SERMON V

2 Thess. iii. 5.

And the Lord directs your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ.

There are two things that keep religion alive in the soul, a love to God and a hearty intent upon the coming of Christ. These are the two necessary graces, which the apostle prays for in the text, the love of God and the earnest waiting for Christ. Love respects God, because he is the chief object of it, the first and chief good, hope or patient expectation respects Christ, who at his glorious coming will give us our full reward. Love is the life and soul of our present duties and by patient expectation we wait for our future hope. The love of God urges us to the duties of religion and hope strengthens us against temptations, whether they arise from the allurements of sense or the troubles of the world. Love is our breastplate that guards the vitals of Christianity and hope is our helmet that covers our head that we may hold up our head in the midst of all the troubles and sorrow of the present life. Both graces are necessary, therefore it will not be unprofitable to insist upon them. I begin with the former, the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God. Where note,

1.      The grace prayed for, the love of God.

2.      The efficiency, which is necessary to produce it, the Lord direct your hearts. The word direct notes sometimes bending or setting strait the thing that is crooked. Conduct and guidance, as we guide men that they may not go wrong. Psalm cxix. 5. Oh! that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes. Ships that are best-rigged need to have their love directed to the best advantage of his glory and service. This for the first signification, guidance and direction. At other times it signifies the bending, inclining or making strait what is crooked, or what bends another way. In this sense, I take it here. Our hearts are distorted and averse from God and all good naturally, yea and after grace received, are apt to wander, and return to their old bias again. Therefore the apostle prays that God would set their hearts strait that they may be fixed towards God. And this prayer he makes for the Thessalonians, whose work of faith and labor of love and patience of hope, he had so much commended before and of whose sincerity he had such confidence and their love might be directed and their hearts more fixedly set towards God.

But what is love to God Love is the complacency of the soul in what is good. Love to God is the complacency of the soul in God as our all-sufficient portion. To open it to you, I shall describe it,

1.      By its internal acts

2.      By its external effects. I shall.

3.      A little, touch upon the properties of it.

1. The internal acts are two, desire and delight. Desire after him and delight in him.

1.       Desire after him. Love affects union with the thing beloved and so love to God implies an earnest seeking after him, in the highest way of enjoyment that we are capable of in this world. This appears partly by the kind of mercies that we affect, and partly by the fervency of our endeavors after him.

(1). By the kind of mercies that we effect. There are some mercies vouchsafed us that lie nearer to God than others do. As his image and favor or his renewing and reconciling grace. When we love God, these are sought in the first place. Psal. iv. 6, 7. The many say, who will shew us any good But Lord, lift up the light of thy countenance upon us and this will put gladness into our hearts. The many, the brutish multitude seek an uncertain good and they seek it from an uncertain author, who will shew us They do not acknowledge God in these common mercies. But the children of God must have his favor, Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us. As the beams of the sun cheer and refresh the earth, this is that which doth revive their souls. God's sanctifying spirit witnessing his love to us is the greatest gift can be bestowed in this life and will more witness his love than anything else that can be given us. This the saints seek after, that they may be like God, that they may be accepted and well pleasing unto God, this is all their ambition, 2. Cor. v. 9. Wherefore we labor that whether present or absent, we may be accepted of the Lord. Other things may please the flesh, but that is not their design, those things that bring them nearer to God, take up their mind and heart. Now as this appears by the mercies we effect, so it appears.

(2). By the fervency of our endeavors after these things. For if the image of God and favor of God be sought superficially and the wealth, honors and pleasures of the world earnestly, surely we do not love God. A Christian saith, Psal. ixiii. 8. My soul followeth hard after thee. The whole spiritual life is but a pursuit of the soul towards God and the more constantly and earnestly we seek him, to enjoy his saving graces and benefits, the more we have of the love of God in us. Therefore David expresses this desire, as exceeding all other desires, Psal. xxvii. 4 One thing have I desired of the Lord hat will I seek after, that I might dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord and to enquire in his temple. He fought not the glory of his kingdom, success in battle, victory over his enemies, so much as converse with God and attendance on his worship. All was nothing to this, that he might have communion with God. Therefore this is the radical act of love, this fervent burning, desire that carries Christians through all duties, ordinances, services they are still making their way to a nearer access to God and larger participation of his grace, till they come to enjoy him in glory.

There is another internal act of love, that is a delight in him, but delighting ourselves in God is a great duty now, for love being the complacency of the soul in God, or a delightful adhesion to God as our all-sufficient portion and happiness, it cannot be imagined that love can be without any delight in God even now. There is not only our hope, but our partial enjoyment of it is matter of happiness to us, his favor is as life and his frown as death, to the soul that loves him. The saints look on God reconciled as the best friend, God displeased as the most dreadful adversary, therefore if they have any taste of his love, their souls are filled as with marrow and fatness, Psal. ixiii. 3, 4, 5. Because thy loving kindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee. I will bless thee while I live, my soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips. But yet we are not gone to the bottom of the matter of delighting in God. Those are so well pleased with him, that everything is sweet to them by the relation it hath to God. It is a delight to them to think of God. Psal. civ. 34. I will be glad and rejoice in him my mediation of him shall be sweet. It is a delight to them to speak of God, Eph. v. 4. Not foolish jesting, but giving of thanks. The delight of God's children or that which serves instead of jesting to Christians is the grateful remembrance of the Lord's mercies, especially of our redemption by Christ. To draw nigh to him in ordinances, there this delight is exercised again. There is prayer. A gracious soul cannot be a stranger to it, because it cannot have a greater refreshing, than to embosom himself with God. So for all other Christian duties, Psal. cxxii. 1. I was glad, when they said unto me, come let us go into the house of the Lord, there they entertained commerce with God about matters of the highest concern, nay all their work the whole course of their obedience is sweetened to them, because it is commanded by God and tends to the enjoyment of God. Psal. cxii. 1. Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments, they not only keep the commandments but delight (and that greatly) to keep them. Psal. xcix. 14. I have rejoiced in the way of thy testimonies, as much as in all riches. Delight in God is a great act of love, to which we should not be strangers, even in the house of our pilgrimage for it is a duty of the first commandment, that results from the owning of God as our God.

11.         For the external effects of love, they are doing and suffering his will. When we are contented to do what God will have us do, and be what God will have us be.

1.      For doing. If we love God, we shall be loath to offend him, we shall be desirous to please him. Faith, I confess is a marvelous grace, but it can do no worthy thing for God till it be accompanied with love. Gal. v. 6. When the apostle tells us of that faith, that carries away the prize of justification, he descries it to be a faith working by love. Faith itself serves as the bellows to blow up this flame in our hearts, as the next and immediate principle of action. In short, love is the overruling bent of four souls, the poise upon us that includes us to God. And look as all noble qualities when restrained cannot produce their consummate act, so love suffers a kind of imperfection, till it can thus break forth into some act of thankfulness to God, but when it is perfected. 1 Job. ii. 5. Whosoever keepeth the word, in him the love of God is perfect, that is, hath attained its consummate act that which it aims at. No man certainly can be owned as a lover of God, but he that makes conscience of doing what he commands. None but they have a deep sense of his majesty, none but they have a deep sense of favor, and therefore they dare not hazard it by a breach or neglect of their duty.

2.      For suffering his will. For when the apostle prays here, that God would direct their hearts to love him, he means that they should endure anything, rather than deny the faith and confess Christ, whatever it cost them. As obedience is virtually contained in love, so also courage and resolution. Solomon represents love as a powerful thing as an affection that will not be bribed nor quenched, cant. Viii.7. Many waters cannot quench love, nor can the floods drawn it. If a man would give the whole substance of his house for it, it would be utterly contemned. It is true of love in general much more of love to God. In worldly matters, love is a venomous poison, when it hath invaded the heart, nothing will reclaim us. But in divine matters, it is a sovereign antidote against temptations, both on the right hand and on the left. All riches, pleasures and honors are contemned; they cannot bribe them over from Christ that really love him. All the floods of persecution cannot quench this holy desire. This is the genius and disposition of love, when once the bent of the heart is set towards God and heaven, they are vehemently set against anything that would turn them out of the way and divert them from their purpose.

111.    I come to speak of the properties of it.

1.           It is not a speculative, but practical love, not consisting in lofty, airy strains of devotion, no, it is put upon a surer test, our obedience to God. Again, it consists not in a bold familiarity, but in a humble subjection and compliance with his will. He that hath my commandments, and keeps them, he it is that loves me, God's love is a love of bounty, but ours a love of duty, therefore if we love God, we are careful to please him and fearful to offend him. The scripture declares both, the first, this is love, to keep his commandments, and his commandments are not grievous. The second Psal. xcvii. 10. ye that love the Lord hate evil. When we love, we are fearful of committing or omitting any thing that may be a violation of his law, a grief to his spirit, or a dishonor to his name. Whatever lofty and luscious strains of devotion, we may please ourselves, with here will our trial rest. He doth not love God, that can soar aloft in contemplation, but he that is awful, serious and conscientious in his duty.

2.           It is a transcendental love we owe to God, we must love him above all other things. For he must be loved as our felicity and end. He must have the chief place in our hearts. If we seek God in order to other things, we do not love him, but our own lusts, nay, if all other things be not sought after in order to God, we do not set him up as our chief good, or last end. He that loves father and mother more than me, is not worthy of me, Luke xiv. 26. All must be subordinated to our supreme happiness or else God is not loved as God.

I would consider, secondly, the nature of that influence upon love, which is expressed by the apostle in the word direct. The Lord direct your hearts in the love of God. What doth this imply

1.       It implies that God works upon us as rational creatures. He changes the heart indeed, but he doth it by direction. He draws us to himself, but it is with the cords of a man. He teaches while he draws. John vi. 44, 45. None can come unto me but those whom the father draws and he proves it by this, because they shall all be taught of God. God's drawing is teaching, it is both by the attractive force of the object and the internal efficacy of his grace, the spirits conduct is sweet, yet powerful, accomplishes the effect, but without offering violence to the liberty of man. There is not a violent compulsion, but an inclination sweetly raised in us by victorious grace or the over-pouring sweetness of his love. For we love him, because he first loved us, 1 John iv. 19. And this love is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost, who by giving us a deep sense of his benefits, blows up this holy flame in our hearts. We do not love God, we know not why. An account can be given of all the spirits operations. Look as in an impression, there must be a seal and wax to the seal and the hand that stamps it, so all concur here. The word doth its part, that is the seal and the heart of man receives the impression, but to make it effectual, the hand of God concurs or the power of his spirit. The object is the gospel, wherein God commends his love to us by the incarnation, death and intercession of the Lord Jesus Christ, as also by the new covenant, because he will work upon man after the nature of man, by love he will work upon love. Beside all this, there is an internal powerful agent, the Holy Spirit. The external means cannot do it without the inward cause. Though God's love doth so gloriously shine forth in the gospel, yet the heart of man is not affected with it, till it be shed aboard by the illuminating sanctifying spirit. The heart of man is dark and dead to these things, till changed by grace, and when that is once done, the impression is according to the stamp.

2.       The inclination to God our felicity and end, which is the fruit of this grace, is the inclination of a reasonable creature. So the inclination is necessary, but the acts are voluntary, therefore you must keep them up still. There is an inclination put by God into inanimate things, as in light to move upwards, and in heavy bodies to move downwards, as a stone falls to the earth, but fire ascends. They cannot do otherwise because they have no choice. But in man there is an inclination to God and heaven, which is the fruit of grace. The inclination is necessary, why Because all those whom the spirit sanctifies he begets this tendency in them towards God, therefore they are so often said in scripture to be converted or turned to God. Their hearts were averse before, but then they bend towards him. But the acts are voluntary. There is a duty lying upon us to stir up the gift that is in us, the word is 2 Tim. i. 6. When this holy fire is kindled in our bosoms, we must blow it up, and keep it burning. We must not be negligent, for we cannot reasonably imagine the idle and diligent should fare alike, that the holy ghost will direct our hearts in the love of God, whether we will or not, therefore not only as we are rational agents, but as we are new creatures, we are obliged to use the means and then expect his help and blessing. What is a prayer in the text, the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, to the patient waiting for Christ, is an exhortation, Jude xxi. Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto everlasting life. You must look to your love, that your hearts be kept strait and bent towards God, and not distracted with worldly vanities the blessing is from God, but you must use the means. This direction is not to encourage slothfulness, but industry. We must charge it upon ourselves, as our main work and duty, the spirit stirs and quickens, we must rouse up ourselves.

3.       It implies there are many things would turn our hearts another way, the devil, the world and the flesh. The devil seeks to draw us off from God, to abate the fervor of our love towards him, therefore we are bidden to fly youthful lusts, 2 Tim. ii. 22. That we may not be taken captive by him at his will. Some tamely yield at his temptations and he doth unto them as he listeth, but there is more tugging and drawing to get a serious Christian into his snare. Therefore we are bidden to be sober and watchful, for your adversary the devil, like a roaring lion, goes about, seeking whom he may devour. Sobriety is sparing use of worldly delights and vigilance is a serious diligence in the use of all those holy means whereby temptations may be vanquished, and as the devil, so the flesh Jam. I. 14. A man is tempted, when he is drawn away by his lusts, being enticed, that is by seeking to please his mind and appetite. And the world would pervert us and offers us many baits to that end. The lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh the pride of life, these seem sweet baits, but there is a dangerous hook in them and your love to God may soon be lessened. Well then, this directing is opposed to wavering by reason of any of these temptations on the one or the other side, that we may keep in us that ardent love of God, which of duty we owe to him.

4.       Directing notes the orderliness of the new creature. There is not a more beautiful thing in the world, when the motions thereof are directed by the spirit, for then we are in a due posture both to God, our neighbor and ourselves. To God, for then we are kept in a due subjection to him and all our motions and actions are subordinated to his glory. When we sin, we are in rebellion against God, and set up the creature against him, as if it were more amiable and fitter to content and delight the soul than God and so disturb the order and harmony of the world, abusing both ourselves and all things within our grasp. Look as in the motions of a watch, there is such a proportion in every part, that if one wheel be wrong, the whole is put out of frame. So the world, that was made for us, and we for God, is all disordered when we use the world for ourselves and not for God. So as to our neighbor, self-lovers and self-pleasers will never heartily do good to others. The most sincere commerce in the world is among those that love God. So for ourselves. Till the love of God rule in our hearts all is out of order. Look as in the body, if the feet were the head should be, the disorder and deformity would be great, so it is in the soul, when the beast rides the man, and conscience and reason are made slaves to lust and appetite. But when once a man is gained to love God, everything is in frame again, self-government is restored, due obedience to God is provided for.

I proceed to shew you the necessity of this, both as to persons regenerate and unregenerate.

1.        See the necessity of God's direction to persons unregenerated. They cannot love God till the Lord direct and set their hearts strait. It is a hard thing to say (but we must not mince the matter) that in the carnal state we are all haters of God, Rom. i. 13. Though men may see some reason of love to God, as he is our creator and preserver, yet as he is a lawgiver and a judge, so we all hate him. Three reasons there are of that natural enmity that is in the hearts of men against God. I would have you consider them seriously, that we may feelingly bewail our own aversion from God.

(1). Our inclination to carnal things, which prepossesses our hearts. Naturally men are addicted to sensual delights, for that which is born of the flesh, is flesh, John. iii. 16. Having no principle to incline them to God, they wholly seek to please the flesh. When men once lost original righteousness, they took up with what came next to hand, and so became lovers of pleasure, more than lovers of God, 2 Tim. iii. 4. And this inclination we cannot divert ourselves of, till it be cured by grace. Therefore the Lord promises this cure, Deut. xxx. 6. The Lord thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the Lord thy God with all thine heart and with all thy soul. The heart must be circumcised before it can love God. We are entangled in the love of worldly things, and so shall remain till God set our hearts right to himself.

(2). The second reason is carnal liberty and so we hate God as a lawgiver, who will bridle our lusts. Because of God's restraint, we cannot enjoy our lusts with that freedom and security we desire. His law is in the way, therefore the heart rises up against God, because he hath made a law to forbid those things that we effect. Rom. viii. 7. The natural mind is enmity to God, for it is not subject to the law of God, neither can be. We love sin, therefore we hate God, who forbids it, and makes it so penal and damnable to us.

(3). Slavish fear is the cause of this enmity. This relates to the penalty of the law, thus we hate God, because we fear he will call us to account for our sins. For a condemning God, barely apprehended under that notion, can never be loved by a guilty creature. Thus Adam, when he had sinned, ran away from God. It is in vain to come and tell them of the goodness of God and his perfections till he change their hearts. As you do in vain tell a guilty prisoner of his judge, that he is a discreet person, a man of solid judgment, one well skilled and versed in the law, this sticks, he is one that will condemn him. Therefore the gospel, as a means to induce us to love God, sets him forth as a pardoning God, there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared. Come we 2. to the regenerate. The Thessalonians did excel in all graces and yet the Apostle prays, that the Lord would direct their hearts to the love of God. Why

(1). Because there are many defects of love even in the regenerate. To give some instances.

First, love signifies an earnest bent of heart towards God, as our chief good and last end. Well then, our end is our measure by which we judge of all means of the fitness of what is to be avoided and embraced. The seasonableness of all means must be determined by the end, that all means that are inconsistent with and impertinent to our great end may be cut off. Now all sins are inconsistent with making God our end, and all vain and foolish actions are impertinent thereunto. Judge you by this, if we have a perfect love to God. With how many impertinent actions do we fill up our lives How many purposes, desires, words and action have we that have no respect to our great end How much do we live to ourselves and how little to God How do earthly things occupy and intercept the greatest part of our lives Judge then whether we had not need have the bent kept up and the tendency towards God as our end and happiness. It is the natural disease of man's heart to be loosed from God and to be distracted by a variety of worldly objects, therefore it is not enough for a man once to resign his heart to God as we do when his love is first wrought in us, but we need often to beg that God would reclaim us from this ranging after vanities, that he would direct and keep us strait, and true to our end. The thing is obvious and plain, unless the Lord maintain this love in us, and keep it up, what will become of us

(2). Another instance is our frequent regarding the profits and pleasures of the world too much. We shew too much lothness to cut off the right hand, and to pluck out the right eye. Now this shews a weakness of love. For where love is strong, there is a thorough inclination to God, we dare love nothing above him or against him or without him.

(3). Our backwardness to obedience, and the tediousness we find in it, shews a great imperfection in our love. All goes on easily, sweetly, acceptably, where love is at the bottom. Gen. xxix. 20. Seven years to Jacob seemed as a few days, for the love that he had to Rachel. And so love sweetens our obedience, his commandments are not grievous.

Besides, there needs much to be done about our love, after it is planted in the soul, we need to get it increased, to get it continually excited and kept in act and exercise.

(1). We need to get it rooted. Our first affection to God and heavenly things may hastily put forth itself, as the early blossoms of the spring do, but they are soon nipt and those high tides of affections which we find in our first acquaintance with religion, afterwards sink low enough. Love is more passionately expressed at first, partly by reason of the novelty of the things represented to us and partly because of our great necessity, as men that are in a violent thirst take large draughts with pleasure. And because our love is not as yet dispersed into the several channels of obedience, but wholly taken up with admirations of grace, but this may vanish and decay. Our business is to be rooted and grounded in love, to get a more solid, durable affection.

(2). After it is planted, it needs to be increased, Phil. i. 9. I pray God our love may abound yet more and more. At first love is but weak, there is fire, but it is not blown up into a flame, afterwards God gets a greater interest in our hearts, and then the constitutions of our souls become more holy and heavenly. Love being the heart of the new creature, he that hath most love, hath most grace and is the best and strongest Christian.

(3). After it is planted, it needs to be excited, and kept in act and exercise. This is mainly intended here. For,

1. All religion is in effect but love. Faith is a thankful acceptance of Christ and thankfulness is an expression of love. Repentance is but mourning love, as she wept much, to whom much was forgiven, Luke vii. 47. Diligence in the holy life is but seeking love. Obedience is pleasing love. Self-denial is the mortification of inordinate self-love. Sobriety is a retrenching of carnal love.

2. If true love be not acted and kept at work, carnal work will prevail. The soul of man cannot lye idle, especially our affections cannot. Either they are carried out to God or to worldly things. When divine love ceases, concupiscence ceases not and the love of the world will soon grow superior, in the soul, for while the neglected principle languishes, the other principle gets strength. Oh! then let us seek this benefit from God. That our hearts may be directed into his love.

1. The sanctifying spirit is given us for this end, to stir up love to God, Job. iv. 14. The water I will give him shall be a well of water springing up into eternal life. It is not a dead pool in the heart, but a living spring. And the same is intimated, Job. vii. 38. He that believes in me, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water, this he spake of the spirit.

2. The ordinances were appointed for this end. The word to represent God amiable to us, both for the goodness in him and the goodness proceeding from him, especially in our redemption by Christ, and also for those rich preparations of grace. He hath made for us in another world to blow up this holy fire. And this is the end of the sacrament. All the dainties that are set before us in the Lord's Supper favor of love. Our meat is seasoned with love, and our drink flow into our cup out of the winepress of love. Why do we eat of the crucified body of Christ But that we may remember Jesus who loved us, and gave himself for us. The drink that is provided for us at this feast is the blood of Christ, who loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood.

3. All the providences of God tend to this end that we may love God. All God's mercies are as a new fuel to keep in this fire. I will love the Lord, because he has heard the voice of my supplication, Psal. cxvi. 1. And thou shalt love the Lord, who is the strength of thy life and the length of thy days, Deut. xxx. 20. All the mercy we have from God is to refresh and revive our love that it may not languish and die. Nay all the sharp corrections to God sends, are to recover our love to God. Isa. xxvi. 9. My soul hath desired thee in the night, (saith the prophet) and early have I sought thee, and when was that When thy judgments were abroad in the world when great and sharp afflictions were upon them.

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Preface | Thomas Manton - Sermon 1

Sermon I | Thomas Manton - Sermon 2

Sermon II | Thomas Manton - Sermon 3

Sermon III | Thomas Manton - Sermon 4

Sermon IV | Sermon V | | Thomas Manton - Sermon 6

Sermon VI | Thomas Manton - Sermon 7

Sermon VII |