[ 503] The experience of God's love, is to be a motive of better obedience.
THere is a famous History of one Androdus the Dane,* 1.1 dwelling in Rome, that fled from his Master into the Wilderness, and took shelter in a Lions den, The Lion came home with a thorn in his foot, and seeing the man in the den, reached out his foot, and the man pulled out the thorn, which the Lion took so kindly, that for three years he fed the man in his den; After three years the man stole out of the den, and returned back to Rome, was apprehended by his Master, and condemned to be devoured by a Lion; It so happened, that this very Lion was designed to devour him: The Lion knows his old friend, and would not hurt him; The people wondred at it, the man was saved, and the Lion given to him, which he carryed about with him in the streets of Rome, from whence grew this saying; Hic est homo medicus Leonis,* 1.2 hic est Leo hospes hominis. Well, most true it is, that the great God of Heaven hath pluckt out many & many a thorn out of our feet, hath delighted him∣self to do us good, let then the experience of such love prick us on to better obedi∣ence, not to bring forth thorns and bryers to him, not to have our hearts barren and dryed up as the thorny ground, not to kick against him with our feet, whilst he is pulling out the thorn that troubles us.