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Show 'Ho!V Spir-ituq_l Love mtty m.t4e a Soul Sicft might but fee a glimps oJjt: And as the Soul i_s notable to bear the full m·anifef\arions·o(Divin~ Love; fo. 2. nenhcr 1s 1t able to bear the want of it. The Soul that lvvt·th fondly, .is lick if it be not lo~ed reciprocaUy ; we fee it amongll creatures, il a man or w_oman loves another in an high degree, and they be I'lOt loved aga1n; it either produceth a Sic'<.nefi ;,. the perfon that fo. loveth; or fome excdfive ,anger, fcorn or hatred. Now the gracious Soul is fo far pofl'affed with the thoughts of its own vilmejs and mtwortbinefi, and of its duty to God, that it cannot be angry at God, it dareth not [corn and coHtmm God; hence it becomes lick of Love. The Second Reafon is the Souls wrokJ~t{i and fi• bjeuion, and pronrne.fi to miftak,rs, conaming the Love of God toward it. Some may fay to me upon the former difcourfe; But is thpe any Soul in the World, that truly loves Chrifi and hath cailfe to be Sick of Love, -for want of Chril\s Love to it? I anfwer not doubtlefs; thtreis not ,for he hath loved us firll,and hisLove to us is the caufe of our Love to him. But 'tis one thing to be beloved of God, <mother thing to fee, and apprehend our felves beloved ; every Soul tliJit truly loves Chrift is truly beloved of Cnril\, but every fuch Soul doth not apprehend that it is fa beloved,and we ufe to fay, De Holl entzbzu etnon apparmtihHs eadem e[f ratio. It is true in this cafe as to the Souls patlion,it is all one not to be beloved; and :not for the Soul to apprehend ir felf beloved. Now this apprehenlion, may be wanting upon a three or fourfold account: The .one natur.al, another Moral, a third Divine, a fourth Pr:r· ternatural. , 1. VpaH • Moral acmmt,that is;imp<rfil1ioJt of K,towledge; many a Soul lies a long time under qark apprehenlions conccrnipg the l.ovc ofGod meerly through a Spiritu.zltgnorattu,being not skilled as it might be in the hqly Scriptttru, and fully underllanding tbofe prim;iplos.of truth laid down theft, from which the Soul might with the help of its own reafon, conclude the Love of God to ·wards it; · The h0ly S!:riptures lay down marks of Gods Chtl· dren in tbefe, and leave the Application to us: Now many a Soul _through want ol Knowledg of thcfc principles, is not able ~o ~on· elude. to• itfelf; hence yqu fhall obferve that thofe Chrtfttans, ·tliat ~re .fllOfi weak in K.Qowledg, arc moll full of thefe fears and <loubts. · , · 2. The Clufe Jometimtl il Natnral; through fome bodily di· Jlt:mpers hind ring the txercifc of ill rea [on, and likewife difpofing the the Soul,tofi•JPitions andfiars and jealoujies.This is ordinarily experimented in perfons fubjcfr to Melattcbaly, that humour, as alfo Vapours from the Spleen, affecting the head, hath this double infl uence upon us: They darken our reafon, we cannot invent, argue and conclude, as at other times, in any cafe ; and be fides this, they d".paturally make us fearful, jealous and fufpitiou,.Now when thefe di~mpers do fall upon a perfon, whofe Soul is poffeffed with the_!fve of God; they do both hinder the Soul !rom ulingof its reafon1o conclude from Scripture .for it fdf,as at other times; and they do alfo ftrangely difpofe the Soul to be fearful, jealous and fufpicious of the Love of God, and the more beeaufe this is the Souls gt'eatefi Interef\ ; thjt look a$ a world ly man, whofe great·Interdl is the world and hi> worldly gain, under thefe di!lempers, fhall be full offears and jealoulies and fufpicions, that he fltall die a beggar, &c. And another that is exceeding fond of his or her Husband, Wife and Children,( which they look upon as the greatef\ Interell in the World,) will be fllll of fears and jealoulies fort hem: So natural is it for an holy and gracious Soul,that looks upon the love of God to it, as of more worth and value, than toooo Worlds when it is under thefe dif\empcrs, to be full of fears and jealou!ies concerning it. A third caufe is SupernatHral, and that is God; who fometimes for the puniOtment of his peoples Sins, fometimes for the trial of their Patiente is pleafed to hide himftlf from his dear ell Servants, and to make them walk in the dark_ and fee no li.~ht; which when he doth, they are lick ofLove. You have an in !lance of this inCa111.5.8. ~here you find the Spoufe under a fad & folitary defertion,& fi:ckmg her beloved, fhe chargeth the Daughters of Jerufalem that if they found her beloved, they Otould teU him that;1;e wMjick_of Love. A fourth caufe of thefe dark apprehenjions is Pr.etematttral, and that it is from' Sata>z; who being a Spirit ha th a fecret power to make fuggel\ions too, and imprdlions upon our Spirits=. now if you confider how ill an influence oft-times a peeviOt Ne!ghbour h_ath upon an Husband orWife,to perf wade them that theu correlations do not love them, though in the mean time the tokens of their love,be matters offcn!ible d ~monl\ration ; you may ealily conceive how mifchifvoLts an influence the fLtggel\ion~ ~nd i'mpr~ffion$ of this evil Spirit may be to, ~nd upon our Sptnts; efpectally conlidering the advantage he hath both frpm hts fubtilty, aad from the advantages that he hath, in this refpe&, 0 that |
