Heaven upon earth, or, The best friend in the worst of times. Delivered in…

Secondly, They draw nigh to him, they have near access to him.

Thirdly, They have intimate Converse with him. This is another thing required to acquaintance. We are not said to be acquainted with any person, unless we have had intimate converse with him. We may be next Neighbours, and yet have no Acquaintance, unless our conversation hath been mutual. So it is between God and us; there may be a nighness between the Soul and God, and yet no Acquaintance between the Soul and God. We are nigh to God, in our dependence upon him, we are near to God by his immediate providence and sustentation of us, and by his Omnipotence. There is a nearness to God by way of Dedication. As God set apart the Children of Israel to be a people near unto himself; so the visible Church of God is nearer to him then those that are not of the Church. There is a nearness of Dedication among us by Baptism. But all this may be without Acquaintance. There is therefore required to our Acquaintance with God, an intimate converse with God. We have great converse with those who are of the Family, or society with us. Now such is our acquaintance with God, as those who are of his Family. God is called the Father of the Families of all the earth: and the visible Church is reckoned as Gods Family; but in a great Family there may be little Acquaintance with those persons which be of remote employments: but to acquaintance with God there must be such a relation as implies familiar converse. This intimacy that the people of God have to him, is expressed by the nearest relations in Scripture. As Abraham is called The Friend of God. 2 Chron. 20.7. Jehoshaphat prays unto God, and ⟨p. 14⟩saith, Art not thou our God, who didst drive out the inhabitants of this land before thy people Israel, and gave it to the seed of Abraham thy friend for ever? And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh to his Friend, Exod. 33.11. John 15.15