Love's pedigree. Or A discourse showing the grace of love in a believer to…Love's pedigree. Or A discourse shewing the grace of love in a believer to…

We may hence infer the Doctrine of personal Election. Great attempts have been and are used in the Christian world to undermine this truth, but all are in vain: If there were no more Scripture evidence for the confirmation and establishment of this Article of our faith, but only the words of our Text, it is sufficient to enervate all the cavils and objections that are brought against it. If Gods first loving us be not only a Reason, but a Cause too of our loving him; and consequently if any of us have the love of God produced in him, it is an evidence of that antecedent love which he bare to us; it so becomes a distinguishing note between them whom he loved and others; and for that reason it must needs be an infallible evidence of Gods having such a love for us before, which must needs be from Eternity, because his will and purpose is like himself Immutable. And this can amount to nothing less than a Personal ⟨p. 25⟩Election: for, if God be the author of this Grace in us, and he produceth it by his Spirit because he loved us, than we were personally appointed hereto from Eternity. So the Apostle lays it down, Eph. 1.3, 4. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all Spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: according as he hath chosen us in him, before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy.

We may hence infer the Doctrine of personal Election. Great attempts have been and are used in the Christian world to undermine this truth, but all are in vain: If there were no more Scripture evidence for the confirmation and establishment of this Article of our faith, but only the words of our Text, it is sufficient to enervate all the cavils and objections that are brought against it. If Gods first loving us be not only a Reason, but a Cause too of our loving him; and consequently if any of us have the love of God produced in him, it is an evidence of that antecedent love which he bare to us; it so becomes a distinguishing note between them whom he loved and others; and for that reason it must needs be an infallible evidence of Gods having such a love for us before, which must needs be from Eternity, because his will and purpose is like himself Immutable. And this can amount to nothing less than a Personal