, such is the dew of holy agreement, when it falls upon the hearts of men: And this doth make men increase, and multiply in the Church, and to be fruitful in good works; the Psalmist saith, God commandeth his blessing; and when God blesseth, we shall certainly increase and multiply; and this I say did increase the Church, and hereby are the Saints both increased and delighted by the blessing of God on them, they do increase in things that are good, and profitable; and this was the thing which Christ prayed for, yea prayed for again and again; yea as I said it is the great thing which Christ hath commanded: A new command, &c. Is it not therefore good and profitable to love one another?
Secondly, As it is pleasant and delightful, so it is a profitable good: Behold how good a thing it is, it is very profitable. ⟨p. 109⟩