The true Christians love of the unseen Christ, or, A discourse chiefly tending to excite and promote the decaying love of Christ in the hearts of Christians with an appendix concerning Christs manifestation of himself to them that love him / by Thomas Vincent.

Section. XVI.

HAving given directions how you may attain the Truth of love to Christ where you are without it, I come now to give directions how you may attain much of this love to Christ, where you have it but in a low degree and weak measure. Would you attain much love to Christ?

1. Be much in Contemplation of Christ; consider often what motives there are of love in him, presse them upon your Spirits and labour to awaken and rouze up your Hearts unto the vigorous exercise of this love. Spend time in secret retirement, and there think, and think again, of the Super∣lative Excellencies and Perfections which

are in Christ's Person, how wonderfull and matchless his love is, what heigths in it that cannot be reached, what depths in it that cannot be fathomed, what other di∣mensions which cannot be comprehended: Meditate often of his benefits, how incom∣parable his love-tokens be: and whilst you you are musing, you may feel the fire burning; whilst you are looking you may feel your Hearts leaping; whilst you are taking a view of him, ere you are aware, your Hearts like the Chariots of Amina∣dab, may run to him: O the ravishments of love! the transports of Soul! which some Believers have found in their retired thoughts and views of Christ. Get often into the Mount of Divine Contemplation, and there look upwards unto Heaven, and think with your selves. Yonder, Yonder a∣bove the shining Sun is the more Glorious Son of Righteousness; there at the right hand of the Throne of God, is my beloved Iesus the Son of God seated, and though he be so high above me both in place and dignity, yet he thinketh upon me, and pleadeth for me, and many a gift hath he thence & sent by his Spi∣rit conveyed unto me, and I can ask nothing of the Father in his name, but, if it be really for my good, I have it by his means. O dear Iesus, how lovely art thou in thy self,

the darling of heaven! the Delight of the Father! the Admiration of Angels! O what brightness of Glory, what shining lu∣stre art thou arrayed with! thou art cloth∣ed with most excellent Majesty and Ho∣nour! thou art girded with infinite Might and Power! the beauty of thy face is most wonderfull! the smiles of thy countenance are most sweet and delightful! and doth this lovely fair One, this fairest of ten thou∣sand, this most excellent and alltogether lovely Person bear a particular love to me? to such a vile worm as me? to such a dead Dog as me? to such an undeserving, ill∣deserving, hell-deserving sinner as me? O what marvellous kindness is this! what in∣fi••i••e Riches of Free Grace! doth he know me by name? hath he given himself for me? and given himself to me? and shall not I give him my heart? am I written in his book•• Redeemed with his blood, clothed with his Righteousness, beautified with his Image? hath he put the dignity of a Child of God upon me, and prepared a place in the Fathers house for me? O wonderful! O admirable! what shall I render? what re∣turns shall I make? had I a thousand tongues, should I not employ them all in speak∣ing his praise? had I a thousand Hearts should I not present them all as too mean to

thank-offering unto him. And yet am I slow, slow of Heart to love this dear and sweet Iesus? awake O my Soul! awake from thy dulness and stupidity? shake off thy sleep which glues thine eye-lids so close together, shake out the dust of the Earth which hath got into thine eyes and keeps thee from the view of thy beloved. Arise O my Soul! and lift up thy self, unfetter thy feet, un••log thy self, take the wing and mount up above the sky and visible Heavens, even to the place where the lovely and dear Iesus is. Take thy leave of the world, and all things therein. Bid farewel to the flattering ho∣nours, the deceitful Riches, the glozing Pleasures, that are here below: bid adieu to them, and leave them to those that place their chiefest happiness in them: if Earth hath thy body for a while, yet let it have thy heart and chiefest affections no more; come O my Soul ascend and soar alo••t unto the Heaven of Heavens, the way unto the Holy of Holies is accessible, the vail is rent, the fore-runner is entred, and thou mayest have entrance too with thy Thoughts, and Desires, and Loves, and Hopes and Ioyes; there thou mayst see and veiw, and admire, and embrace thy dearest Lord; there thy Hea••t may find a fit object for it's Love, even thy dearest Lord Iesus, who wil not re∣ject

& despise thee, but give kind entertain∣ment unto thy love, and withall give the full∣est & sweetest returns; there thy Heart may find a room to dispose of it self, and not only a lodging like that of a wayfaring man for a night, but an habitation wherein to dwell and to take up it's Eternal abode; let thy Heart be thy fore-runner, that when thy body drops off from thee thou mayst know where to betake thy se••f and find ready en∣tertainment there where thy Heart hath been long before. Why dost thou hang down∣wards O my Soul? why dost thou bend so much to the Earth and Earthly things? what is there here below that is not beneath thee, and altogether unworthy of thy Love? how empty, and vain, and thorny are these things? don't wast thy time, weary thy self for very vanity, don't prick and wound thy self with these things any more. What aileth thee O my Soul, that thou art so back∣ward to the Love of Christ? is it because thou canst not see Christ with the Eyes of thy Body? thou shalt see him with those Eyes hereafter, when he comes in his Glory, & thy body is raised and repaired, and sitted to bear such a sight; thou can'st not see the Wind, but thou hearest it's noise, and feel∣est it's blasts; and dost thou not hear Christ's voice in his Word? dost thou not

feel the breathings of his Spirit in his Ordi∣nances. Thou art invisible thy self O my Soul, and art thou so drenched in flesh, that visible objects shall have more Power to draw down thy heart, than this most glori∣ous object (though now invisible) shall have power to draw up thy Heart? dost thou question and doubt of his love to thee? and doth this damp and discourage thy Affecti∣on? whose Image is this which is engraven upon thee? is it not the Image of Christ? what writing is that upon thy Heart? is it not Gods Law written by Christs Spirit? whose deckings and adornings hast thou got about thee? what Beauty is this which is put upon thee? is it not Christs comeliness? where hadst thou those Bracelets, that Ring, those Iewels, that chain of Graces? are they not Christ's love-tokens which he hath given thee? and yet wilt thou doubt of his love? if thou feelest corruption strong, yet dost thou not perceive some Grace? al∣though it be weak? hast thou not some love to Christ, although it be low? are not thy desires chiefly after him, which evidence that thy chief love is to him? and is it so with any but such whom Christ doth love? doth not Christ love first? and yet wilt thou question his love? banish then thy fears, silence thy doubts O my Soul, rouze up thy self and

climb ••p by the Iacobs ladder which is let down to thee from Heaven, and settle thy love upon Iesus Christ and those things which are above, where Christ sits at the Right hand of God. Such retired Con∣templations of Christ, and Soliloquies and pleadings with your own Souls when alone by your selves, will tend exceedingly to the promotion of your love unto Christ.

2. Would you have much love to Christ? Be much in Reading and Studying the Scriptures. The Scriptures are a Glasse in which Christ may be seen, he cannot be seen Face to Face in this World, this is the happiness of the Triumphant Church in Heaven, not of the Militant Church upon the Earth; what may here be discerned of Christ, it is in the glass of the Scriptures and Gospel-Ordinances: this is that glass spo∣ken of, 2 Cor. 3. 18. We all with open face beholding as ••n a glass the Glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from Glory to Glory. Christ is the Glory of the Lord, the brightness of his Fathers Glory? would you have much love to him, be often looking, veiwing and beholding of him in the glass of the Scriptures, by much beholding of him, you may be trans∣formed more and more into the likeness of

his Holiness, and into the likeness of his Love, which is Glory begun. The Scrip∣tures have the Image of Christ engraven upon them; the Image of the Father is upon the Son, and the Image of the Son is upon the Scriptures; there you may see the Picture of Christ, the Beauty of Christ, at least some lineaments are there drawn by the hand of God, although not fully and to the life, I mean such you will see in him when you come to behold him face to face in Heaven; yet his Beauty is drawn in such proportions and with such sha∣dows as you are now capable of behold∣ing. Would you have much love unto Christ whom you have never seen? look much upon his Picture and Image in the Scriptures. The Scriptures are Christs Love letters. In the second and third Chap∣ters of Revelations, Christ doth send Se∣ven Epistles to the Seven Asian Churches; there are many Epistles and Love-letters as it were in the Scriptures, especially in the New Testament, wherein Christ doth give most kind expressions of most en∣deared Love unto his People. Read much and study Christ's Love letters, especially those parts of the Scriptures wherein Christ doth express most of his kindness and love. See how kindly Christ doth express him∣self,

Ioh. 14. v. 1, 2, 3, 13, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 27. Chap. 1••. v. 9. 13, 14, 15, 16. Chap. 16. v. 7. 22, 24, 26, 27. 33. Chap. 17. v. 9, 10, 11, 15, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24. Chap. 20. v. 17. Read often and consider such places. Let the Word of Christ dwell richly in you, and his will feed and maintain your love to Christ, this is a means to have Christ dwell in your hearts, not onely by Faith, but also by most endeared Love.

3. Would you have much Love to Christ? be much in Prayer unto God for this Love. Eph. 6. 23. Peace be unto the Brethren and love with Faith from God the Father. Not onely Peace is from God, who is called the God of Peace, and Faith from God, who works it by his Almighty power; but alos Love is from God, who is the God of Love; he circumciseth the heart to love himself, and to love his Son. This love of Christ is a Grace of the Spirit, which God doth freely give and power∣fully work, the Beginnings of it, the In∣crease of it, all the Measures and De∣grees of it are from him; If you would attain high measures of love to Christ, you must apply your selves unto God in Pray∣ter, and therein diligently seek to him for it.

If you would have much love to Christ in your hearts, you must be often at the Throne of Grace upon your Knees; and there humbly acknowledge, if not the want, yet the weakness of your love to Christ, bewail your Sins which do damp your Affections, and earnestly request that he would work your hearts unto a strong love; be importunate in Prayer for this, follow God day by day with the same re∣quests, plead with him for it, fill your mouths with Arguments, and fill your Ar∣guments with Faith and ••ervent Desires. Tell him, whatever lovelinesse and love there be in Christ, whatever attractives to draw forth your love, yet of your selves you are utterly unable to put forth the least motion of true affection unto Christ. Tell him, that this love to Christ, though it be your Duty, yet it is his Gift, that you ought to act it, but this you cannot do, unless he works it. Tell him how easily he can enkindle this Fire of Love to Christ in your bosoms, and blow it up into a flame. Tell him, he hath bid you to ask and you shall have, and whatever you ask according to his will he heareth, and that it is his will you should love Christ not onely truely but also strongly. Tell him, you desire much love to Christ,

and that these desires do come from him∣self, and therefore earnestly desire the ful∣filling of them. Tell him, if you do not love Christ much, you shall be apt to over∣love the Creature, which will be displea∣sing to him, therefore request that you may have such a love to Christ as may overpower all other love, and keep your hearts from all Inordinacy of affections to any thing beneath and besides the Lord Jesus Christ. Plead how much it will be for his Glory, that you should have much love unto Christ, that hereby you shall be enabled to honour him the more in the world. Plead how much it will be for your good; tell him, if you asked Corn and Wine and Oyl; if you asked Wealth and Honours, and Creature-delights in abundance, they might be a snare to you, and for your hurt; but a strong love to Christ is needfull and usefull, and be sure will be for your good; urge his Promise of Circumcising the heart to love him, and plead his Faithfulness; and if you be thus importunate in Prayer for much love to Christ, and will not be denyed, you shall not be denyed.

4. Would you have much Love to Christ, get much Faith. Faith worketh Love both to the Father and to the Son;

According to the measure of your Faith, so will the measure of your Love be: Such as are without any Faith, are without any Love; such as have but a ••eeble faith, have but a weak love; and such as have the strongest faith, have the strongest love. The strongest faith giveth the clearest dis∣covery of Christs infinite Excellencies and Perfections; It is not the eye of Sense which doth discern Christ, neither is it the eye of Reason which doth discern him; whatever discoveries we have of Christ, it is by Revelation, and this is discernable onely by Faith. Faith is the Evidence of things not seen, and the unseen Christ is evident by Faith to be the most excellent Person, and the most sutable Object of love, and the more evident the Object of love is, the stronger will the love be. Moreover, Faith is not onely the Eye of the Soul to discern Christ, but also the Hand of the Soul, not onely to take hold on him, but also to receive from him of his Fulness Grace for Grace, and by con∣sequence more of this Grace of love to him. Our Communion with Christ is by Faith; the more intimate acquaintance and fellowship we have with those whom we love, the more endeared will be our love; the strongest Faith brings us unto

the greatest intimacy, fellowship and fa∣miliarity with Christ, and therefore it is a means of the strongest Love. Endea∣vour then to get a strong Faith, and to live daily in the powerfull exercise there∣of; the more you live by Faith, the more you will dwell in the Love of Christ.

5. Would you have much Love unto Christ? labour for much of the Spirit; la∣bour for much of the Light of the Spirit; There must be not onely the Glass of the Scriptures, and the Eye of Faith, but also the Light of the Spirit, that you may have a clear discerning of this lovely Lord Je∣sus; Labour for much of the Operation of the Spirit; the Spirit is like Wind to blow up the Sparks of Love in your hearts into a flame. Labour for the inhabitation of the Spirit, and that the Promise may be made good to you which Christ giveth to his Disciples. Ioh. 14. 16, 17. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you ano∣ther Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; even the Spirit of Truth, whom the World cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him; but ye know him, for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

6. Would you have much Love unto Christ? labour for clear Evidences of his Love unto you; the apprehensions of Christ's Loveliness may excite to some love, but the full well grounded perswa∣sions of Christs love to you, will above all heighten your love to Christ. Doubts of Christ's love do cause fears, and fears do contract the heart, and therefore are opposite to love, which is the expansion and enlargement of the heart; perfect love casteth out fear, the more love, the less fear, and the more doubts and fears the less love. Such as doubt much of Christs love to them, they may love Christ truely, but they cannot love Christ strong∣ly. You will love a less lovely person that loves you, more than a more lovely per∣son that hates you; the love of the Per∣son beloved is a most amiable Qualifica∣tion and strong attractive, yea one of the greatest Incentives and Inducements unto love. Get then a perswasion of the infi∣nite love to you of this Infinitely lovely person, that you may be able to say with Paul, Gal. 2. 20. Who loved me, and gave himself for me. Look diligently into the Word of God, and find out the Chara∣cters there of those that are Beloved by Christ; and then look narrowly into your

selves, and see whether your face will not answer that face in the Looking glass of the Scriptures; see whether you can∣not find the lineaments of the New Man within you, whether you have not expe∣rienced a gracious change; Is there not Light where there was Darkness? Is there not Life where there was Death? Is there not Love where there was Hatred? Is there not the Law of God written, where the Law of Sin did command all? Is not the Biass of your Wills and Hearts God∣ward, and Christ-ward, and Heaven-ward? which heretofore was onely Sin-ward and Earth-ward and Hell-ward? Pray ear∣nestly unto God, that he would give you a full assurance, that if you are indeed ef∣fectually called, if you are indeed united and related unto Jesus Christ, you may know it, and no longer doubt thereof. In a word, seek diligently after the Manifesta∣tions of Christ's Love in all the wayes of his Ordinances; rest not in the out-side of Ordinances, but seek after Christ in Ordinances, follow him from Sabbath to Sabbath, from Ordinance to Ordinance, and always be looking for him, and look∣ing towards him, till he turn about and look upon you, and give you a gracious smile; seek and wait for that Manifesta∣tion

of himself which he hath promised to hem that love him, Ioh. 14. 21. Wait for his Mission of the Holy Ghost from Heaven, 1 Pet. 1. 12. to shed abroad the sense of his Love into your hearts, Rom. 5. 5. and if you did know assuredly and had a sense hereof given unto you by the Spirit of Christ, O the Joyes which then you would have in him! O the love which then you would have to him! As your Joyes would be unspeakable, so your Love would be unspeakable too; such a warmth of heart and burning of love to Christ you would feel within you, as is beyond the Rhetorick of the Tongue to set forth.

7. Would you have much Love to Christ? get much hatred of Sin, and ac∣cordingly watch and pray, and strive and fight against Sin, as the worst of Evils, as that which doth so much displease your Lord. Bewail sins of daily incursion, and labour that your sins of Infirmity may be less every day than other; Take heed of sins of sudden surprize, but chiefly of de∣signed sins, and that you comply not with any temptations unto grosser miscarriages, which like water cast upon the Fire of your love to Christ, will put out the

flame, and leave onely a few unperceiv∣able sparks in the corner of your hearts. Suffer not Sinne to have any room in your hearts, or if it will abide and you cannot thrust it quite out, let it not have a quiet habitation within you; di∣sturb sin as much as you can, wage war every day with your remaining Lusts, let no day pass over your heads without giving some blows, some thrusts and wounds to Sin. St••eighten the room of Sin in your hearts as much as may be; the more room Sin hath in your hearts, the less room Christ will have there. Particularly, take heed of inordinate love to the world, and the things in the world, the prevalency of which love will damp your love to Christ; by how much more the world gets of your love, by so much the less Christ will have of it. A subordinate love you may have to Persons and Things in the world, but let no person or thing have your chief love but only Christ; love no∣thing for it self with an abstracted love, but love all inferiour things with inferi∣our love, love all under the Lord, and in the Lord, and for the Lord's sake; get all in∣ordinate affections to the world crucified by the Cross of Christ. You must have dying affections to perishing things, if you

would have a living and active love to the ever-living Jesus.

8. Would you have much love unto Christ? associate your selves most with those that have most love unto Christ; you may fetch light from their light, & you may fetch warmth from their Fire; dead coals are enkindled by the living, and your dead hearts may be enkindled with love to Christ by the warm discourse of those that have warm hearts. Be ready to speak of Christ and for Christ in any company as you have sit opportunity, and diligent∣ly watch for an Occasion; shut your ears against and reprove profane & ••ilthy Com∣munication; divert that which is vain and frothy, and be ready to begin and promote that which is serious & savoury, that which is gracious and may tend to your own and others Edification: Study the Art, and practise it, of provoking all whom you converse withall, not unto Strife and Con∣tention, but unto this love and Affection unto the Lord Jesus Christ, and whilest you are endeavouring to warm others with this Love, you may be warmed your selves.

9. And lastly, Would you have much Love unto Christ? be much in the exer∣cise of this love, hereby it is encreased

and heightned; Use legs and have legs; and if you act this love frequently, it will hereby get strength and Activity; every day endeavour to put forth some vigorous acts of love unto Jesus Christ. In your ordinary Callings and secular Business and Employment, you may send up some looks of Love unto Jesus Christ in your Ejacu∣lations. But especially in the Duties of Gods immediate Worship, labour that your love may flow out unto Christ most vigorously. In your daily secret Devotion and Family-Worship, let love to Christ draw forth tears from your eyes, at least cause grief and sorrow in your hearts, in the acknowledgement of your sins, where∣by he hath been dishonoured and displea∣sed. Let love to Christ draw forth ear∣nest desires after Christ, and those com∣munications, manifestations, and consola∣tions which he doth give to none but such as are his; let love to Christ put requests into your mouths, arguments into your requests, and fervour into your arguments in your pleadings with him at the Throne of Grace for further supplyes of his Grace, and that you may be brought into more intimacy of acquaintance with him. Eve∣ry day you should express your love to Christ, especially on the Lords day, when

almost the whole day is to be spent in publick and private Exercises of Religi∣ous Worship, in all your love to Christ should be in exercise; in your attendances upon him in Ordinances you most bring not only your Bodies before him, but pre∣sent your Hearts unto him; this you should be carefull to do in publick Pray∣er and Hearing of the Word, Preaching and Singing Psalms; often should you endeavour in every Ordinance to lift up your hearts unto the Lord; but above all when you approach the Lords Table, all your Graces should there and then be in exercise, especially this Grace of love to Jesus Christ, your Eye there should affect your Heart, when you see the represen∣tations of your crucified Lord, and think what manner of Love he did bear to you, that he should submit himself un∣to such a Death for you, how should this affect your hearts! And if ever, then your Love to Christ should shew it self, and act with the greatest vigour and strength.