Archive for the ‘God is Love: Electing and Non-Electing Love’ Category

24
Apr

Herman Witsius (1636-1708) on General Love

   Posted by: CalvinandCalvinism

Witsius:

1)

(2) When the produce which the earth, through the divine blessing, has yielded, is bestowed on individuals, and is possessed by them in their barns, in their houses, and at their tables. Those blessings are actually bestowed by God on individuals when they enjoy them, not as the bread of slothfulness, or of covetousness, or of deceit, or of robbery,–but when his providence enables them to obtain them by a just title. Those who possess them in any other way cannot be said to have them as a gift from God, bit as the fruits of wicked robbery. “The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou gives them their meat in due season. Thou opens thine hand, and satisfies the desire of every living thing.”

(3) When he bestows all those things on believers, not from the ordinary love which he bears to mankind,1 but from a Fatherly love which he regards them in Christ. When the smallest crumb of bread, or drop of cold water, is bestowed, it becomes inconceivably preferable to all the delicacies of the rich. When those things are enjoyed as the earnest of better and heavenly blessings, “a little that a righteous man has is better than the riches of many wicked.” Herman Witsius, Dissertations on the Lord’s Prayer, (Escondido, California: The den Dulk Christian Foundation, 1994), 278. [Some spelling modernized; footnote value modernized; footnote content original; and underlining mine.]

2)

XCV. Further, we should ascend by the creatures, as be an erect ladder, to God the Creator; who exhibits himself in them, not only to be seen, but also to be felt.2–whose glory the heavens declare,3 and to whom the brute animals of the earth, and the dumb fishes of the sea, bear witness, that they proceeded from his hand.4

XCVI. Nor is a general acknowledgment of this sufficient. But those perfections of God which he has brightly displayed in the work of creation, ought to be particularly observed:–that the infinite Power, at whose command all things rose into existence:–that unbounded Goodness, to which alone the creatures must own themselves entirely indebted for whatever portion of good is in them:–that unsearchable Wisdom, which has arranged every thing in so beautiful and order, that it appears no less admirable in the last than in the greatest works:–that amazing Philanthropy, in fine, which he has shown towards man, not only adorning his body by so exact a proportion of all its parts, which has beyond measure astonished Hippocrates and other anatomists; but also suspending his soul, as in the hidden vault of the temple, an image of himself and a representation of his own holiness; and at the same time, granting him dominion over the rest of the creatures. Herman Witsius, Dissertations on the Apostles’ Creed, (Escondido, California: The den Dulk Christian Foundation, 1994), 224-225. [Some spelling modernized; footnote value modernized; footnote content original; and underlining mine.]

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1Philantropia

2Acts xvii. 27.

3Ps. xix.1.

4Job xii.9.

8
Oct

Alexander Ross (1590-1654) on Divine Love and Divine Hate

   Posted by: CalvinandCalvinism

Ross:

XCI

Though God loves all men, yet saves not all men, he loves them, because he made them, he saves them not, because he willed it not: he could not in justice will all men’s salvation, seeing man by his voluntary injustice deprived himself of salvation. He loves his own image, but hates that which defaced his image, he loves the man, but hates the sin, and if it were not for sin, he would not punish man. Lord, thy love to man is unspeakable, in that thou saves some, and thy justice is unsearchable, in that thou saves not all. I cannot blame thy justice, but my sins, that caused my misery. I cannot brag of my merits, but of thy goodness, that moved thee to mercy.

XCII

God hates the sins of man, because he loves his own justice with the love of complacency.1 He hates the miseries of man., because he loves man’s welfare with the love of amitie,2 but by accident he loves the death of wicked men, because he hates the works of iniquity. Thus it is natural for God to hate evil, as it is to love himself, and as impossible for him to love evil, as it is to hate himself. Alexander Ross, A Centurie of Divine Meditations Upon Predestination and its Adjuncts (London: Printed by James Young, 1646), 96-98. [Some reformatting; some spelling modernized; marginal notes cited as footnotes; and italics original.]

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1Amor benovolentiæ.

2Amor amicitiæ.

Annesley:

From all which is thus explained, arises this proposition.

It is the Duty of every Child of God, to keep themselves in the Love of God.

This proposition is grounded upon a threefold supposition.
1. That some men are in the love of God really, and eternally.
2. That this love wherewith God loves his Chosen, is a special love, a peculiar and distinguishing love.
3. That it is a duty, as well as a privilege to keep our selves in this love of God: our activity, as well as Gods act. Which will be hereafter more explained.

Before we come to the main question, we will answer this question: How love can be said to be in God? for love is a passion in the creature, and passions are imperfections, which are contrary to God’s perfection.

A. 1. It is true: Nothing of imperfection is in God; but love is in God as a perfection: because love is in God in the abstract, that is essentially; for abstracts speak essences. God is Love. 1 John 4.8.

The love of God is either natural or voluntary, thus divines distinguish, and that well.

Mat. 3:17.
Joh. 3:25.
Joh. 5:2c.
Joh. 17:24.

1. The natural love of God is that wherewith God loves himself.
That is, the reciprocal love whereby the three persons love each other.
This essential natural love of God is therefore necessary. God cannot but love himself.
2. The love of God is voluntary: thus he loves his Creatures with a general Love.

Gen. 1:31.

1. Because he made them, and made them good, therefore he preserves them: for though sin be really evil, and none of Gods making, but contrary to God, and hated of God; yet God loves the creatures as his creatures, although sinful, with a general love.

Mat. 5:44-45.

2. He loves some creatures with a special love, and by this he loves Jesus Christ as Mediator.

Joh. 3:35.
Eph. 1:6.
1 Joh. 4:9.
Rom. 8. ult.

1. This love of God to Christ as mediator, is the foundation of God’s love to his elect.
2. By a special love God loves his elect. John 13.1. Of this love it’s said that it is inseparable.

Eph. 1:3,
5,5.
Deut. 7:6,
7,8.
Eph. 2:3,4,
&c. to 10.

Now this is the peculiar love which God bears to some above others. Not because they were more lovely than others, nor because God foresaw they would believe and love him; but because God loved them first antecedently to all those things: and because he loved them therefore Christ shall come and die, and therefore they shall believe in him and love him. The sum is this: Our love to God is the effect, and not the cause of Gods love to us: yea Christ himself as mediator is the effect of God’s eternal love. This is primitive doctrine.

Samuel Annesley, A Continuation of Morning-Exercise Questions and Cases of Conscience, Practically Resolved by Sundry Ministers, in October 1682 (London: Printed by J. A. for John Dunton at the Sign of the Black Raven in the Poultry over against the Stocks-Market, 1683), 127-128. [Some reformatting; marginal references cited as side-headers; some spelling modernized; and underlining mine.]

[Credit to Tony for the find.]

18
Nov

Richard Stock (1569-1626) on General Love

   Posted by: CalvinandCalvinism

Stock:

1) I have loved you,] A speech spoken with affection, specially by valuing his love, and disdaining to have it so neglected of those upon whom he had bestowed it. Some thing it is a speech of imperfect, broken off, and interrupted with grief, when he would have added more. The supply may be, I have loved you always, but you acknowledge it not, neither answered me with love again, but for this repaid me with sins.

Love given1 to God, signifies not a passion nor affection, for there is no such thing in God. Ira Dei non perturbatio animiejus, sed judicium quo irrogatur pæna peccato, August. of the anger of God, De civitate Dei, lib. 15. Cap. 25. So of this, it is no passion,2 but his free election to bestow, yea, an actual giving to them the adoption of sins and eternal life. For God is said to be angry, when he does that a which commonly men do when they are angry, and to love, when he does that which men do when they love. Now this cannot be understood of his general love, of which all are partakers, men and angels, blessing, preserving, sustaining them: for then it were not great matter that he affirms here to his. But of a special love, that is, his choosing of them to be sons, and to bestow on them eternal life. I have loved you, that is, I have chosen you to be my people, and I will be your God, to be my children, and I will be your Father, and to give you the inheritance of sons, than which can be greater? Richard Stock, A Learned and Very Useful Commentary Upon the Whole Prophesie of Malachy (Printed by T.H. and R.H. for Daniel Frere and William Wells, and are to be sold at their shops in Little Britaine, 1641), 15. [Some spelling modernized; some reformatting; italics original; footnotes mine; and underlining mine.]

2) Now we come to speak of the love of God, and the question is:3

Quest. What is the love of God?

Answ. The answer is, it is a communicable attribute, whereby, God loves himself, his Son, and his Spirit, and then his creatures, freely, but not equally: to explain these points, we give love to God as other attributes, not as qualities, not as accidents, not as any thing coming from God, that was not in him before, because there is nothing in God, that is not in God. Love is given to God, as void of all imperfection, or error. It is a that the learned have, that whatsoever attribute given to God, must be free from all imperfection, and error, before we can attributed it to him, and, therefore, love as it is an attribute given to God, must be purged from all imperfection.4 There are three things in Love. First, a good will, that one bears to another. Secondly, a good work. Thirdly, a delighting in that which is loved. These things are in God, none has a better will than God, none does more good than God, and there is none that delights more in his beloved, than God himself. Again, we say it is a communicable attribute, not that love is in God, as it is in man, but because there is something in man, that is like this love of God, man being made a partaker of the godly nature, that is, they have this in the quality, that God has in substance, and, therefore, we call it a communicable attribute. In the next place, we say it is that whereby he loves himself, his Son, and his Spirit. It is for his own glory that he loves himself, as it appears, in that the Scripture says, that God is a jealous God, jealous of his worship and service: if he be jealous, there is a kind of love of himself [which] goes with it: 2. Commandment. So he loves himself, and he loves also his Son, therefore he is called his “beloved Son,” Matt., 3:7. So he loves the Spirit as proceeding from himself, and being properly the love whereby the divine nature loves itself. So he loves creatures, as angels, and men, and other creatures: that he loves, this appears by many testimonies of Scripture, Angels and men are called the children of God. Angels, Job 1:6, “Upon a time the children of God came,” &c. So “Adam is called the son of God,” Luke 3. Last: Next he loves his creatures freely, the cause why he loves them is in himself, not in them. He loves some with a special love, and some with a general, freely that appears by the Scriptures, John 3:16, ‘God so loved the world,” 1 John 1:3, “Herein is the love of God made manifest, that he has given his Son,” 1 John 4:19, “God loved us first”; if first then freely, and no love in us, procured his love. Again, he loves them not equally, for he loves men more than other creatures: Tit. 3:9, “The love he bears to me is manifest.” Yet further, he loves some men more than others, Exod. 19:5, “you shall be my peculiar people”; as if he should say, ‘though all the nations be mine in general, yet you shall be my chief treasure. Tit. 2:14, “a peculiar treasure”; these are treasures that men lock up. He loves those that are elected, and those that are called. Those that are elected, he loved them when they were enemies, Eph. 1:4, “He loved them before the foundation of the world.” But he loves them better whom he has called, than those he has not called: Prov. 8:17, “I love them that love me,” those whom he has endued with his Spirit, Psal. 146:8, “the Lord loves the righteous,” &c. to conclude this with that of Saint Augustine,5 ‘God loves all that he has made, he loves specially men, and angels, and among men, he loves those especially, that are the members of his Son, and most of all, he loves his Son,’ &c., and so we have made manifest this description. Richard Stock, A Stock of Divine Knowledge. Being a Lively Description of the Divine Nature. Or, the Divine Essence, Attributes, and Trinity Particularly Explained and Profitably Applied. The First showing Us What God is: The Second, what We Ought to be (London: Printed by T.H. for Philip Nevil, and are to be sold at his Shop in Ivie Lane, at the Signe of the Gun, 1641), 158-160. [Some spelling modernized; some reformatting; italics original; footnotes mine; and underlining mine.]

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Babbington:

S. Paul says, “Christ has loved me.” O Paul, the benefit that is common to all, thou uses as peculiar to thyself! “Yea verily,” (says S. Paul) “for albeit that sacrifice were offered for all mankind, yet for the love that I bear towards him, the thing that was done for all, I account as proper and several to myself alone.”  Thus the manner of the Prophets is to do and to say, “O God my God,” notwithstanding he is the God or all the world. But this is the special and all only office of live, of things common to make things peculiar. Thou says, “Christ has loved me.” What say thou? Has Christ loved thee only? & no man else? “No,” (says Paul) “he has loved all mankind, but I owe him thanks, as if he had loved me alone, and had given himself only for me.” By all these testimonies then, both Scriptures and Fathers, you see, the nature of true faith in God’s children, how it does particularize and apply things general to the most nearest comfort. 

Gervase Babbington, An Explanation of the Catechism Contained in the Book of Common Prayer,” in The Works of the Right Reverend Father in God, Gervase Babington, Late Bishop of Worcester (London: Printed by Miles Flesher, 1637), 172. [Some spelling modernized.]