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How shall we get a share in God's saving mercy?</strong>

(1) If we would have saving mercy, it must be through Christ. Outside of Christ, there is no saving mercy. We read in the old law, that none might come unto the holy of holies, where the mercy-seat stood—but the high-priest: to signify that we have nothing to do with mercy but through Christ our High-priest. That the high-priest might not come near the mercy-seat without blood, is to show that we have no right to mercy—but through the expiatory sacrifice of Christ's blood, Lev 16:14. That the high-priest might not, upon pain of death, come near the mercy-seat without incense, Lev 16:13, is to show that there is no mercy from God without the incense of Christ's intercession. If we would have mercy, we must be in Christ. Mercy swims to us through Christ's blood!

(2) If we would have mercy, we must pray for it. "Show us your mercy, O Lord, and grant us your salvation." Psalm 85:7. "Turn unto me, and have mercy upon me." Psalm 25:16. Lord, put me not off with common mercy; give me not only mercy to feed and clothe me—but mercy to pardon me. Lord, give me not only sparing mercy—but saving mercy. Lord, give me the cream of your mercies; let me have pardoning mercy and loving kindness. "Who crowns you with loving kindness and tender mercies." Psalm 103:4. Be earnest suitors for mercy; let your needs quicken your importunity. We pray most fervently, when we pray most feelingly.

VI. "Of those who LOVE me."

"You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment." Matthew 22:37-38

God's mercy is for those who love him! Love is a grace which shines and sparkles in his eye, as the precious stone upon Aaron's breastplate. Love to God is a holy expansion or enlargement of soul, by which it is carried with delight after God, as the chief good. Aquinas defines love as "a complacent delight in God, as our treasure." Love is the soul of religion; it is a momentous grace. If we had as much knowledge as the angels, or faith to do great miracles—yet without love it would profit nothing. 1 Cor 13:2. It is so, because, if it is lacking, there can be no true religion in the heart; there can be no faith, for faith works by love. Gal 5:6. All else is but pageantry, or a devout compliment.

Love meliorates and sweetens all the duties of religion, it makes them savoury food, without which God cares not even to taste them. As to the excellence of this grace, love is the first and great commandment. Love is the queen of graces; it outshines all others, as the sun the lesser planets. In some respects it is more excellent than faith; though in one sense faith is more excellent, as it unites us to Christ. It puts upon us the embroidered robe of Christ's righteousness, which is brighter than any the angels wear. In another sense, love is more excellent, in respect of the continuance of it: it is the most durable grace; as faith and hope will shortly cease—but love will remain. When all other graces, like Rachel, shall die in travail, love shall revive. The other graces are in the nature of a lease, for the term of life only; but love is a freehold that continues forever. Thus love carries away the garland from all other graces, it is the most long-lived grace, it is a bud of eternity. This grace alone will accompany us in heaven.

How must our love to God be characterized?

(1) Love to God must be PURE and GENUINE. He must be loved chiefly for himself. We must love God, not only for his benefits—but for those intrinsic excellencies with which he is crowned. We must love God—not only for the good which flows from him—but for the good which is in him. True love is not mercenary, he who is deeply in love with God, needs not be hired with rewards, he cannot but love God for the beauty of his holiness; though it is not unlawful to look for benefits. Moses had an eye to the recompense of reward (Heb 11:26); but we must not love God for his benefits only, for then it is not love of God—but self-love.

(2) Love to God must be with ALL THE HEART. "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart." Mark 12:30. We must not love God a little, give him a drop or two of our love; but the main stream must flow to him. The mind must think of God, the will choose him, the affections pant after him. The true mother would not have the child divided, nor will God have the heart divided. We must love him with our whole heart. Though we may love the creature—yet it must be a subordinate love. Love to God must be highest, as oil swims above the water.

(3) Love to God must be FLAMING. To love coldly, is the same as not to love. The spouse is said to be, "love-sick." Canticles 2:5. The seraphim are so called, because of their burning love. Love turns saints into seraphim; it makes them burn in holy love to God. Many waters cannot quench this love.

How may we know whether we love God?

(1) He who loves God desires his presence. Lovers cannot be long asunder, they soon have their fainting fits, for lack of a sight of the object of their love. A soul deeply in love with God desires the enjoyment of him in his ordinances, in Word, prayer, and sacraments. David was ready to faint away and die when he had not a sight of God. "My soul faints for God." Psalm 84:2. Such as care not for ordinances plainly manifests lack of love to God.

(2) He who loves God, does not love sin. "You who love the Lord, hate evil." Psalm 97:10. The love of God, and the love of sin, can no more mix together than iron and clay. Every sin loved, strikes at the being of God. He who loves God, has an antipathy against sin. He who would part two lovers is a hateful person. God and the believing soul are two lovers; sin parts between them, therefore the soul is implacably set against it. By this try your love to God. How could Delilah say she loved Samson, when she entertained correspondence with the Philistines, who were his mortal enemies? How can he say he loves God who loves sin, which is God's enemy?

(3) He who loves God is not much in love with anything else. His love is very cool to worldly things. His love to God moves swiftly, as the sun in the sky; to the world it moves slowly, as the sun on the dial. The love of the world eats out the heart of piety; it chokes holy affections, as earth puts out the fire. The world was a dead thing to Paul. "The world is crucified unto me and I to the world." Gal 6:14. In Paul we may see both the picture and pattern of a mortified man. He who loves God—uses the world butchooses God. The world is his pension—but God is his portion. Psalm 119:57. The world engages him—but God delights and satisfies him. He says as David, "God, my exceeding joy," Psalm 43:4. That is, "God is cream of my joy!"

(4) He who loves God cannot live without him. Things we love we cannot be without. A man can do without music or flowers—but not food. Just so, a soul deeply in love with God looks upon himself as undone without him. "Hide not your face from me, lest I be like those who go down into the pit." Psalm 143:7. He says as Job, "I went mourning without the sun;" chapter 30:28. I have starlight, I lack the Sun of Righteousness; I enjoy not the sweet presence of my God. If God is our chief good--we cannot live without him! Alas! how do they show they have no love to God who can do well enough without him! Let them have but food and drink, and you shall never hear them complain of the lack of God.

(5) He who loves God will be at any pains to get him. What pains the merchant takes, what hazards he runs, to have a rich return from the Indies! "The merchant races to the farthest Indies." Jacob loved Rachel, and he could endure the heat by day, and the frost by night, that he might enjoy her. A soul that loves God will take any pains for the fruition of him. "My soul follows hard after you." Psalm 63:8. Love is "the pendulum of the soul." Augustine. It is as the weight which sets the clock going. It is much in prayer, weeping, fasting; it strives as in agony, that he may obtain him whom his soul loves. Plutarch reports of the Gauls, an ancient people of France, that after they had tasted the sweet wine of Italy, they never rested until they had arrived at that country. He who is in love with God, never rests until he has a part in him. "I will seek him whom my soul loves." Canticles 3:2. How can they say they love God, who are not industrious in the use of means to obtain him? "A slothful man hides his hand in his bosom." Prov 19:24. He is not in agony—but lethargy. If Christ and salvation would drop as a ripe fig into his mouth, he would be content to have them; but he is loath to put himself to too much trouble. Does he love his friend, who will not undertake a journey to see him?

(6) He who loves God, prefers him before estate and life. [1] Before estate. "For whom I have suffered the loss of all things." Phil 3:8. Who that loves a rich jewel, would not part with a flower for it? Galeacius, marquis of Vico, parted with a large estate to enjoy God in his pure ordinances. When a Jesuit persuaded him to return to his popish religion in Italy, promising him a large sum of money, he said, "Let their money perish with them who esteem all the gold in the world worth one day's communion with Jesus Christ and his Holy Spirit." [2] Before life. "They loved not their lives unto the death." Rev 12:2: Love to God carries the soul above the love of life and the fear of death.

(7) He who loves God loves his favorites, the saints. 1 John 5:1. "The mind reacts to the likeness of an object just as it does to the object itself." To love a man for his grace, and the more we see of God in him, the more we love him, is an infallible sign of love to God. The wicked pretend to love God—but hate and persecute his image. Does he love his prince, who abuses his statue, or tears his picture? They seem indeed to show great reverence to saints departed; they have great reverence for Paul, and Stephen, and Luke; they canonize dead saints—but persecute living saints; and do they love God? Can it be imagined that he loves God—who hates his children because they are like him? If Christ were alive again, he would not escape a second persecution.

(8) If we love God, we cannot but be fearful of dishonouring him, as the more a child loves his father the more he is afraid to displease him, and we weep and mourn when we have offended him. "Peter went out and wept bitterly." Matt 26:75. Peter might well think that Christ dearly loved him when he took him up to the mount where he was transfigured, and showed him the glory of heaven in a vision. That he should deny Christ after he had received such signal tokens of his love, broke his heart with grief. "He wept bitterly." Are our eyes dropping tears of grief for sin against God? It is a blessed evidence of our love to God; and such shall find mercy. "He shows mercy to thousands of those who love him.

Use. Let us be lovers of God. We love our food, and shall we not love him who gives it? All the joy we hope for in heaven, is in God; and shall not he who shall be our joy then, be our love now? It is a saying of Augustine, "Is it not punishment enough, Lord, not to love you?" And again, "I would hate my own soul if I did not find it loving God."

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