A55754:233
Sun-beams of gospel-light shining clearly from several texts of Scripture, opened and applied. 1.…Sun-beams of gospel-light shining clearly from severall texts of Scripture, opened and applyed. 1.…
Sun-beams of gospel-light shining clearly from several texts of Scripture, opened and applied. 1. A heavenly [sic] treatise of the divine love of Christ. 2. The Christians freedom. 3. The deformed form of a formal profession. 4. Christs fullness, and mans emptiness. By John Preston, doctor in divinity, chaplain in ordinary to King James, Mr. of Emmanuel College in Cambridge, and sometimes preacher at Lincolns Inn.Sun-beams of gospel-light shining clearly from severall texts of Scripture, opened and applyed. 1. A heavemly [sic] treatise of the devine love of Christ. 2. The Christians freedome. 3. The deformed forme of a formall profession. 4. Christs fulnesse, and mans emptinesse. By John Preston, doctor in divinity, chaplaine in ordinary to King James, Mr. of Emmanuel Colledge in Cambridge, and sometimes preacher at Lincolnes Inne.
London: printed for John Stafford, 1644
Sermon 5 › A HEAVENLY TREATISE OF THE DIVINE LOVE OF CHRIST.
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.
Lastly, he is our Prophet, that Messiah, John. 4. 1which tells us all things; That great Prophet whom Moses foretold, whom if we believe not, we must be for ever accursed. The time of our ignorance God regarded not, but now he will have an eye to us, after that the light hath shone unto us, and he hath revealed himself, when this our Prophet hath come unto us and shown himself unto us. Now God olaimes our love: and if now we refuse to love him, and to come in unto ⟨p. 81⟩him, we are rebels. Yea, he is our Priest, and would reconcile God unto us. Yea, he is made unto us a King, to subdue our lusts and rebellious affections, to draw us to himself, as it were by force: So that now if we love him not, we deserve the curse. Now mark, the Lord hath joined these two together, the Lord Jesus. We must take heed that we separate them not. And we must see that we take him not only as a Saviour, but also as a Lord. He is not only the Author of the remission of our sins, but he is our Lord to rule us. The preaching of the Gospel is nothing but the offering of Christ, his whole person, and so you must take him, as a subject, to be your Lord, as a Spouse to be ruled and guided by him, and then we shall have the benefit which arises thence. We are willing to part with the sweet, but we will have none of the sour: as that young man would have had Christ, but he would not part with his wealth for him. But Christ tells him that he must either part with him or them. Canst thou be content to fare as I do? to be rejected & scorned in the world as I am? then well & good, thou mayest follow me, but otherwise thou canst not. And if thou art content to do thus, to suffer persecution, and to forgo all for him, thou shalt have him, and all the benefits that come by him; if not, thou art not worthy of him: he that believes not the Lord Jesus, is condemned already. i. e. He that takes him not when he is offered, is in the state of ⟨p. 82⟩of condemnation. We must see therefore that we take his whole person, as he is a Lord, as well as he is a Saviour, and not the latter without the former. If any man love not the Lord Jesus, let him be had in execration, yea let him be accursed to the death. The Apostle curses such as love him not, with a double curse. He expresses it