The true Christians love of the unseen Christ, or, A discourse chiefly tending to…

6. Would you have much Love unto Christ? labour for clear Evidences of his Love unto you; the apprehensions of Christ's Loveliness may excite to some love, but the full well grounded persuasions of Christs love to you, will above all heighten your love to Christ. Doubts of Christ's love do cause fears, and fears do contract the heart, and therefore are opposite to love, which is the expansion and enlargement of the heart; perfect love casteth out fear, the more love, the less fear, and the more doubts and fears the less love. Such as doubt much of Christs love to them, they may love Christ truly, but they cannot love Christ strongly. You will love a less lovely person that loves you, more than a more lovely person that hates you; the love of the Person beloved is a most amiable Qualification and strong attractive, yea one of the greatest Incentives and Inducements unto love. Get then a persuasion of the infinite love to you of this Infinitely lovely person, that you may be able to say with Paul, Gal. 2. 20. Who loved me, and gave himself for me. Look diligently into the Word of God, and find out the Characters there of those that are Beloved by Christ; and then look narrowly into your ⟨p. 142⟩selves, and see whether your face will not answer that face in the Looking glass of the Scriptures; see whether you cannot find the lineaments of the New Man within you, whether you have not experienced a gracious change; Is there not Light where there was Darkness? Is there not Life where there was Death? Is there not Love where there was Hatred? Is there not the Law of God written, where the Law of Sin did command all? Is not the Bias of your Wills and Hearts Godward, and Christ-ward, and Heaven-ward? which heretofore was only Sin-ward and Earth-ward and Hell-ward? Pray earnestly unto God, that he would give you a full assurance, that if you are indeed effectually called, if you are indeed united and related unto Jesus Christ, you may know it, and no longer doubt thereof. In a word, seek diligently after the Manifestations of Christ's Love in all the ways of his Ordinances; rest not in the out-side of Ordinances, but seek after Christ in Ordinances, follow him from Sabbath to Sabbath, from Ordinance to Ordinance, and always be looking for him, and looking towards him, till he turn about and look upon you, and give you a gracious smile;

6. Would you have much Love unto Christ? labour for clear Evidences of his Love unto you; the apprehensions of Christ's Loveliness may excite to some love, but the full well grounded perswasions of Christs love to you, will above all heighten your love to Christ. Doubts of Christ's love do cause fears, and fears do contract the heart, and therefore are opposite to love, which is the expansion and enlargement of the heart; perfect love casteth out fear, the more love, the less fear, and the more doubts and fears the less love. Such as doubt much of Christs love to them, they may love Christ truely, but they cannot love Christ strongly. You will love a less lovely person that loves you, more than a more lovely person that hates you; the love of the Person beloved is a most amiable Qualification and strong attractive, yea one of the greatest Incentives and Inducements unto love. Get then a perswasion of the infinite love to you of this Infinitely lovely person, that you may be able to say with Paul,