I speak the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience, bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost, that; being justified by faith, I have found peace, and free access to a reconciled God. We are agreed, and now I desire to walk with him. He is my Father in Jesus, and I know he has bowels of the tenderest affection for me. I ought not, it would be base in me, to question it, since he has shed his love abroad in my heart by the Holy Ghost; who has made me of one mind, of one heart;, and of one way with himself. His way is become mine: for he has reconciled me to it, by causing me to see that he chose me freely, as an object of his electing love; that he gave his Son to finish salvation work for me; and that he has now given his Spirit to me, who has called me, and given me cars to hear; who has bestowed on me faith and hope, and has enabled me to look upon these as fruits of the Father's covenant grace and everlasting favour.

O what; exceeding riches of love are these! If I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered. What am I, that I should be accepted in the beloved? His Father mine. He sees me, loves me, yea, blesses me in him. My title is clear to all spiritual blessings, because God, being my God in Jesus, all things are mine. He will make them all work together for my good. He that withheld not his own Son, but gave him for me, how shall he not with him freely give me all things? Having his free grant of them in the word of promise, and trusting to his faithfulness, I have set out to walk with my divine Friend and Father, hoping to enjoy his loving presence all the way to heaven. I would not aim at getting any new title to his love, but to have new enjoyment. Every day I am seeking for more knowledge, and for more experience of his abundant love to me in His beloved Son. And for this end, I would walk close with him in his way–not to buy his love, it is inestimable–not to merit it, free grace and merit cannot stand together–not that I may deserve it for my walk, but may freely receive it of him in my walk–not that he may give it me for walking with him, but that in walking with him, I may enjoy what he has already given me. His love is a free gift. I would by faith enjoy it in time, as I hope by sense to enjoy it in eternity.

Whatever blessing, strength, victory, or comfort, I stand in need of, I look to the fulness which he has laid up in Jesus, and from thence I receive it. I read my title to it, and I take possession of it, for nothing done in me or by me, now or at any other time, but only in or for the free grace of his Father and my Father. While I can live thus by simple faith, I find I am enabled to go on well. The sense of his free, covenant, everlasting love, keeps my heart happy, and makes walking with him my delight. O that he may enable me to press forward, that I may hold my confidence, and the rejoicing of my hope, steadfast unto the end! And why need I doubt of it, since he has me in his keeping? His love has bound itself to me by covenant engagements, which are my full, security for what he has declared–"I will never leave thee nor forsake thee."

These desires, I am persuaded, art, from thee, O rather of mercies. I could never have sought my happiness in thy love, unless thou hadst first loved me. O grant mo then the desires of my heart. What thy good Spirit has put me upon seeking, let me by his grace find continually. He has manifested to me thy perfect reconciliation to thy people, through the life and death of Jesus. It has been given me on his behalf to believe this. I have therefore taken thee for my God and my portion, and I would so walk with thee as to obtain a growing knowledge and experience of thy love. For this cause I bow my knees unto thee, Holy Father. O hear and answer the prayer of faith. Give mo grace to walk with thee in love, all the way to glory. I ask it in the name of Jesus: for thou art the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family, in heaven and earth, is named. One rather, one family, one love. Thou receivest all thy children, whether in heaven or earth, into the stone near relation, and embracest them with the same dear affection in thy beloved Son.

O what a mercy is this! Blessed, for ever blessed, be thy fatherly love, which chose me to be of thy family, and which has brought me to know that I am a child of God, by faith in Christ Jesus. I thank thee for giving me the desire to live as such, and to walk worthy of my high calling. O grant me then, according to the riches of thy glory (out of thine infinite treasury of grace, and to the praise of the glory of thy grace), to be strengthened with might by thy Spirit in the inner man. He is the promise of the Father. All thy children have their new birth, and every faculty of the new man from him, and by the working of his mighty power they are kept, as well as renewed, day by day; for without him they can do nothing. Of this he has thoroughly convinced me. I know I cannot call thee rather, nor believe in thee, nor low thee, but by thy Spirit.

O my God, strengthen me effectually by his grace in the inner man, for every purpose of spiritual life. Whatever he has engaged to do in thy children, let him do it in me, that through his presence and power Christ may dwell in my heart by faith. O let him continually discover to me mine interest in Christ, and open to me the exceeding riches of' thy love in him. Holy Father, let; thy good Spirit; abide with me, that I may know for certain Christ is one with me, and I am one with him, and may thereby be able to maintain constant fellowship with him–he dwelling in me, and I in him.

O may I thus live continually by the faith of the Son of God, depending always for acceptance with thee upon his atonement and his righteousness, and so may find the happy fruit of his prayer to thee–"O righteous Father, I have declared to my disciples thy name, and will declare it, that the love wherewith thou lovest me, may be in them, and I in them." Thou didst hear, thou hast; answered times out of number, the request of thy beloved Son. Lord God, answer it to me. Let me rejoice in thy love, and find it to be the same to me, as to him. Let thy good Spirit; root; me and ground me in the knowledge of thy love to me in Jesus. O grant me to be deeply rotted in the experience of it, that my faith working by love, may bring forth much fruit to thy glory, and I may become so grounded in love as to stand unshaken, like a house bulk upon a rock, against every attack made upon my love to thee.

O my God and Father, my heart is naked and open to thee. Thou knowest the secrets of it; thou seest how fervently I pray for the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit. My prayer comes from a feeling sense of my want of him, and from a dependence on thy promise to give the Spirit to them that ask him. Lord, I ask. Grant me to be strengthened by him, with every needful gift and grace in the inner man. Send him to manifest plainer and plainer my union with Jesus, in order to my keeping up communion with him; that having him dwelling in my heart by faith, I may be so established in the experience of thy love to me in him, as to be able to comprehend with all saints, what is that breadth, and length and depth, and height of thy love. All the saints comprehend it; but the saints below less than they above: and some of them below comprehend more than others. I know but little: O my God, increase my knowledge of thy love in Jesus. Whereunto I have attained, establish mc; and keep me pressing forward for clearer discoveries of it. Help me to survey it, so far as faith is able, in its most glorious dimensions, and to praise thee for mine experience of its rich mercies.

Holy Father, teach me still more by thy Spirit of the boundless freeness, and of the endless fulness of thy love let me know thy love in Christ, which passeth know-ledge. Although I cannot know it as it is, my limited understanding being incapable of measuring the infinity of thy love, yet for this very reason let mo be daily studying to know more of it–growing up into Christ Jesus by faith–abounding in hope by the power of the Holy Ghost–and increasing in the love of God. Holy, blessed, and glorious Trinity, let mo thus partake of the fulness of grace below, grace for grace, till I partake of the fulness of glory above–that I may be filled with all the fulness which is of God, with which thou hast promised to fill thy children in earth and heaven. O magnify thy love towards me according to its greatness, and not according to my deserts, or to my prayers. I know thou canst do exceeding abundantly above all that I can ask or think, according to the power that worketh effectually in me. Thy power engaged to act for me is the support of my faith, and mine encouragement in my prayer. It is an infinite and almighty power, which has graciously begun, and has hitherto prosperously carried on the good work in my soul. To it all things are possible. Lord forbid I should doubt of thy granting the petitions which I have been offering up unto thee in thy Son's name. That which thou hast promised, thou art able to perform. O my God and Father, set thy power to work more effectually in me. Let the Spirit of might enlarge my thoughts of, and my faith in, thy precious love. Let me experience daily, how much more thou art able to do, than I have yet obtained; to give, than I have yet asked; to increase, than I have yet thought. And whatever increase thou givest, may it draw out mine affections in greater love to thee, and to thy ways, and so be the meant of bringing more glory to thee. For thy love in Jesus, the whole family in heaven and earth is ascribing honour and praise. Accept my thanks, holy Father, together with theirs. To thee be glory in the church by Christ Jesus, throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.

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Richard
CofE
UK