that impreffion is vanifhed and gone." And SER M. divers others have complained of that great dark- II. ⚫ nefs and ignorance, which was in them; and of the bonds and chains that held their fouls fast, fo that they could not tell how to exercise the powers of them towards invifible things. It cannot be then, but the matter must be refolved into this; that if our not feeing God is the reason why he is fo little loved, it is because our nature is grown fo corrupt and degenerate, that what we fee, takes with us moft. And again,

6. We may add hereupon, that this degeneracy of the nature of man must needs stand very much in the depreffion of the mind, or intellectual powers, and the exaltation of sense. For the mind and the understanding, by the light which God had placed there, were to guide and govern the man; inftead of which fenfe ufurped the throne, and took the government of him into its own hands. During the diftraction and interruption of that order, which GOD had originally set between the fuperior and inferior powers of man's foul, fenfe, 'I fay, ufurped the throne, and took the government into its own hands, and man has ever fince bafely yielded, and fubjected himself to its dominion, fo that nothing moves him now but what is fenfible. In this therefore the degeneracy of man very much confifts, that fenfe dictates, and is become the governing principle of his life. And,

7. WE add further, for of this more will be faid when we come to the use or application, that

the

I.

VOL, the not feeing of GoD can be only a temporary cause of our not loving him; inasmuch as it is only a cause, with the intervention or concurrence of another caufe, I mean, the difturbance of that primitive order, which God had fettled between one faculty and another, belonging to the nature of man. Our not seeing GoD could never have prevented us from loving him, if things had not been fo deplorably out of courfe with us, or this confufion of order had never been brought in among us. Therefore this caufe is only temporary, that is, fo long as this great depravation of our nature doth prevail. But there are thofe, with whom it either doth not, or fhall not prevail always. There are fome, bleffed be GOD, in whom this diftemper and diforder of the foul of man is cured. For GOD hath fent his Son, the Redeemer into the world, on purpose to undertake this cure, and to rectify and fet things right in men's fpirits. And Christ gave himself for us that be might redeem us from all iniquity, and therefore furely from this monftrous kind of iniquity, the most horrid of all the reft, to wit, that moft unrighteous unequal thing, that man should not love his own original, and the author of his life and being. Therefore it was the refolution of the Redeemer, "I will die, but I will remedy "this matter. I will give myself, I will facrifice "all that I have, but I will bring this matter to " rights again." I fay then it is only a temporary cause, which has been affigned of men's

I Tit. 11. 14.

not

not loving Gon, fubfifting only fo long as man's SER M. nature continues depraved: which is not only II. curable, but in part is actually cured, when the work of regeneration is fet on foot, and the spirit of the Redeemer has begun to obtain in the foul; and it is completely cured, when the new creature becomes mature, and is rifen up to its full growth and perfection. But in the mean time, fo long as this distemper in the nature of man continues, our not feeing GOD is one great reafon why we love him not. For that way of apprehending GOD, which fhould be the fame with refpect to invifible objects, that fight is with refpect to thofe which are vifible, is wanting. And this apprehenfion will ftill be wanting, that must fupply the room of fight, fo long as this degeneracy remains in us. While it is thus with us, that we are fubject to the power of fenfe which has ufurped the throne, the foul is deftitute of thofe clear conceptions, thofe lively and vivid apprehenfions, that iffue in love to Go D. And fo the great neglects of GoD, and the intolerable difrefpect and affronts that are put upon him in the world, are, in a great measure, according to the prefent degenerate ftate of man, to be refolved into this caufe, namely, that HE IS NOT SEEN. Hence it is, that fo many perfons neither love, nor regard him at all.

HAVING thus explained the point we are upon, I now proceed to evince this truth, that one great reafon, why men are not fo apt to love GoD as they are one another, is because he is not

the

I.

VOL. the object of fight as we are. And this I fhall do from the following confiderations, namely, that the object is fuch as would certainly command our love, if it could be apprehended aright; and if it is not fo, it must proceed from fome defect in ourselves.

1. THAT the object is fuch as would certainly command our love, if it were rightly apprehended. For he is most amiable in himself; and has infinitely more obliged man, than they can ever oblige one another.

GOD, Ifay, is most amiable in himself, who is chiefly to be loved by all, though he is not actually fo; as he is confeffed to be the fupreme object of our understanding, while in reality he is least known. GOD is light, fays the Apostle, in one place of this Epiftle; and GoD is love", as he affirms in two others. A Being of pure light, and glorious love. Would he not be loved therefore, if apprehended aright? Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the Gods! as we find Moses speaking with admiration, Who is like thee, glorious in bolinefs, fearful in praises, doing wonders? GOD is a being wherein the most perfect wisdom, goodness, power, truth and righteoufness, make so admirable a temperature, that it is not poffible he should not be loved, if he were but known.

BESIDES, he has infinitely more obliged men, than they ever have or can oblige one another. Take

* 1 John 1. 5. b iv. 16.

Exod. xv. 11.

Take any man whatsoever, whofe foul you may SER M. fuppofe to be utterly deftitute of the love of II. · GOD, how low and abject foever be his state, yet you may say, "Thou impious wretch ! "thou haft not the love of GoD in thee;

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though he hath done more for thee, than all "the men in the world whatever could do, even though they should all join together to oblige "thee. For is he not the author of thy life, "and being? Could the invention of all the "men in the world have formed fuch a creature

as thou art out of nothing? Is he not a con"tinual fpring of life to thee? Thou livest and "movest, and haft thy being in him every mo<< ment. And it is with this defign, that, GoD "doth continue to thee thy breath and being, "that thou mightest feel after him, though thou "canft not see him, and also labour to find him,

though he be not far from every one of us. "Thou art his offspring as even Heathen poets "tell us, No creature could ever have made "thee. No man is always doing thee good 65 every moment, and at all times; but thou art "continually fuftained by the divine hand. The

great GOD who made thee, feeds thee with "breath from moment to moment, and is always "exercising towards thee fparing and sustaining

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mercy; for his patience and bounty, always concur together, in every moment's addition "to thy breath." It were altogether impoffible then but that GOD fhould be loved, more than

See Acts xvII. 27, 28.

all