Invisibles, realities, demonstrated in the holy life and triumphant death of Mr. John Janeway,…

Shall not the sweetness of Christ overcome us; that seeing his love was so great, as not to spare his life for us, yea, and suffer more for us I believe than we think he did, nay, I may say than we can conceive he did, and that which commends his love to us is, that he should do and suffer so much for us, that of his creatures we were become his Enemies? Why should we not then cheerfully submit to him in this one command, love one another? Doth not the very word Love carry in it at the first hearing abundance of alluring violence? This is Christs yoke, and here we may well say, his yoke is easy and his burden is light. What is there in a life of divine love that we need be afraid of? What is there is this command that is grievous? How can this yoke be uneasy? What reason to be loath to take it on? But such is the base degeneracy and unreasonableness of corrupted nature, that when any thing comes in competition with self-love, then all bonds must be broken, all yokes must be cast off, and nothing will then keep us in, but we must and will take our own part though never so bad. And our own part in the heart of passion must seem best, ⟨p. 84⟩though it be contrary to infinite Righteousness, which is God himself. O that we could once learn to lay aside this natural prejudice, which we have against whatsoever doth thwart our humours, though it be never so just, holy and rational. O that we could look more narrowly, and search more exactly into our selves with a spiritual Eye, and then we could not but see that which would make us loath our selves, and to become abominable in our own Eyes, and rather take any part than our own, we should see so much deceitfulness in our selves, as that we should think our case bad though it seem never so good to our natural self, till we apply it to the rule. Rule, nature would have none but it self; and though in our better composure of mind, we may receive some other rule; yet in our passions we cannot spare time to go to any other rule, but we take that which is next to hand, and self vvill be sure to be that. But we must, if we vvill be true Christians, learn to deny self, and wholly to submit our selves to the Command of Christ, as our only Rule. O, let the power of Christs love, and command, make us obedient to this command of love. Secondly, If we are to walk as Members of Christ, who is our Head;

Shall not the sweetness of Christ overcome us; that seeing his love was so great, as not to spare his life for us, yea, and suffer more for us I believe than we think he did, nay, I may say than we can conceive he did, and that which commends his love to us is, that he should do and suffer so much for us, that of his creatures we were become his Enemies? Why should we not then cheerfully submit to him in this one command, love one another? Doth not the very word Love carry in it at the first hearing abundance of alluring violence? This is Christs yoak, and here we may well say, his yoak is easie and his burthen is light. What is there in a life of divine love that we need be afraid of? What is there is this command that is grievous? How can this yoak be uneasLy? What reason to be loath to take it on? But such is the base degeneracy and unreasonableness of corrupted nature, that when any thing comes in competition with self-love, then all bonds must be broken, all yoaks must be cast off, and nothing will then keep us in, but we must and will take our own part though never so bad. And our own part in the heart of passion must seem best,