True Christianity A Treatise on Sincere Repentence, True Faith, the Holy Walk of the True Christian, Etc.

Both the general purpose of the venerable Johann Arndt in writing his “TRUE CHRISTIANITY,” and also his own character and spirit, will be best exhibited by submitting to the rea...

Showing How A Man Should Seek The Wisdom Of God By Prayer; Containing Also A Useful Treatise On Prayer, Wherein The Reader Is Taught How The Heart Is To Be Moved Unto Prayer, An...

_But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord._—2 COR. 3:18.

Among the many crosses and troubles of a Christian, a false and slanderous tongue is none of the least, as we may evidently see, from the example of Christ himself, whom the Pha...

_God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear. And God called the dry land, earth._—GEN. 1:9, 10. _The earth is ful...

DEATH, II. 8. 11; II. 57. 20, etc. —— consolations, and remedies against the fear of, II. Ch. 57. —— persons raised from, II. 57. 8. —— Spiritual, I. 41. 11, 12. —— three kinds...

_Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: and rend your heart, and not your garments, a...

_And out of the ground the Lord formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam, to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam calle...

_Thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee. Give ear, O Lord, unto my prayer; and attend to the voice of my supplicati...

He Who Does Not Follow Christ In Faith, Holiness, And Continued Repentance, Cannot Be Delivered From The Blindness Of His Heart, But Must Abide In Eternal Darkness; And He Canno...

The stars are bright heavenly bodies, fixed in the firmament of heaven by the word of the Most High. They enlighten the earth, distinguish the night from the day, and adorn the...

_When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the Lord will hear them; I the God of Israel will not forsake them._—ISA. 41:17.

He Who Does Not Live In Christ, But Gives His Heart To The World, Has Only The Outward Letter Of The Scriptures, But He Does Not Experience Their Power, Or Eat Of The Hidden Manna.

This sentence is full of divine comfort against the fears of temporal death. For if “Christ hath abolished death,” why should we fear it? And if “life and immortality be brought...

Thus saith the devout David, “Seven times a day do I praise thee, because of thy righteous judgments” (Ps. 119:164); that is, many times in a day do I sing praises in honor of t...

In this verse, the apostle sets before us love, the highest and noblest virtue; and acquaints us at the same time, with four particulars concerning it. _First_, that Love is the...

This fire is called _strange_, because it was different from that which continually burned upon the altar, and with which, according to the command of God, the burnt-offerings w...

Showing That Saving Faith In The True Christian Produces Manifold Fruits Of Righteousness, And That These Must Proceed From The Depth Of The Heart; Also, That The Character Of O...

It is an undoubted truth that all spiritual sorrow proceeds from God. For “the Lord killeth, and maketh alive: he bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up.” 1 Sam. 2:6, 7. By...

_Exercise thyself unto godliness. For godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come._—1 TIM. 4:7, 8.

In this verse the holy prophet comforts those that are weak in faith by two beautiful similitudes, excellently adapted to the purpose. For as a bruised reed (to which he first a...

Showing That He Does Not Truly Repent, Is Not A Christian, And Not A Child Of God, Who Does Not, In _His Life And Conduct_, Follow Christ; Also, Wherein The New Birth And The Yo...

A Truly Christian Sorrow For Sin Promotes The Daily Amendment Of The Life Of Man, Makes Him Meet For The Kingdom Of God, And Fits Him, In An Increasing Degree, For Eternal Life.

_I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping, because of thine indignation and thy wrath: for thou hast lifted me up, and cast me down. My days are like a s...

_I will look unto the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me. Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darknes...

The _first_ or chief foundation on which the Christian depends, when he derives consolation from the doctrines of the remission of sin, and of the merit of Christ, consists in t...

God, who is of infinite mercy, in order that he might the better soften our hard and stony hearts, and turn them from the world, ourselves, and the devil, unto himself (Acts 26:...

_Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. That good thing which was committed unto thee, keep by the Holy Ghos...

Showing That The Evidence Of True Christianity Does Not Consist In The Knowledge And The Hearing Of God’s Word, But That He Is A Christian, In Whose Life God’s Word Is Manifeste...

_Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily pro...

There are chiefly five arguments of the love of God. 1. Christ’s incarnation. 2. His suffering. 3. God’s indwelling in us. 4. God’s love shining forth out of the creatures. 5. H...

It is a most moving complaint uttered by the Messiah: “I became a reproach unto them; when they looked upon me, they shaked their heads. Help me, O Lord my God; O save me accord...

That is unquestionably the best philosophy which gives the best account of the works of God. And this knowledge every true lover of God ought to seek, that he may thereby know h...

“Wherewith shall I come before the Lord? Shall I come before him with burnt-offerings, with calves of a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten th...

Every one who desires to be reconciled to God, must of necessity endeavor to reconcile himself to his neighbor; because God takes the injury which is offered to man, as offered...

There Is No Affliction For Which God Has Not Provided Appropriate Consolation. The Consolation Which He Affords Is Always Greater Than Our Misery; This Consideration Should Sust...

_If any man come to me, and hate not ... his own life also, he cannot be my disciple._-LUKE 14:26. _He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this wo...

Since the living knowledge of God and of Christ crucified, is not to be attained, unless we keep our eye constantly fixed upon the innocent and holy life of Jesus Christ our Lor...

True Christian _patience_ is that virtue by which, in all afflictions that cannot, by ordinary means, be avoided, we resign ourselves to the divine will, and submit entirely to...

_God said, Let there be light; and there was light.—He covereth himself with light as with a garment.—God is light, and in him is no darkness at all._—GEN. 1:3; PS. 104:2; 1 JOH...

It was the declaration of the Lord Jesus Christ, “They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance...

Showing That God Alone, Without Any Human Aid, Is The Author Of Our Salvation, And That We Are To Submit Unreservedly To His Grace; Also, That Christ’s Merit Is Not Imputed To T...

This passage is an excellent rule of life, teaching every man how to conduct himself under the cross. As the word of God is the rule of our life in prosperity, according to the...

Christian Reader! That the holy Gospel is subjected, in our age, to a great and shameful abuse, is fully proved by the ungodly and impenitent life of those who loudly boast of C...

The design of the blessed God in creating temporal things, was that they might supply man’s bodily wants; and it is right that they should be used for such a purpose, and be rec...

The Christian Ought Willingly To Die Unto Himself And The World, For The Sake Of The Love Of Christ, And For The Sake Of That Future And Eternal Glory, For Which We Were Created...

_God grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being...

He Who Is Most Of All Conscious Of His Misery, Is Most Of All Acceptable To God; And His Christian Knowledge Of His Misery, Urges Him To Seek The Grace Of God.

_In this was manifested the love of God towards us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved...

“Hear my voice according to thy lovingkindness, O Lord” (Ps. 119:149), saith David; pointing out thereby the foundation of our prayer, namely, the grace of God; and this is conv...

_Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which can...

Jesus Christ, The Son Of God, Is Given To Us By Our Heavenly Father As Our Help Against The Damnable And Deadly Poison Of Original Sin, And The Pernicious Fruits Thereof, As Wel...

As a skilful builder, when he is about to raise a lofty structure, takes care to lay first a deep and solid foundation, so the merciful and compassionate God, when he was to ere...

_Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth_.—JOHN 12:35.

Let all that desire to be the true disciples and followers of Jesus Christ, bear their cross in this world, be it what it may; for if thou flee from one, another will meet thee;...

He that in all things seeks not the glory of God, and endeavors to promote it, does not act like a creature of God, but directly opposes his Maker, and all his designs, seeing h...

_Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to them that love him._—JAMES 1:12.

The _New Birth_ is a work of the Holy Ghost, by which man, of a sinner, is made righteous; and from being a child of damnation and wrath, is made a child of grace and salvation....

Showing That In Order To Understand The True Nature Of Repentance, We Must Necessarily Know The Distinction Between The Old And The New Man; Or, How In Us Adam Must Die, And Chr...

The fall of Adam was disobedience to God, by which man turned away from the Divine Being to himself, and robbed God of the honor due to him alone, in that he _himself_ thought t...

Love, says St. Paul, is the greatest of all virtues, and without it all gifts are unprofitable (1 Cor. 13:13); therefore he admonishes us, saying, “Let all your things be done w...

_Behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not; and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren...

_Ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich._—2 COR. 8:9.

The true way of attaining this divine inward treasure is, by a true and living faith. Though we have already in Books I and II treated largely of faith, with all its powers and...

As there are different degrees of age and maturity in the natural life; so are there also in the spiritual. This life has its first foundation in sincere repentance, by which a...

As _faith_ is nothing else but a fixed and steady assurance by which the devout Christian depends perfectly and entirely on the favor and mercy of God promised in Christ Jesus (...

_Be clothed with humility; for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due ti...

As man in his natural state is obnoxious to the wrath of God (Eph. 2:3), it follows, that all his natural works, how great and good soever they may appear in the eye of the worl...

That the hearts of believers are the habitation of the Holy Trinity, is largely attested in Scripture, as Lev. 26:11; Isa. 44:3; 57:15; Joel 2:27; John 14:23; 17:23; Rom. 8:9-11...

_Be patient, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early...

Repentance, or true conversion, is the work of the Holy Spirit, under the influence of which, man, through the _law_, acknowledges his sin, and the wrath of God provoked against...

The image of God in man, is the conformity of the soul of man, of his spirit and mind, of his understanding and will, and of all his faculties and powers, both bodily and mental...

As the life of a Christian consists of crosses and afflictions, through which he must enter into the kingdom of God; so he must arm himself with patience, and beg it earnestly o...

God ordains, governs, moves, and regulates all things according to his unsearchable wisdom, as it is written (Isa. 45:4-12): “I have even called thee by thy name; I have surname...

_It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord—upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound. For thou, Lord, hast made me glad t...

Faith is a sincere confidence, and a firm persuasion of the grace of God promised to us in Christ Jesus, for the remission of sin and eternal life; and it is enkindled in the he...

_Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal, etc._—1 COR. 13:1, etc.

_Wilt thou be angry with us forever? Wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations? Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee? Shew us thy mercy, O...

Showing How The “Old Man” Daily Dies, And The “New Man” Is Daily Renewed, In A True Christian; Also, Wherein Self-Denial Consists, And What Is Meant By The Christian’s Cross.

Thou actest wisely, if thou avoidest too frequent an intercourse with worldly men. For as it is never better for our bodies than when they are at home; so it is ever best with t...

When God created man in his own image, in righteousness and holiness, and endowed him with exalted virtues and gifts, he impressed three qualities on the human conscience so dee...

2. In this Book, _repentance and its fruits_, have, for various reasons, been explained at large, and in different ways. Most of the Chapters in this Book, accordingly, treat up...

The third branch of the cross of Christ consists in the unspeakable sorrow and sufferings which began at his very birth. For as his most holy human soul was filled with the ligh...

All works that are a well-pleasing and acceptable sacrifice to God, can proceed from true faith alone; this will not fail to beget Christian humility in the heart. The effect of...

“Christ,” says the apostle, “died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.” Besides that this...

Showing How Greatly God Is Offended, When Man Prefers Things That Are Temporal To Those That Are Eternal; And How Great The Evil Is, When Our Affections Cleave To The Creature A...

The heart of man is so constituted, that it cannot exist without love; it must love God, or the world, or self. If, therefore, man be under so strong a compulsion to love, let h...

The two opposite principles in the heart of the real Christian, are spoken of by the apostle under different names, viz.: _the inward and outward man_ (2 Cor. 4:16), the _law of...

As the faithful soul is often obliged to bear the temptations and suggestions of the Evil Spirit; so, on the other hand, it receives the divine consolations from the mouth of th...

The Perfection And Salvation Of Men Depend On Union With Christ By Faith; But To This They Can Contribute Nothing, Whereas They Rather Interfere With The Grace Of God By Their P...

_The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree; he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God....

_Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you; that ye may be the children of your...

_Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven._—MATTH. 7:21.

Inasmuch as man’s whole welfare depends on his regeneration and renewal, it was the will of God that all those changes which ought to take place in man _spiritually_ and by fait...

These words give us an admirable account of the grounds and reasons of prayer; that it is quickened by affliction and a sense of misery, and is a mark of a true Christian.

“My Heavenly Father! thou knowest that in this world I have not sought my own glory, but the glory of thy holy name, and the salvation of all men: and therefore am I so bitterly...

Whosoever would have a just notion of the light of nature, and the light of grace, must nicely distinguish between the faculties of the soul; that is to say, the reason, the wil...

The property of true faith, is to purify the heart from the world, and all earthly, vain, and perishing desires; in a word, from all things in which corrupt nature delights itse...

There is no bondage more hard and grievous, than to be under the yoke of the passions: but of all these, none is so cruel as _hatred_, which so weakens and depresses all the pow...

_He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people._—PS. 50:4. _He hath called us with a holy calling._—2 TIM. 1:9.

All who love God acknowledge him to be the highest and most holy righteousness, which pervades all, and is over all. This in God is his most holy will; in angels holy obedience;...

_For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie; though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry. Behold, h...

As God operates eminently in humble souls; so the Holy Spirit particularly works in them the gift of filial prayer. Without the Spirit of God there is no true prayer; for he it...

God is the supreme, most pure, and beauteous light; flaming with an ardent desire of enlightening the souls of men, and uniting himself to them, if not hindered by the darkness...

The first mark that the love of Christ is in us, is the avoiding of the love of the world. When thou considerest Christ in his holy poverty, how he was so entirely empty of love...

Who can doubt that the admirable and pure structure of heaven, with all its wonderful properties, is a strong evidence and witness of God? “What are heaven and all the beauty of...

St. Paul, intending to describe a Christian in a few words, says: “The end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.”...

God is an eternal, perfect, infinite, substantial, communicative Good, full of love and joy; and therefore he desires to be known in living faith, in spirit, and in truth. This...

Christ crucified is set before our eyes as a Book of Life, whence we may learn the sacred wisdom of God, which is in him eminently displayed. For the whole Scripture, the Law an...

The eternal Son of God, by his most holy incarnation, took upon him all the miseries and calamities of mankind: and this not of compulsion and necessity, but of pure love, that...

_By him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all thing...

As in nature, my dear Christian reader, the destruction of one thing is the production of another; even so is it in a true Christian life. The old, carnal man must be destroyed...

When the prophet Samuel, by the commandment of God, went to anoint David king, he entered the house of Jesse, and offered to anoint his first-born: but the Lord said to him: “Lo...

He that desires to become the habitation of God, must first divest himself of the love of the world, and then exercise himself in the love of God. No man can receive the one, wi...

To the end that man may acknowledge his own vanity, he is compared by the Psalmist (Ps. 39; 144:4), to a shadow; and again in another place (Ps. 90:5), to a dream. Now what is a...

If the conduct of the generality of men in the present age be examined by the standard of life and doctrine left us by Christ, we must soon come to the conclusion that it is who...

Many are the means which men make use of to come to a union with God; such as reading, and other external exercises of religion. But in truth, next to that true, living faith wh...

The second head of the life of poverty of Christ, is the contempt which he endured from the world. After thou hast read over and seriously considered the lesson of _poverty_ exh...

If thou duly considerest Christ crucified thou wilt see nothing in him but pure, perfect, and unutterable love, and he will show thee his heart, and say, “Behold, in this heart...

If after a drought and dearth of three years and a half (such as happened in the time of Elijah, 1 Kings 17:1; 18:45), it should please God to send rain upon all the earth, one...

The soul of man, flowing out into worldly things, and cleaving entirely to the creatures, is like a wandering sheep. Now, the great Shepherd of souls tries, by all the methods o...

The dignity of the soul consists in this, that it is the habitation and temple of God, in which he takes more delight than in the whole compass of heaven and earth. So the belie...

If thou wouldst build for eternity, let thy foundation be humility; for no man can of himself do anything. Wherefore, in all thine undertakings, humble thyself before God, the o...

The children of this world earnestly follow the joys and pleasures of it, which the children of God avoid with all diligence, as so many snares and temptations of the devil, des...

The goodness of God comes forth to meet us, and gives merciful answers to the prayers of faith; “for mercy shall compass us about.” Ps. 32:10. It calls to us: “Return, saith the...

Though our “beloved” is always with us, yet he never discovers himself but when the heart is quiet and composed, and all the senses are collected in God. When nothing earthly ap...

The end and perfection of everything is the fruit it bears, or the effects it produces, which are as various as the seeds from whence they spring. Therefore, as there are two di...

This way is Christ. He says, “I am the way.” John 14:6. But thou wilt here ask, How am I to come to him? The answer is: By _faith_. For _faith_ unites us with Christ; _love_ bin...

There are two ways of seeking after God, the one external, and the other internal. The first is the active way, when man seeks after God; the second is the passive, when God see...

The love of God wills, that a loving soul should do good to all men, and be profitable both to foes and friends; not for the sake of its own profit and honor, but only for the s...

When the Holy Spirit enters into our soul; that is to say, manifests his presence by his operations, in the first place, he forthwith reproves in us everything that is not divin...

As nothing is more lovely to a loving soul than Christ, and no good higher or more precious than God himself; so there is also nothing more _beautiful_ in the sight of such a on...

Showing That The Fruit Of Conversion Is The New Creature; Also, That The Christian Is, By Faith, A Lord Over All, And, By Love, A Servant Of All; And, That The Life Of Christ Is...

Whosoever would rightly prepare his soul for union with Jesus Christ, must, like him, be clothed with the meekness and patience of the lamb. Yea, he must have the very same mind...

Every one calls himself by the Christian name, even though he do not perform the least part of what he thereby professes; and, by this means, the Saviour is denied, contemned, b...

_Ah, Lord God! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee._—_The Great, the Mighty God, the...

The genuine love of God proposes God alone for its end. It delights not in the creatures, but in that supreme, eternal, and uncreated Good, whence they proceeded; and this not o...

As all the creatures, the fire, air, earth, water, sun, moon, and stars, equally and without any respect of persons, serve and minister to mankind, doing the same service to the...

Love is the efficient cause of all things; and as there are two sorts of love, the love of God and the love of ourselves, and as these are directly opposite to each other, it fo...

_Ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee: or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee._—JOB 12:7, 8.

As we have already shown that there are two sorts of services; one which the creatures render to man, and the other which men render to God, both tending to the sole happiness o...

_Forasmuch as there is none like unto thee, O Lord; thou art great, and thy name is great in might. Who would not fear thee, O king of nations?_—JEREM. 10:6, 7.—_If then I be a...

As God has freely and graciously bestowed all his gifts and blessings on man, he thereby obliges him to make some satisfaction and return for all these mercies. Now man can offe...

As true and divine joy proceeds from true and divine love, so nothing can proceed from false love but false joy. For as self-love aims at nothing, delights in nothing but honors...

As it is plain that by the love of God, or the love of self, all the motions and operations of our will are governed and directed, and that all other desires and inclinations ha...

There are two very general and comprehensive favors, for which man is exceedingly obliged to God; the one visible and corporeal, which is this world; the other spiritual and inv...

As we were all originally created in the image of God, and he is endeavoring to restore in us this lost image by the Holy Spirit, and to save us in Jesus Christ, it follows, tha...

As we are assured that God is our Creator, Preserver, and loving Father, to whom can we more reasonably pay our honor, duty, and service, than to him? Whom shall we rather implo...

There is no better way of convincing a man than by appealing to his own conscience. There, as in a glass, we may read our duty much more plainly than ten thousand teachers can i...

As God has implanted in every man a faculty of willing or desiring, which we call the will, which is also the seat of love, both which mutually depend on each other; and as man...

Every artist has a love for the works of his own hands, and that induces him to take so much pains about them. “God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very go...

There are three orders in the natural body. The first is to the body the same that the husbandmen and laborers are to the state; being employed in raising the appetite, digestin...

As the greatest strength arises from concord, and the greatest weakness from discord; it follows, that the closer this concord is, the greater will the strength be. But in order...

Love unites itself to the beloved object, because it is the nature of love to communicate itself willingly and freely to every person or being that is disposed to receive it. Fo...

As man knows himself to be the most excellent of all creatures, so ought he to be more thankful to God for the perfections of his own being and nature, than for those of all the...

As the creatures are appointed by God to obey man; so man is obliged to love God, and in this the creatures are our monitors. Thus the trees furnish us with ripe, sweet, perfect...

As God has loved man above all the creatures, or, to speak more properly, has loved him only, having created them all for his sake; so this perpetual love of God calls upon us,...

_Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture._—PS. 100:3.

In every benefit or gift there are three things to be considered: the giver, the receiver, and the gift itself. As, then, there is a natural obligation upon the receiver to the...

Hitherto we have distinctly considered the obligations that man lies under to God; which is a doctrine founded upon that natural relation that is between the giver and the recei...

As love is the root and principle of all the divine acts and operations, it follows that even afflictions, which are the work of God, proceed from love, and ought to be received...

Not only the universal voice of nature, but our own consciences also bear witness that our chief and highest love is due to God. 1. Because he is our chief and eternal Good. 2....

As our love is the most noble present we can make, and has a power of changing our will into the nature of the thing beloved, so that we are under the control of that which we h...

As we have already shown above, that our love is entirely due to God, and that this is the first and chief obligation upon us; hence it follows, that it would be highly unjust t...

Having sufficiently proved, in the first and second Chapters, that God is an absolute, infinite, and superabundant Good, having all perfection in and of himself, and receiving n...

If all men had an equal love for God, the supreme Good, they would then all be of one heart and of one mind, and the sincerity and unanimity which they would manifest in the lov...

That nothing is properly our own but our love, is too plain to need any proof. Hence, if our love be good, and rightly applied, our hearts and the treasures that are in them, ar...

All the creatures, in their different orders and degrees of subordination, may be said to imitate their Maker. Those beings that are endued with life and sense come nearer to hi...

The obligations which man lies under to God, are as many and as great, as are the favors which he has received from him, or the excellencies which he has bestowed upon all the c...

_O Lord, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion of faces._—DAN. 9:7.—_Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory._—PS. 115:1.

As He must be the chief and only good, in whom all good things are contained; it follows that glory and praise belong to God alone, because from him, and by him, and for him, ar...

As man, the noblest of the creatures, cannot subsist one moment without the help of those that are much inferior to himself; it follows, that their being, and the qualities by w...

As man devotes himself entirely unto God by love, so God bestows himself entirely upon man also by love. And as that love of his is in the highest degree of perfection, he canno...

As we have already shown everlasting joy to be the genuine fruit of divine love; it follows, that without that love, we cannot be partakers of the joy, but must sit down at the...