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he having thoughts of peace towards us, when we reckoned he had thoughts of wrath, and defigns to ruin us. Thus he fhows his wonders.

IV. The next thing was, To fhow that this is matter of wonder and admiration, which is the fourth thing in the text, BEHOLD! Behold, thy time was a time of

love.

1. It is wonderful, if we confider the nature of God, the Lover. If we look to his fpotlefs holinefs, and that he is of purer eyes than that he can behold iniquity, O how myfterious and wonderful is it! that he fhould fhow his love to any of Adam's black pofterity, fo fpotted with iniquity!-If we look to his infinite juftice, that he can no more cease to punifh fin, than he can cease to be God; juftice being as effential to his name as mercy. How wonderful is his love! if he had not found a ranfom, there would have been no vent for his love; but grace reigns thro' Chrift's righteoufnefs.-Again, if we look to his infinite highnefs, it makes his love wonderful: his majefty is infinite; "He is the high and lofty One that inhabits eternity." Surely, may we cry, when he comes to fhow his love, "Lord, I am not worthy that thou should come under my roof."

2. It is, wonderful, if we confider the nature of man, the loved object, to whom he fhows mercy. What are we by nature? enemies to God, rebels to the crown of heaven, children of the devil; who but a God could anfwer his own queftion? "How fhall I put you among the children, and give thee the pleafant land?" How fhall I give thee a title to heaven, that art fo juftly intitled to hell? If we look upon our bafenefs, O the wonders of his kindness! May we not fay with wonder, "Will God in very deed dwell with men on earth," on the earth his foctftool! May we not fing, as Pfalm cxiii. 6. "Who is like unto the Lord our God, that dwelleth on high, who humbleth himfelf to behold things that are in heaven?" And much more may we say, Who is like unto him, that humbleth himfelf to fhow his love to worms on the earth? Whence is this, that the King of glory fhould look upon vile duft? If we view the

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opposition we make to his love, the refiftance he meets with from the devils of hell without us, and, the devils of lufts, fin, and corruption within us, and how we fight against his love and kindness, is this the manner of man to fhow love in this cafe? O wonderful! O condefcending Jefus! O patient Chrift! whom we have kept fo long at the back of the door, that yet he fhould both forgive and forget all the wrongs we have done him, faying, "Thy fins and iniquities will I remember no more!" We commit the fault, and he makes fatisfaction. And if we view not only the bad entertainment he gets from us, at the first difcoveries of his love; but the affronts he meets with afterwards, from time to time, the abufes of his goodness, turning his grace to wantonnefs, grieving his Spirit, and madly following other lovers, till he hedge up our way with thorns, that we may not overtake them: O wonderful! that after this, love fhould reclaim us, and make us fay, "We will go and return to our first Husband, for then it was better with us than now," Hofea ii. 7.

3. It is wonderful, if we confider that a time of love is denied to millions of batter creatures than us. It was never allowed to fallen angels; there was never such a word as that, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with angels that fell; but, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men," and among men. Has he not paffed many nations, and come to us, proclaiming the joyful found of everlasting love in Chrift Jefus in fo much, that nothing hinders our enjoyment of it, but unbelief, and hardness of heart; and amongst us, are there not fome more highly privileged than others? O believer, wonder that he hath paffed by a thoufand, and fhewed his love to you, the worst of them all, and even when you was at your worst. Ọ wonderful diftinguishing love! that paffes by twenty houfes, and falls upon one! that paffes by twenty fouls, and comes upon yours! Many a heart here this day never yet was touched or fired with this love, and your heart may be fet a bur ning within you.

4. It is wonderful, if we confider the long train of the time of love; both the train of bleffing it infers,

and

and the train of times it includes.

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What a train of

bleffings does the time of love infer? or, what good is done to the foul? It brings life, and light, and pardon, and peace; juftification, adoption, and fanétification; grace, glory, and every good thing; it brings God, and Chrift, and the Spirit, and with them all things. The time of love is the time of gifts, when God gives Chrift and all things with him. What a lng train and tract of times it includes! The time of love has a beginning only in cur view, but to God, it has neither a beginning nor an end: the time of love began before time, in the heart of God from all eternity purpofing, and in the heart of Chrift from all eternity tranfacting with the Father in our room; therefore, he has faid, Jer. xxxi. 3. "I have loved thee with an everlafting love; therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn thee." The time of love to us is when he lets down the cords of his love, like a heart-firing, to draw up our hearts to his heart and as the time of love runs through every period of the believer's life, while he is here, in fo many fruits and effects of divine love, let out from time to time; fo it is never at an end, fo long as his love to Chrift endures: though he vifit their tranfgreffions with rods, yet his loving-kindnefs will he not take away from him, nor confequently from them; for, "His feed hall endure for ever," Pfalm lxxxix. 32, 33. 36. The love that he shows in the time of love, includes love before time from all eternity; and love after time, even to all eternity; therefore it is juftly wonderful, and expreffed with a Behold! Behold, thy time was a time of love!

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V. I come to the fifth thing, which was the appli cation. Is it fo, as has been faid, That God fhows his love to finners at fuch a remarkable jun&ture, that their time of need and mifery appears to be his time of love and mercy; then,

1. Let us apply it for admiration. O let us admire and adore the wonders of redeeming love! It deferves our highest admiration; when we have fpent our

thoughts

thoughts upon it, it is fit we fhould fupply the defect of our thought with admiration. Let us admire the height, and depth, and length, and breadth of this love of God in Chrift; that the guilt of criminals fhould be transferred upon the innocent, and he expofed to the ftroak of juftice that the immortal God fhould be clothed with mortality; the wonder of angels exp.fed to the reproach of men; that he who was in the form of God fhould appear in the form of a fervant; and the Lord of life become obnoxious to the pains of death, and all that the love of God might vent toward finners, and that he thould take occafion to fhow his love to finners when they are at their worst.—Herein let us fee and admire the freedom of the grace and love. of God; that he fhould take hold of fuch profane perfons, fuch polluted perfons, fuch loathfome perfons! O that the time of loathing fhould be the time of love! Herein fee and admire the power of the grace of God, that can conquer finners at the height of their rebellion, and overcome their enmity, and fupply all their needs. -See and admire the wifdom of the grace and love of God, that he fhould confult the concerns of his own glory and our good fo wonderfully. He confults the glory of his juftice while mercy vents through a ranfom, and grace through righteoufnefs, that magnifies the law, and fatisfies the juftice of God: he confults our good wonderfully, by fhowing his love at a time, wherein his love may do us moft good; fee and wonder at the wonderfulness of his mercy, love, and grace.

2. Let us apply it for examination. Try what share you have had of this wonderful love of God in Christ; and whether your time of need has been his time of love, either now, at this occafion, or formerly. For gaining time, I forbear offering marks and evidences of this, and only propofe, that you reflect upon what has been faid concerning the time of need, and the time of love.

(1.) What fenfe have you ever had of the time of need? Have you ever feen yourself in your polluted state,

you

lying in your blood? Your helpless fate, no eye to pity ? Your loathfome ftate, caft out to the loathing of your perfons? Your dangerous ftate, in the open field, lying open to the wrath and vengeance of God? Have you ever got a fenfe and conviction of your dead flate, as being under the power of fin, and under the fentence of the law? The time of love is ufually ufhered in with a fenfe of fin, and fear of wrath. Was you ever prick ed in your hearts, and made to cry, "What fhall I do to be faved?" If you never felt a time of extreme need, it feems you never have known a time of love. But,

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(2.) What experience have you of the time of love, upon the back of your extreme need? Got you ever a loving call with power? A quickening word, when you was in your blood? A word that put life into your dead foul? Got you ever a love-vifit, and a view of the glo ry of the Lord Jefus, and of God in him? Though it was but a paffing vifit; yet has he paffed by you, fo as to give you a fight of his back-parts, by the bye; for, Now we fee through a glafs darkly."-Got you ever a love-look, that made you look again unto him? A look that pierced and pained your heart, and made you fick of love to him, and defire after him?-Got you ever any love-tokens; whether got you thefe I mentioned; that may be called antecedent to the marriage? Did he ever caft his skirt over you, and make you flee under the covert of his blood and righteoufnefs? Did he ever fwear to you, and enter into covenant with you, by making you to take hold of his covenant, and word of grace and promife?What know you of the lovetokens concomitant to the marriage? Did he never wash your heart and confcience in his blood, by giving you joy and peace in believing? Did he never anoint you with the oil of his Spirit, fo as the chariot-wheels of your fouls have been made to run fweetly and swiftly, by reafon of this anointing, in the duties of religion? Has he never fatisfied your longing foul? Though you have not got what you would be at, yet by giving you fo much as made all the world taftelefs to you, and Chrift above all things precious? (If he has not fed you with joy, has he fed you with godly forrow and

mourn.

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