upon a level with those whom you believe are interested in the love of GOD, then why not believe it for thyself? Haft thou not the same encouragement to believe as they had? Are not the fame promises made, and the fame bleffings communicated to thee? then why not the fame fame faith upon love, wherewith he hath loved thee? Thou need not fear deceiving thine own foul upon believing thy intereft in the love of God; for never did a fingle foul, fince the foundation of the world, believe its intereft in the love of God, and defire to make in prayer, praife, and obedience, returns of love to him again, but what was upon a fafe bottom. But it may be the later part of the objection fticks clofe to thy heart, thou thinkeft that fure thou haft no interest in the love of God, because thou findest such a little difpofition to make returns of love to him.

I answer, the only way to have thy mind influenced with returns of love to GOD, is first to believe his love to thee; for the returns of love to GoD are the pure effects of faith in his love, we love him because he first loved us. Now the HOLY GHOST, who knoweth all things, yea the deep things of God, declares that God's love is the foundation of ours; not only as to fettlement, but to manifeftation and power. Therefore, until we believe the love, tenderness and grace which God hath towards us, we shall make but flow returns of love to him. To believe that God loves us, because we love him, is to rob him of the honour of his love, in making our love to him the impulfive cause of his to us; when his love is the grand cause of ours; it is the view of his free, rich, eternal love to us, that creates and maintains our returns of love to him in all the paths of holy obedience; for as God loves us freely, with out any motive in us, or reluctancy in himself, fo he maintains a fense of this by the ftrength of faith, of intereft in his love, which creates a mutual return, or an interchange of love. Therefore if ever thou thinkeft to love the LORD thy GOD with all thy heart, foul, and ftrength; to delight in the riches of his grace, return love for love, you must know that this is only to be enjoyed by a believing fenfe of JEHOVAH's love to thee; for it is his love that opens the door of our hearts to receive him in all the tenderness and kindness which he hath discovered in his word; then we embrace him with all the endearing fweets of a father and a friend, who highly efteems the small returns of love which we make to him in praise and obedience; and is much pleased when we embrace him as the Father of mercies, and the GoD of all confolation, who com

farteth us, when we are caft down. Thus it behoves us to lay. afide our reafonings, all hard thoughts of GOD, and to take up his love upon, a pure act of believing, which is the only way to enjoy communion with him, in all the difplays of his wisdom, love, and power and let us no longer,, think that our God is edged around with perfections inacceffible, to, ftrike us with terror, and death; but let us believe him to be, what in his nature he really is, a being of infinite, boundlefs, inconceivable mercy, grace, love, and compaffion, Zeph. iii. 17. The Lord thy God in the mind of thee is mighty; he will fave, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will reft in I his loves he will joy over thee with finging.

J

Friendly, As this appears to be the cafe, between God and his people, what an honour. have the faints conferred upon them by their heavenly Father?,

i

1

1

Truth. Yes, this honour, have all the faints, Pfal. cxlix. 9.. It is efteemed an high honour among men to ftand in the prefence of an earthly king, but to hold commuion with the King of kings, to go with him to the royal banquet, to feaft upon heavenly manna, and drink of the wine of the kingdom, are bleffings of a more high and exalted nature, and what the world, knew nothing of. If men are eftecmed, one among another, according to the company they keep; and it be counted an honour to ftand in the prefence of a prince, though but as a fervant, then what eftimation fhouid the faints have one of another, who are (through the interceffion of the Prince of peace) favoured to ftand with boldness in the prefence of their heavenly Father, and there to enjoy his bofom love. If the queen of Sheba could with pleasure fay to Solomon, Happy are thefe thy fervants, which stand continually before thee, and hear thy wifdem, what kind of transport fhall we ufe to exprefs the happiness of the faints, who ftand in the prefence of Salomon's God and King, not only hearing his wifdom, but enjoying the fmiles and feals of his love, while fome poor mortals are satisfied in making provifion for the flesh, to fulfil the luft thereof, whose end is deftruction, whole Gop is their belly, whofe glory, is their fhame, who mind earthly things

Hence it is, that the faints have fuch a fweet retreat in the bofom of their heavenly Father's love, amidst all the fcorn and reproaches they meet with! Here, they meet with contempti, ble treatment from the men of the world, who look upon them as the officouring of all things, and as the filth of the earth; they use them ill in their perfons, names, and characters, by VOL. III. G

cafting fuch difdainful reflections upon them, as though they were not fit to live, when their heavenly Father calls them the excellent of the earth, in whom is all my delight; and Paul faith, of whom the world is not worthy. When a child is misused in the ftreets it haftens home to the arms and bofom of its father, makes its complaints, and there finds fafety; in like manner the Chriftian, when it meets with the frowns and reproaches of the men of the world, flies by faith into the bofom of his heavenly Father, and leaves his complaints with him, who hath faid, Ifa. Ixvi. 13. As one whom his mother comforteth, fo will I comfort you, and ye fhall be comforted; so that the Chriftian may fay, though the world hate me, because I will not run into the fame excefs of riot with them, yet this is my peculiar joy, my heavenly Father loves me, and I am happy. Though the world frown upon, and think hard of me, yet my Father and my GoD thinks tenderly of me, and peaks compaffionately to me; I will go to, and fatisfy my foul in him, whofe Living kindness is better than life: Though my fellow mortals deny me their fmiles, favours and drops of comfort, yet I am happy in the fmiles and favours of my GOD, who affords me the full fountain of his love to fatiate and delight my foul, while thofe that frown upon, and deride me, becaufe of my zeal for GOD, have not a fingle drop of thefe comforts I enjoy, which are fpiritual, heavenly, and divine; for I find in my Father's love'the fum of fweetness, joy of life, and fountain of happiness; fo that my lofs of creature-fmiles and favours terminates in my felicity, as it intensely drives me to my Gon, in whom I find a completion of joy.

!

Friendly. But is there not a mutual communion and fellowfhip between CHRIST and his church, in the glory of his perfon, fulness, grace, and relations that he ftands in unto his people?

Truth. Yes, the apostle John faith, Fruly, our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Chrift Jefus. Again, 1 Cor. i. 9. God is faithful, by whom ye were called into the fel lowship of his Son Jefus Christ our Lord I have endeavoured to explain what communion with God is, under the character of a Father, as therein is contained fomething fo engaging, attracting, and delightful; but as Father, Son, and Spirit are one undivided effence, yet three divine perfons, and as each divine perfon in the Godhead is engaged in the economy our falvation, certainly then it is that the Chriftian enjoys communion with each divine perfon in the Godhead; not with three divine beings; no, but with three divine perfons in one

hature, or felf-exiftent being, fo far as they are concerned to carry on, and accomplish our falvation. This appears evident from the apoftle's carneft defire for the believing Corinthians, 2 Cor. xiii. 14. The grace of cur Lord Jefus, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all, Amen; which proves that the Chriftian enjoys communion with each divine perfon in the adorable Trinity.

Friendly. Wherein does it appear that the Chriftian has communion with CHRIST in the glory of his perfon?

Truth. That the church holds communion with CHRIST, and CHRIST with his church, is evident from the preparations which CHRIST hath made for his church, and the grateful. returns which the church makes to CHRIST.

First, The preparations which CHRIST hath made for the entertainment of the church, are infinitely great, and unspeakably glorious, all the rich, immenfe treasures of his love, fet forth under the metaphor of a feast. He hath furnished his table with a feaft of fat things; wine on the lees well refined; and faith, Come eat of the bread, and drink of the wine which I have mingled; come, for all things are ready. And again, Rev. iii. 20. Behold, Iftand at the door, and knock; if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will fup with him, and he with me. All thefe, and many other like expreffions, hold forth that delight and communion which CHRIST takes with his people.

The grateful returns which the church makes to CHRIST manifeft, that mutual delight fubfifts between them; for her defire is, that he may meet with an entertainment fuited to the dignity of his perfon, therefore fhe fays, Cant. iv. 16. Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits. And the kind afwer which CHRIST makes to the request of his spouse, fhews the complacency that he takes in her company'; I am come into my garden, my fifter, my spouse.

The church no fooner defired the prefence of CHRIST, but The fays, Let my beloved come into his garden; as though the had faid, It is his garden by choice, by purchase; he has cultivated, watered, and planted it, therefore he hath an effential right to it, and to all the fruit that grows therein. Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits; or rather thus, The garden is my foul, which is his by fpecial love, his by purchase, the dear, expenfive purchase of his foul, when it was exceedingly forrowful, even unto death; the reward of his precious blood, and fruit of his bleeding agonies, when

Ga

100

he sweat great drops of blood falling to the ground;-thus dear and coftly is my foul, the garden of my beloved, where he has planted the sweet and odoriferous fruits of heaven, viz, faith, hope, and love; which fruit is precious and favoury to my beloved, as faith embraces, hope waiteth for, and love taketh him with all his glories into full poffeffion, O this grace and kindness of his heart renders him my Beloved! his perfon is infinite, his glories are matchlefs, his beauties are attracting, Let my Beloved come into his garden.

1

The kind return which CHRIST makes, I am come into my garden, my fifter, my spouse; is as much as if he had said, I heard thee call, and my heart being replete with kindness, Į hafted away upon the wings of love; I am come into my garden, my fifter, my spouse. I have gathered my myrrh with my fpice, I have eaten my honey with my honeycomb, I am delighted, refrefhed, and fatisfied with the fruits of my fweetneles wherewith thou haft entertained me.

From hence we may note the generous and fuper-abounding returns of love, which CHRIST makes to the believing foul, Drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved! "O my beloved, thy

heart panted after me; thou faidft, Let my beloved come, and "lo! I am now come into my garden, with all the plenitude "of grace, my heart open to thee with all the boundless riches "of everlasting love; therefore drink, O my beloved, yea, "drink abundantly; the fountains of heaven are fet open for, and the fulness of the Deity is prefented unto thee; there fore drink of every promife, of every bleffing my word contains; drink of every fpring and ftream of mercy flowing "from my heart; of my incarnate, bleeding, dying, interceding, "never-failing love: yea, drink till thou art overcome with "love for my heart is fo unfathomably rich, that though

thou drinkeft every moment, there is no fear of want; for "there is fuch an eternity in my kindness, that eye hath not feen, nor ear heard of, neither hath it entered into the "heart of man to conceive of; but yet it is laid up for thee, " Q my beloved !

This is a fhort hint of what I mean, my dear Friendly, by communion between CHRIST and the foul that believes in him or that communion-feaft, wherewith CHRIST and his people entertain each other; which is, in the moft lively and ftriking manner, exemplified by the fpiritual allegory con tained in this book of the Canticles; under which allegory you will find the moft ftrong and paffionate expreflions of love, an ardent defire, and a fuperlative delight in each other. I