Lord of all power and might, who art the author and giver of all good things, pour into our hearts the love of thy name, increase in us true religion, nourish us with all goodness, and of thy great mercy keep us in the same, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. SERMON VIII. THE LOVE OF GOD. DEUT. vi. 5. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. IN the conclusion of my last discourse I briefly enumerated the reasons which the Scriptures furnish, why we should love God. I propose, on the present occasion, to enlarge a little upon these reasons; secondly to show you what will be the natural effects of that love, sincerely entertained. First, what are the considerations that should excite us to the love of God. My brethren, I address you of course as Christians, not as persons who are totally ignorant of the nature and dealings of God, as the 136 su anc wort rality erected talk to us really is, is t ancient world monstrous and ever was. The natural that exists in cou Christianity have 138 THE LOVE OF GOD. Christ, such as it is now, where Christia atitude for kindne 1|:ཀྱ་ས་ཕྱོག THEL the shyestic क GOD. where Chs, why we should love God, if you allow nd knowledge. ath of the book from whence my reasons these observatioknown to us, as a Being of perfect Goodyou back town. I can now say, because He has made ence of that the author of every good thing that we hich makes love ope for. I can now answer, because obedience to that He is our Father, who created us to allow the truth is a much strong power or terror; solely that we might be happy; our who in that character, and by that estowed upon us a blessing beyond ne might object, and all expression great, having se distance and di save us, even by the sacrifice man, that His naturur Sanctifier, always ready to ension, that we ca Who apply to him, for the enjoy an invisible and uness which He offers; our Guar se we are commande hing over us for our good; our hand to support us, if we throw grow out of acquaint atitude for kindness fel the world, the sinful inclina of a knowledge of som Protection, against the poweren, the objection woulus spirit, who studies to ruin reply to this, I said nature, and the snares and that I could not give love a being whom w tamed, that the heath short, our greatest and best God, for that very But as a Christ Aand. Lesz g TO f heart conceived." For the with me sufficiently, when to resume the subject. the fancies and the idols which they had set up for their deities; they worshipped cruel gods, and capricious gods, and libidinous gods, and covetous gods, gods quarrelling and contending for power among themselves, gods who were supposed to be slaves to every fierce and vile. passion that infests the heart of man, gods in the shape of birds, and beasts, and fish, and reptiles, and vegetables, nay gods of wood, and gods of stone, that their own hands had made. You ask, were all men carried away by these deplorable superstitions? Truly, some few were more wise, and thought there must be a supreme Being, more worthy of adoration than those whom the generality blindly worshipped; but the wisest were like the philosopher of whom I spoke before, they knew nothing about the matter; and if they erected an altar, they could dedicate it only "to the unknown God." Modern unbelievers talk to us of the sufficiency of natural religion, without the gospel; but what natural religion really is, is to be learnt from the heathens of the ancient world, and in the present day; and a monstrous and most abominable system it is and ever was. The natural religion, as it is falsely called, that exists in countries, where the doctrines of Christianity have been spread abroad, owes all |