The best match, or, The souls espousal to Christ opened and improved by Edward Pearse.

To the Reader.

THere are two main ends for which the Gospel-Ministry is ordained; the one is, the winning of Souls, and bringing them into Christ; the other is the edification and building up of such as are already brought in. It hath pleased Christ, the Head of the Church, who distributeth Gifts in order to the salvation of men, unto whom, and in what measure he pleaseth, to furnish the Author of this Discourse, with good abilities as to both these Works. As to the first, the Lord had given him a peculiar Gift, to qualifie him above many, to Preach the Gospel for the winning of Souls; and the Grace of God in him did inflame his heart with ar∣dent desires, and did excite great longings in him after the conversion of Souls; and he was pleased to crown his own Gifts and Grace in him with great success, many a Soul having been turned unto God by his Labours. And it having pleased God to cast the Author into a languishing Distemper for some months, whereby he was wholly taken off from his Work in Preaching, so great did the desire of doing good to Souls re∣main in him, and such were the yearnings of his Bowels towards them, that being not able to speak to them any longer out of the Pulpit, he could not satisfie himself, but he must needs speak to them in this small Tract, wherein his great Scope and principal Design is, to allure and

draw Souls unto Christ. As to the Matter of the Treatise, I need say little, it will suffici∣ently speak for it self; onely thus much I may say, Union with Christ is the foundation of our Happiness. The Apostle telleth us, that Christ in us is the hope of Glory; We cannot have any sure or sound title to eternal Life and Glo∣ry, but by Ʋnion with Christ; whoever are sa∣ved, are saved by being brought under Christ as their Head. Ephes. 1.10. That in the dispen∣sation of the fulness of times, he might ga∣ther together in one all things in Christ; that he might bring them under one Head; so Zanchy and others interpret the Greek word there used: The Son of God incarnate is the true Vine into which the Elect are implanted. There are but two Roots of Mankind, the First and the Second Adam, the first Adam is the Root of Sin and Death unto all that abide in him; the second Adam is the Root of Righteousness and Life unto all who are implanted into him. The scope of this Discourse, is to perswade men not to be content to abide in the Root upon which they naturally grow, viz. the Root of the first Adam, but to seek after a new Relation unto Christ the second Adam. The Arguments by which the Author presseth Souls to come to Christ, are most pathetical and strong; and as there is a Vein of Heavenly Affection which run∣neth through the whole body of the Discourse to allure such who are yet strangers to the Lord Jesus to fall in love with him, so there is much

solid Matter interwoven, whereby those who are already called, and have attained to some de∣quaintance with spiritual things, may receive farther advantage. It pleaseth the Al-wise God to leave the Author at a great uncertainty as to Life; the Lord hath kept him in the Fur∣nace long, but he hath chosen and refined him in it; and whether it be in this, or in the other World, that he shall please to bring him forth, they who have most intimate converse with him, are perswaded, he will come forth as Gold. The Lord grant that the same presence of Di∣vine Grace, which attended these Sermons in the Preaching of them, may accompany them in the Publication, that many more Souls may be enamoured and drawn to the love of that fairest of ten thousand, the Lord Jesus; that so knowing him, and adhering to him, they may be saved eternally by him, by whom all that have been, are, or shall be saved, are brought to Life and Glory: So prayes,

The unworthiest of Christ's Servants, John Rowe.

Notes

• Col. 1, 27.
• 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉; Om∣nia ad unum caput addu∣cers & adjungere, seu, col∣ligere omnia sub uno ca∣pite.