make supposed sins unpardonable; and unpardonable ones, appear as
virtues. He can make the law to be received for gospel, and cause
that the gospel shall be thrown away as a fable. He can persuade,
that faith is fancy, and that fancy is the best faith in the world.
Besides, he can tickle the heart with false hope of a better life
hereafter, even as if the love of Christ were there. But, as I
said before, from all these things the true love of Christ in the
right knowledge of it, delivereth those that have it shed abroad
in the heart by the Holy Ghost that he hath given (Rom 5). Wherefore
it is for this purpose that Christ biddeth us to continue in his
love (John 15:9); because the right knowledge, and faith of that
to the soul, disperseth and driveth away all such fogs, and mists
of darkness; and makes the soul to sit fast in the promise of
eternal life by him; yea, and to grow up into him who is the head,
"in all things."

Before I leave this head, I will present my reader with these
things, as helps to the knowledge of the love of Christ. I mean
the knowledge of the nature of it, and as HELPS to retain it.

Help First, Know thy self, what a vile, horrible, abominable sinner
thou art: For thou canst not know the love of Christ, before thou
knowest the badness of thy nature. "O wretched man that I am" (Rom
7:24), must be, before a man can perceive the nature of the love
of Christ. He that sees himself but little, will hardly know much
of the love of Christ: he that sees of himself nothing at all,
will hardly ever see anything of the love of Christ. But he that
sees most of what an abominable wretch he is, he is like to see
most of what is the love of Christ. All errors in doctrine take
their rise from the want of this (I mean errors in doctrine as