A29699:259
Paradise opened, or, The secrets, mysteries, and rarities of divine love, of infinite wisdom,…Paradice opened, or, The secreets, mysteries, and rarities of divine love, of infinite wisdom,…
Paradise opened, or, The secrets, mysteries, and rarities of divine love, of infinite wisdom, and of wonderful counsel laid open to public view also, the covenant of grace, and the high and glorious transactions of the Father and the Son in the covenant of redemption opened and improved at large, with the resolution of divers important questions and cases concerning both covenants ... : being the second and last part of The golden key / by Thomas Brooks ...Paradice opened, or, The secreets, mysteries, and rarities of divine love, of infinite wisdom, and of wonderful counsel laid open to publick view also, the covenant of grace, and the high and glorious transactions of the Father and the Son in the covenant of redemption opened and improved at large, with the resolution of divers important questions and cases concerning both covenants ... : being the second and last part of The golden key / by Thomas Brooks ...
London: printed for Dorman Newman, 1675
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.
A sincere Christian obedience is an entire obedience to all the commands of God, though not in respect1 of practice (which is impossible) but in disposition and affection. A sincere obedience is an universal obedience: It is universal in respect of the subject, the whole man; it is universal in respect of the object, the whole law; and it is universal in respect of durance, the whole life; he who obeys sincerely, obeys universally. There is no man that serves God truly, that doth not endeavour2 to serve God fully: sincerity turns upon the hinges of universality; he who obeys sincerely, endeavours to obey throughly. A sincere Christian does not only love the Law, and like the law, and approve of the Law, and delight in the Law, and consent to the Law, that it is holy, just and good; but he obeys it in part; which, though3 it be but in part, yet he being sincere therein, pressing towards the mark, and desiring and endeavouring to arrive4 at what is perfect; God accepts of such a soul, and is as well pleased with such a soul, as if he had perfectly fulfilled the Law: Where the heart is sincerely resolved to obey, there it does obey; an heart to obey, is our obeying; a heart to do, is our doing; a heart to believe, is our believing; a heart to repent, is our repenting; a heart to wait, is our waiting; a heart to suffer, is our suffering; a heart to pray, is our praying; a heart to hear, is our hearing; a heart to give, feed, clothe, visit, is our giving, feeding, clothing, visiting; a heart to walk circumspectly, is our walking circumspectly; a heart to work righteousness, is our working righteousness; a heart to show mercy, is our showing mercy; a heart to sympathise with others, is our sympathising with others: He that sincerely desire and resolves to keep the commandments of God, he does keep the commandments ⟨p. 65⟩of God; and he that truly desires and resolves to walk in the statutes of God, he does walk in the statutes of God. In God's account, and God's acceptation, every believer, every sincere Christian is as wise, holy, humble, heavenly, spiritual, watchful, faithful, fruitful, useful, thankful, joyful, &c. as he desires to be, as he resolves to be, and as he endeavours to be; and this is the glory of the New Covenant, and the happiness that we gain by dear Jesus.