Part 1

PART 1.

In these Words, the Apostle represents the State of the Minds of the Christians he wrote to, under the Persecutions they were then the Subjects of. These Persecutions are what he has Respect to, in the two preceding Verses, when he speaks of the Trial of their Faith, and of their being in Heaviness through manifold Temptations.

Such Trials are of threefold Benefit to true Religion: Hereby the Truth of it is manifested, and it appears to be indeed true Religion: They, above all other Things, have a Tendency to distinguish between true Religion and false, and to cause the Difference between them evidently to appear. Hence they are called by the Name of Trials, in the Verse next preceding the Text, and in innumerable other Places: They try the Faith and Religion of Professors, of what Sort it is, as apparent Gold is tried in the Fire, and manifested, whether it be true Gold or no. And the Faith of true Christians being thus tried and proved to be true, is found to Praise, and Honour, and Glory; as in that preceding Verse.

And then, These Trials are of further Benefit to true Religion; they not only manifest the Truth of it, but they make its genuine Beauty and Amiableness remarkably to appear. True Virtue never appears so lovely, as when it is most oppressed: And the divine Excellency of real Christianity, is never exhibited with such Advantage, as when under the greatest Trials: Then it is that true Faith appears much more precious than Gold; and upon this Account, is found to Praise, and Honour, and Glory.

And again, Another Benefit that such Trials are of to true Religion, is, that they purify and increase it. They not only manifest it to be true, but also tend to refine it, and deliver it from those Mixtures of that which is false, which incumber and impede it; that nothing may be left but that which is true. They tend to cause the Amiableness of true Religion to appear to the best Advantage, as was before observed; and not only so, but they tend to increase its Beauty, by establishing and confirming it, and making it more lively and vigorous, and purifying it from those Things that obscured its Lustre and Glory. As Gold that is tried in the Fire, is purged from its Alloy, and all Remainders of Dross, and comes forth more solid and beautiful; so true Faith being tried as Gold is tried in the Fire, becomes more precious; and thus also is found unto Praise, and Honour, and Glory. The Apostle seems to have Respect to each of these Benefits, that Persecutions are of to true Religion, in the Verse preceding the Text.

And in the Text, the Apostle observes how true Religion operated in the Christians he wrote to, under their Persecutions, whereby these Benefits of Persecution appeared in them; or what manner of Operation of true Religion, in them, it was, whereby their Religion, under Persecution, was manifested to be true Religion, and eminently appeared in the genuine Beauty and Amiableness of true Religion, and also appeared to be increased and purified, and so was like to be found unto Praise, and Honour, and Glory, at the Appearing of Jesus Christ. And there were two Kinds of Operation, or Exercise of true Religion, in them, under their Sufferings, that the Apostle takes Notice of in the Text, wherein these Benefits appeared.

1. Love to Christ; Whom having not seen, ye love. The World was ready to wonder, what strange Principle it was, that influenced them to expose themselves to so great Sufferings, to forsake the Things that were seen, and renounce all that was dear and pleasant, which was the Object of Sense: They seemed to the Men of the World about them, as though they were beside themselves, and to act as though they hated themselves; there was nothing in their View, that could induce them thus to suffer, and support them under, and carry them through such Trials. But although there was nothing that was seen, nothing that the World saw, or that the Christians themselves ever saw with their bodily Eyes, that thus influenced and supported them; yet they had a supernatural Principle of Love to something unseen; they loved Jesus Christ, for they saw him spiritually, whom the World saw not, and whom they themselves had never seen with bodily Eyes.

2. Joy in Christ. Though their outward Sufferings were very grievous, yet their inward spiritual Joys were greater than their Sufferings, and these supported them, and enabled them to suffer with Cheerfulness.

There are two Things which the Apostle takes Notice of in the Text concerning this Joy. 1. The Manner in which it rises, the Way in which Christ, though unseen, is the Foundation of it, namely By Faith; which is the Evidence of Things not seen; In whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice 2. The Nature of this Joy; unspeakable, and full of Glory. Unspeakable in the Kind of it; very different from worldly Joys, and carnal Delights; of a vastly more pure, sublime and heavenly Nature, being something supernatural, and truly divine, and so ineffably excellent; the Sublimity, and exquisite Sweetness of which, there were no Words to set forth. Unspeakable also in Degree; it pleasing God to give them this holy Joy, with a liberal Hand, and in large Measure, in their State of Persecution.

Their Joy was full of Glory: Although the Joy was unspeakable, and no Words were sufficient to describe it; yet something might be said of it, and no Words more fit to represent its Excellency, than these, that it was full of Glory; or, as it is in the Original, glorified Joy. In rejoicing with this Joy, their Minds were filled, as it were, with a glorious Brightness, and their Natures exalted and perfected: It was a most worthy, noble Rejoicing, that did not corrupt and debase the Mind, as many carnal Joys do; but did greatly beautify and dignify it: It was a Prelibation of the Joy of Heaven, that raised their Minds to a Degree of heavenly Blessedness: It filled their Minds with the Light of God's Glory, and made them themselves to shine with some Communication of that Glory.

Hence the Proposition or Doctrine, that I would raise from these Words is this,

DOCTRINE. True Religion, in great Part, consists in holy Affections.

We see that the Apostle, in observing and remarking the Operations and Exercises of Religion, in the Christians he wrote to, wherein their Religion appeared to be true and of the right Kind, when it had its greatest Trial of what Sort it was, being tried by Persecution as Gold is tried in the Fire, and when their Religion not only proved true, but was more pure, and cleansed from its Dross and Mixtures of that which was not true, and when Religion appeared in them most in its genuine Excellency and native Beauty, and was found to Praise, and Honour, and Glory; he singles out the religious Affections of Love and Joy, that were then in exercise in them: These are the Exercises of Religion he takes Notice of, wherein their Religion did thus appear true and pure, and in its proper Glory.

Here I would,

1. Show what is intended by the Affections,

2. Observe some Things which make it evident, that a great Part of true Religion lies in the Affections.

1. It may be inquired, what the Affections of the Mind are?

I answer, The Affections are no other, than the more vigorous and sensible Exercises of the Inclination and Will of the Soul.

God has endowed the Soul with two Faculties: One is that by which it is capable of Perception and Speculation, or by which it discerns and views and judges of Things; which is called the Understanding. The other Faculty is that by which the Soul does not merely perceive and view Things, but is some Way inclined with respect to the Things it views or considers; either is inclined to them, or is disinclined, and averse from them; or is the Faculty by which the Soul does not behold Things, as an indifferent unaffected Spectator, but either as liking or disliking, pleased or displeased, approving or rejecting. This Faculty is called by various Names: It is sometimes called the Inclination: And, as it has respect to the Actions that are determined and governed by it, is called the Will: And the Mind, with regard to the Exercises of this Faculty, is often called the Heart.

The Exercises of this Faculty are of two Sorts; either those by which the Soul is carried out towards the Things that are in view, in approving of them, being pleased with them, and inclined to them; or those in which the Soul opposes the Things that are in view, in disapproving them, and in being displeased with them, averse from them, and rejecting them.

And as the Exercises of the Inclination and Will of the Soul are various in their Kinds, so they are much more various in their Degrees. There are some Exercises of Pleasedness or Displeasedness, Inclination or Disinclination, wherein the Soul is carried but a little beyond a State of perfect Indifference. And there are other Degrees above this, wherein the Approbation or Dislike, Pleasedness or Aversion, are stronger; wherein we may rise higher and higher, until the Soul comes to act vigorously and sensibly, and the Actings of the Soul are with that Strength that (through the Laws of the Union which the Creator has fixed between Soul and Body) the Motion of the Blood and animal Spirits begins to be sensibly altered; whence oftentimes arises some bodily Sensation, especially about the Heart and Vitals, that are the Fountain of the Fluids of the Body: From whence it comes to pass, that the Mind, with regard to the Exercises of this Faculty, perhaps in all Nations and Ages, is called the Heart. And it is to be noted, that they are these more vigorous and sensible Exercises of this Faculty, that are called the Affections.

The Will, and the Affections of the Soul, are not two Faculties; the Affections are not essentially distinct from the Will, nor do they differ from the mere Actings of the Will and Inclination of the Soul, but only in the Liveliness, and Sensibleness of Exercise.

It must be confessed, that Language is here somewhat imperfect, and the Meaning of Words in a considerable Measure loose and unfixed, and not precisely limited by Custom, which governs the Use of Language. In some Sense, the Affection of the Soul differs nothing at all from the Will and Inclination, and the Will never is in any Exercise any further than it is affected; it is not moved out of a State of perfect Indifference, any otherwise than as it is affected one Way or other, and acts nothing voluntarily any further. But yet there are many Actings of the Will and Inclination, that are not so commonly called Affections: In every Thing we do, wherein we act voluntarily, there is an Exercise of the Will and Inclination, it is our Inclination that governs us in our Actions: But all the actings of the Inclination and Will, in all our common Actions of Life, are not ordinarily called Affections. Yet, what are commonly called Affections are not essentially different from them, but only in the Degree and Manner of Exercise. In every Act of the Will whatsoever, the Soul either likes or dislikes, is either inclined or disinclined to what is in view: These are not essentially different from those Affections of Love and Hatred: That Liking or Inclination of the Soul to a Thing, if it be in a high Degree, and be vigorous and lively, is the very same Thing with the Affection of Love: And that Disliking and Disinclining, if in a great Degree, is the very same with Hatred. In every Act of the Will for, or towards something not present, the Soul is in some Degree inclined to that Thing; and that Inclination, if in a considerable Degree, is the very same with the Affection of Desire. And in every Degree of the Act of the Will, wherein the Soul approves of something Present, there is a Degree of Pleasedness; and that Pleasedness, if it be in a considerable Degree, is the very same with the Affection of Joy or Delight. And if the Will disapproves of what is present, the Soul is in some Degree displeased, and if that Displeasedness be great, it is the very same with the Affection of Grief or Sorrow.

Such seems to be our Nature, and such the Laws of the Union of Soul and Body, that there never is in any Case whatsoever, any lively and vigorous Exercise of the Will or Inclination of the Soul, without some Effect upon the Body, in some Alteration of the Motion of its Fluids, and especially of the animal Spirits. And on the other Hand, from the same Laws of the Union of Soul and Body, the Constitution of the Body, and the Motion of its Fluids, may promote the Exercise of the Affections. But yet, it is not the Body, but the Mind only, that is the proper Seat of the Affections. The Body of Man is no more capable of being really the Subject of Love or Hatred, Joy or Sorrow, Fear or Hope, than the Body of a Tree, or than the same Body of Man is capable of thinking and understanding. As it is the Soul only that has Ideas, so it is the Soul only that is pleased or displeased with its Ideas. As it is the Soul only that thinks, so it is the Soul only that loves or hates, rejoices or is grieved at what it thinks of. Nor are these Motions of the animal Spirits, and Fluids of the Body, any thing properly belonging to the Nature of the Affections; though they always accompany them, in the present State: but are only Effects or Concomitants of the Affections, that are entirely distinct from the Affections themselves, and no Way essential to them; so that an unbodied Spirit may be as capable of Love and Hatred, Joy or Sorrow, Hope or Fear, or other Affections, as one that is united to a Body.

The Affections and Passions are frequently spoken of as the same; and yet, in the more common Use of Speech, there is in some Respect a Difference. And Affection is a Word, that in its ordinary Signification, seems to be something more extensive than Passion; being used for all vigorous lively Actings of the Will or Inclination; but Passion for those that are more sudden, and whose Effects on the animal Spirits are more violent, and the Mind more overpowered, and less in its own Command.

As all the Exercises of the Inclination and Will, are either in approving and liking, or disapproving and rejecting; so the Affections are of two Sorts; they are those by which the Soul is carried out to what is in view, cleaving to it, or seeking it; or those by which it is averse from it, and opposes it.

Of the former Sort are Love, Desire, Hope, Joy, Gratitude, Complacence. Of the latter Kind, are Hatred, Fear, Anger, Grief, and such like; which it is needless now to stand particularly to define.

And there are some Affections wherein there is a Composition of each of the aforementioned Kinds of Actings of the Will; as in the Affection of Pity, there is something of the former Kind, towards the Person suffering, and something of the Latter, towards what he suffers. And so in Zeal, there is in it high Approbation of some Person or Thing, together with vigorous Opposition to what is conceived to be contrary to it.

There are other mixed Affections that might be also mentioned, but I hasten to the

Second Thing proposed, Which was to observe some Things that render it evident, that true Religion, in great Part, consists in the Affections. And here,

1. What has been said of the Nature of the Affections, makes this evident, and may be sufficient, without adding any thing further, to put this Matter out of Doubt: For who will deny that true Religion consists, in a great Measure, in vigorous and lively Actings of the Inclination and Will of the Soul, or the fervent Exercises of the Heart.

That Religion which God requires, and will accept, does not consist in weak, dull and lifeless Wouldings, raising us but a little above a State of Indifference. God, in his Word, greatly insists upon it, that we be in good Earnest, fervent in Spirit, and our Hearts vigorously engaged in Religion: Romans 12:11. Be ye fervent in Spirit, serving the Lord. Deuteronomy 10:12. And now Israel, What doth the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all his Ways, and to love him, and to serve the Lord thy God, with all thy Heart, and with all thy Soul? And Chapter 6:4, 5. Hear, O Israel; the Lord our God is one Lord; and thou shalt love the Lord thy God, with all thy Heart, and with all thy Soul, and with all thy Might. It is such a fervent, vigorous Engagedness of the Heart in Religion, that is the Fruit of a real Circumcision of the Heart, or true Regeneration, and that has the Promises of Life; Deuteronomy 30:6. And the Lord thy God will circumcise thine Heart, and the Heart of thy Seed, to love the Lord thy God, with all thy Heart, and with all thy Soul, that thou mayest live.

If we be not in good earnest in Religion, and our Wills and Inclinations be not strongly exercised, we are nothing. The Things of Religion are so great, that there can be no Suitableness in the Exercises of our Hearts, to their Nature and Importance, unless they be lively and powerful. In nothing, is Vigour in the Actings of our Inclinations so requisite, as in Religion; and in nothing is Lukewarmness so odious. True Religion is evermore a powerful Thing; and the Power of it appears, in the first Place, in the inward Exercises of it in the Heart, where is the principal and original Seat of it. Hence true Religion is called the Power of Godliness, in Distinction from the external Appearances of it, that are the Form of it, 2 Timothy 3:5. Having a Form of Godliness, but denying the Power of it. The Spirit of God, in those that have sound and solid Religion, is a Spirit of powerful holy Affection; and therefore, God is said to have given them the Spirit of Power, and of Love, and of a sound Mind, 2 Timothy 1:7. And such, when they receive the Spirit of God, in his sanctifying and saving Influences, are said to be baptized with the Holy Ghost, and with Fire; by reason of the Power and Fervour of those Exercises the Spirit of God excites in their Hearts, whereby their Hearts, when Grace is in exercise, may be said to burn within them; as is said of the Disciples, Luke 24:32.

The Business of Religion is, from Time to Time, compared to those Exercises, wherein Men are wont to have their Hearts and Strength greatly exercised and engaged; such as Running, Wrestling or Agonizing for a great Prize or Crown, and Fighting with strong Enemies that seek our Lives, and Warring as those that by Violence take a City or Kingdom.

And though true Grace has various Degrees, and there are some that are but Babes in Christ, in whom the Exercise of the Inclination and Will towards divine and heavenly Things, is comparatively weak; yet every one that has the Power of Godliness in his Heart, has his Inclinations and Heart exercised towards God and divine Things, with such Strength and Vigour, that these holy Exercises do prevail in him above all carnal or natural Affections, and are effectual to overcome them: For every true Disciple of Christ, loves him above Father or Mother, Wife and Children, Brethren and Sisters, Houses and Lands; yea, than his own Life. From hence it follows, that wherever true Religion is, there are vigorous Exercises of the Inclination and Will, towards divine Objects: But by what was said before, the vigorous, lively and sensible Exercises of the Will, are no other than the Affections of the Soul.

2. The Author of the human Nature has not only given Affections to Men, but has made them very much the Spring of Men's Actions. As the Affections do not only necessarily belong to the human Nature, but are a very great Part of it; so (inasmuch as by Regeneration, Persons are renewed in the whole Man, and sanctified throughout) holy Affections do not only necessarily belong to true Religion, but are a very great Part of that. And as true Religion is of a practical Nature, and God hath so constituted the human Nature, that the Affections are very much the Spring of Men's Actions, this also shows, that true Religion must consist very much in the Affections.

Such is Man's Nature, that he is very inactive, any otherwise than he is influenced by some Affection, either Love or Hatred, Desire, Hope, Fear or some other. These Affections we see to be the Springs that set Men going, in all the Affairs of Life, and engage them in all their Pursuits: These are the Things that put Men forward, and carry them along, in all their worldly Business; and especially are Men excited and animated by these, in all Affairs, wherein they are earnestly engaged, and which they pursue with Vigour. We see the World of Mankind to be exceeding busy and active; and the Affections of Men are the Springs of the Motion: Take away all Love and Hatred, all Hope and Fear, all Life, Zeal and affectionate Desire, and the World would be, in a great Measure, motionless and dead; there would be no such Thing as Activity amongst Mankind, or any earnest Pursuit whatsoever. It is Affection that engages the covetous Man, and him that is greedy of worldly Profits, in his Pursuits; and it is by the Affections, that the ambitious Man is put forward in his Pursuit of wordly Glory; and it is the Affections also that actuate the voluptuous Man, in his Pursuit of Pleasure and sensual Delights: The World continues, from Age to Age, in a continual Commotion and Agitation, in a Pursuit of these Things; but take away all Affection, and the Spring of all this Motion would be gone, and the Motion itself would cease. And as in worldly Things, worldly Affections are very much the Spring of Men's Motion and Action; so in religious Matters, the Spring of their Actions are very much religious Affections: He that has doctrinal Knowledge and Speculation only, without Affection, never is engaged in the Business of Religion.

3. Nothing is more manifest in Fact, than that the Things of Religion take hold of Men's Souls, no further than they affect them. There are Multitudes that often hear the Word of God, and therein hear of those Things that are infinitely great and important, and that most nearly concern them, and all that is heard seems to be wholly ineffectual upon them, and to make no Alteration in their Disposition or Behaviour; and the Reason is, they are not affected with what they hear. There are many that often hear of the glorious Perfections of God, his almighty Power, and boundless Wisdom, his infinite Majesty, and that Holiness of God, by which he is of purer Eyes than to behold Evil, and cannot look on Iniquity, and the Heavens are not pure in his Sight, and of God's infinite Goodness and Mercy, and hear of the great Works of God's Wisdom, Power and Goodness, wherein there appear the admirable Manifestations of these Perfections; they hear particularly of the unspeakable Love of God and Christ, and of the great Things that Christ has done and suffered, and of the great Things of another World, of eternal Misery, in bearing the Fierceness and Wrath of almighty God, and of endless Blessedness and Glory in the Presence of God, and the Enjoyment of his dear Love; they also hear the peremptory Commands of God, and his gracious Counsels and Warnings, and the sweet Invitations of the Gospel; I say, they often hear these Things, and yet remain as they were before, with no sensible Alteration on them, either in Heart or Practice, because they are not affected with what they hear; and never will be so until they are affected. I am bold to assert, that there never was any considerable Change wrought in the Mind or Conversation of any one Person, by anything of a religious Nature, that ever he read, heard or saw, that had not his Affections moved. Never was a natural Man engaged earnestly to seek his Salvation: Never were any such brought to cry after Wisdom, and lift up their Voice for Understanding, and to wrestle with God in Prayer for Mercy; and never was one humbled, and brought to the Foot of God, from any thing that ever he heard or imagined of his own Unworthiness and Deservings of God's Displeasure; nor was ever one induced to fly for Refuge unto Christ, while his Heart remained unaffected. Nor was there ever a Saint awakened out of a cold, lifeless Frame, or recovered from a declining State in Religion, and brought back from a lamentable Departure from God, without having his Heart affected. And in a Word, there never was any Thing considerable brought to pass in the Heart or Life of any Man living, by the Things of Religion, that had not his Heart deeply affected by those Things.

4. The holy Scriptures do everywhere place Religion very much in the affections; such as Fear, Hope, Love, Hatred, Desire, Joy, Sorrow, Gratitude, Compassion and Zeal.

The Scriptures place much of Religion in godly Fear; insomuch that it is often spoken of as the Character of those that are truly religious Persons, that they tremble at God's Word, that they fear before him, that their Flesh trembles for Fear of him, and that they are afraid of his Judgments, that his Excellency makes them afraid, and his Dread falls upon them; and the like: And a compellation commonly given the Saints in Scripture, is, Fearers of God, or they that fear the Lord. And because the Fear of God is a great Part of true Godliness, hence true Godliness in general, is very commonly called by the Name of the Fear of God; as every one knows, that knows anything of the Bible.

So Hope in God and in the Promises of his Word, is often spoken of in the Scripture, as a very considerable Part of true Religion. 'Tis mentioned as one of the three great Things of which Religion consists, 1 Corinthians 13. 13. Hope in the Lord is also frequently mentioned as the Character of the Saints: Psalm 146. 5. Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his Help, whose Hope is in the Lord his God. Jeremiah 17. 7. Blessed is the Man that trusteth in the Lord, whose Hope the Lord is. Psalm 31. 24. Be of good Courage, and he shall strengthen your Heart, all ye that Hope in the Lord. And the like in many other Places. Religious Fear and Hope are, once and again, joined together, as jointly constituting the Character of the true Saints. Psalm 33. 18. Behold the Eye of the Lord is upon them that Fear him, upon them that Hope in his Mercy. Psalm 147. 11. The Lord taketh Pleasure in them that Fear him, in those that Hope in his Mercy. Hope is so great a Part of true Religion, that the Apostle says we are saved by Hope. Romans 8. 24. And this is spoken of as the Helmet of the Christian Soldier. 1 Thessalonians 5. 8. And for an Helmet, the Hope of Salvation; and the sure and steadfast Anchor of the Soul, which preserves it from being cast away by the Storms of the evil World, Hebrews 6. 19. Which Hope we have as an Anchor of the Soul, Benefit which true Saints receive by Faith.

The Scriptures place Religion very much in the Affection of Love, in Love to God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and Love to the People of God, and to Mankind. The Texts in which this is manifest, both in the Old Testament, and New, are innumerable. But of this more afterwards.

The contrary Affection of Hatred also, as having Sin for its Object, is spoken of in Scripture, as no inconsiderable Part of true Religion. It is spoken of as that by which true Religion may be known and distinguished, Proverbs 8. 13. The fear of the Lord is to hate Evil. And accordingly the Saints are called upon to give Evidence of their Sincerity by this, Psalm 97. 10. Ye that fear the Lord hate Evil. And the Psalmist often mentions it as an Evidence of his Sincerity; Psalm 101. 2. 3. I will walk within my House with a perfect Heart; I will set no wicked Thing before mine Eyes: I hate the Work of them that turn aside. Psalm 119. 104. I hate every false Way. See Verse 128. Again Psalm 139. 21. Do I not hate them, O Lord, that hate thee.

So holy Desire, exercised in Longings, Hungrings and Thirstings after God and Holiness, is often mentioned in Scripture as an important Part of true Religion; Isaiah 26. 8. The Desire of our Soul is to thy Name, and to the Remembrance of thee. Psalm 27. 4. One Thing have I desired of the Lord, and that will I seek after; that I may 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. Psalm 42. 1, 2. As the Heart panteth after the Water-brooks, so panteth my Soul after thee, O God; My Soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: When shall I come and appear before God? Psalm 63. 1, 2. My Soul thirsteth for thee; my Flesh longeth for thee, in a dry and thirsty Land, where no Water is, to see thy Power and thy Glory, so as I have seen thee in the Sanctuary. Psalm 84. 1, 2. How amiable are thy Tabernacles, O Lord of Hosts! My Soul longeth, yea, even fainteth, for the Courts of the Lord; my Heart and my Flesh crieth out for the living God. Psalm 119. 20. My Soul breaketh for the Longing it hath unto thy Judgments, at all Times. So Psalm 73. 25. and 143. 6. and 130. 6. Song of Solomon 3. 1, 2. and 6. 8. Such a holy Desire and Thirst of Soul is mentioned, as one of those great Things which renders or denotes a Man truly blessed, in the Beginning of Christ's Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5. 6. Blessed are they that do hunger and thirst after Righteousness, for they shall be filled. And this holy Thirst is spoken of, as a great Thing in the Condition of a Participation of the Blessings of eternal Life, Revelation 21. 6. I will give unto him that is athirst, of the Fountain of the Water of Life freely.

The Scriptures speak of holy Joy, as a great Part of true Religion. So is it represented in the Text. And as an important Part of Religion, it is often exhorted to, and pressed, with great Earnestness; Psalm 37. 4. Delight thy self in the Lord, and he shall give thee the Desires of thine Heart. Psalm 97. 12. Rejoice in the Lord, ye Righteous. So Psalm 33. 1. Rejoice in the Lord, O ye Righteous. Matthew 5. 12. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad. Philippians 3. 1. Finally Brethren, rejoice in the Lord. And Chapter 4. 4. Rejoice in the Lord alway, and again I say rejoice. 1 Thessalonians 5. 16. Rejoice evermore. Psalm 149. 2. Let Israel rejoice in him that made him; let the Children of Zion be joyful in their King. This is mentioned among the principal Fruits of the Spirit of Grace, Galatians 5. 22. The Fruit of the Spirit is Love, Joy, etc. The Psalmist mentions his holy Joy, as an Evidence of his Sincerity, Psalm 119. 14. I have rejoiced in the Way of thy Testimonies, as much as in all Riches.

Religious Sorrow, Mourning, and Brokenness of Heart, are also frequently spoken of as a great Part of true Religion. These Things are often mentioned as distinguishing Qualities of the true Saints, and a great Part of their Character; Matthew 5. 4. Blessed are they that mourn; for they shall be comforted. Psalm 34. 18. The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken Heart, and saveth such as be of a contrite Spirit. Isaiah 61. 1, 2. The Lord hath anointed me to bind up the Broken-hearted, to comfort all that mourn. This godly Sorrow, and Brokenness of Heart is often spoken of, not only, as a great Thing in the distinguishing Character of the Saints, but that in them, which is peculiarly acceptable and pleasing to God; Psalm 51. 17. The Sacrifices of God are a broken Spirit; a broken and a contrite Heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. Isaiah 57. 15. Thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth Eternity, whose Name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy Place, with him also that is of a humble and contrite Spirit, to revive the Spirit of the Humble, and to revive the Heart of the contrite ones. Chapter 66. 2. To this Man will I look, even to him that is poor, and of a contrite Spirit.

Another Affection often mentioned, as that in the Exercise of which much of true Religion appears, is Gratitude; especially as exercised in Thankfulness and Praise to God. This being so much spoken of in the Book of Psalms, and other Parts of the holy Scriptures, I need not mention particular Texts.

Again, The holy Scriptures frequently speak of Mercy, as a very great and essential Thing in true Religion; insomuch that good Men are in Scripture denominated from it, and a merciful Man, and a good Man, are equivalent Terms in Scripture; Isaiah 57. 1. The Righteous perisheth, and merciful Men are taken away. And the Scripture speaks of this Quality, as that by which, in a peculiar Manner, a Man is distinguished; Psalm 37. 21. The Righteous showeth Mercy, and giveth; and Verse 26, He is ever merciful, and lendeth. Psalm 112. 4. He is gracious, and full of Compassion, and Righteous. Colossians 3. 12. Put ye on, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of Mercy, etc. This is one of those great Things, by which those that are truly Blessed are described by our Saviour, Matthew 5. 7. Blessed are the Merciful, for they shall obtain Mercy. And this Christ speaks of, as one of the weightier Matters of the Law. Matthew 23. 23 Woe unto you Scribes and Pharisees, Hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of Mint, and Anise, and Cummin, and have omitted the weightier Matters of the Law, Judgment, Mercy, and Faith. To the like Purpose is that, Micah 6. 8. He hath showed thee, O Man, what is good; And what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and love Mercy, and walk humbly with thy God? And also that, Hosea 6. 6. For I desired Mercy, and not Sacrifice. Which seems to have been a Text much delighted in by our Saviour, by his Manner of citing it once and again; Matthew 9. 13. and 12. 7.

Zeal is also spoken of, as a very essential Part of the Religion of true Saints. 'Tis spoken of as a great Thing Christ had in view, in giving himself for our Redemption; Titus 2. 14. Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify with himself a peculiar People, zealous of good Works. And this is spoken of, as the great Thing wanting in the luke-warm Laodiceans, Revelation 3. 15, 16, 19.

I have mentioned but a few Texts, out of an innumerable multitude, all over the Scripture, which place Religion very much in the Affections. But what has been observed, may be sufficient to show that they who would deny that much of true Religion lies in the Affections, and maintain the Contrary, must throw away what we have been wont to own for our Bible, and get some other Rule, by which to judge of the Nature of Religion.

5. The Scriptures do represent true Religion, as being summarily comprehended in Love, the Chief of the Affections, and Fountain of all other Affections.

So our blessed Saviour represents the Matter, in answer to the Lawyer, who asked him, which was the great Commandment of the Law. Matthew 22. 37, 38, 39, 40. Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God, with all thy Heart, and with all thy Soul, and with all thy Mind. Which words signify as much, as that those two Commandments comprehend the Duty prescribed, and the Religion taught in the Law and the Prophets. And the Apostle Paul does from Time to Time make the same Representation of the Matter; as in Romans 13. 8. He that loveth another, hath fulfilled the Law. So likewise in 1 Timothy 1. 5. Now the End of the Commandment is Charity, of a pure Heart, etc. So the same Apostle speaks of Love, as the greatest Thing in Religion, and as the Vitals, Essence and Soul of it; without which, the greatest Knowledge and Gifts, and the most glaring Profession, and every thing else which appertains to Religion, are vain and worthless; and represents it as the Fountain from whence proceeds all that is good, in 1 Corinthians 13. throughout; for that which is there rendered charity, in the Original, is Agape, the proper English of which is Love.

Now although it be true, that the Love thus spoken of, includes the whole of a sincerely benevolent Propensity of the Soul, towards God and Man; yet it may be considered, that it is evident from what has been before observed, that this Propensity or Inclination of the Soul, when in sensible and vigorous Exercise, becomes Affection, and is no other than affectionate Love. And surely it is such vigorous and fervent Love which Christ speaks of, as the Sum of all Religion, when he speaks of Loving God with all our Hearts, with all our Souls, and with all our Minds, and our Neighbour as ourselves, as the Sum of all that was taught and prescribed in the Law and the Prophets.

Indeed it cannot be supposed, when this affection of love is here, and in other scriptures, spoken of as the sum of all religion, that hereby is meant the act, exclusive of the habit, or that the exercise of the understanding is excluded, which is implied in all reasonable affection. But it is doubtless true, and evident from these scriptures, that the Essence of all true religion lies in holy love; and that in this divine affection, and an habitual disposition to it, and that light which is the foundation of it, and those things which are the fruits of it, consists the Whole of religion.

From hence it clearly and certainly appears, that great part of true religion consists in the affections. For love is not only one of the affections, but it is the first and chief of the affections, and the fountain of all the affections. From Love arises Hatred of those things which are contrary to what we love, or which oppose and thwart us in those things that we delight in. And from the various exercises of love and hatred, according to the circumstances of the objects of these affections, as present or absent, certain or uncertain, probable or improbable [...] affections of Desire, [...] Fear, Joy, [...] Gratitude, [...] etcetera [...] a vigorous, affectionate, and fervent Love to God,[...] other religious affections: hence [...]Fear of Sin,[...] and joy in God when God is [...] and sensibly present, and Grief when he is absent, and a joyful [...] when a future enjoyment [of] God is expected, and fervent [...] for the glory of God. And in like manner, from a fervent Love to Men, will arise all other virtuous affections towards men.

6. The religion of the most eminent saints we have an account of in the scripture, consisted much in holy Affections.

I shall take particular notice of three eminent saints, who have expressed the frame and sentiments of their own hearts, and so described their own religion, and the manner of their intercourse with God, in the writings which they have left us, that are a part of the sacred canon.

The first instance I shall take notice of, is David, that Man after God's own Heart; who has given us a lively portraiture of his religion, in the Book of Psalms. Those holy songs of his, he has there left us, are nothing else but the expressions and breathings of devout and holy Affections; such as an humble and fervent Love to God, Admiration of his glorious perfections and wonderful works, earnest Desires, thirstings and pantings of soul after God, Delight and Joy in God, a sweet and melting Gratitude to God for his great goodness, an holy Exultation and triumph of soul in the favor, sufficiency and faithfulness of God, his Love to, and Delight in the saints, the excellent of the earth, his great Delight in the word and ordinance of God, his Grief for his own and others sins, and his fervent Zeal for God, and against the enemies of God and his church. And these expressions of holy affection, which the Psalms of David are every where full of, are the more to our present purpose, because those Psalms are not only the expressions of the religion of so eminent a saint that God speaks of as so agreeable to his mind; but were also, by the direction of the Holy Ghost, penned for the use of the church of God in its public worship, not only in that age, but in after ages; as being fitted to express the religion of all saints, in all ages, as well as the religion of the Psalmist. And it is moreover to be observed, that David, in the Book of Psalms, speaks not as a private person, but as the Psalmist of Israel, as the subordinate head of the church of God, and leader in their worship and praises; and in many of the Psalms, speaks in the name of Christ, as personating him in these breathings forth of holy affection, and in many other Psalms, he speaks in the name of the church.

Another instance I shall observe, is the Apostle [Paul] who was, in many respects, the chief of all the ministers of the New Testament; being above all others, a chosen [vessel] unto Christ, to bear his name before the [Gentiles], and made the chief instrument of propagating and establishing the [Christian] church in the world, and of distinctly revealing the glorious [mysteries] of the [Gospel] for the instruction of the church in all ages; and as has not been [im]probably thought by some the most eminent servant of [God] that ever lived, received to the highest rewards in the heavenly kingdom of his Master. By what is said of him in the scripture, he appears to have been a person that was full of affection. And [it is] very man[ifest] that the religion he expresses in his [Epistles consists] very much in holy affections. It appears by all his [writings that he] was, in the course of his life, [wholly] actuated and [swallowed] up, by a most [ardent] Love to his glorious Lord, esteeming all things as loss, for the excellency of the knowledge of him, and esteeming them but dung that he might win him. He represents himself, as overpowered by this holy affection, and as it were compelled by it to go forward in his service, through all difficulties and sufferings, 2 [Corinthians] 5:14. And his epistles are full of expressions of an overflowing [affection] towards the people of Christ: He speaks of his dear Love to them, [2] Corinthians 12:15; Philippians 4:1, 2; [...] 1:2. Of his abundant Love, 2 Corinthians 2:4. And of his affectionate and [tender] Love, as of a Nurse towards her children, 1 Thessalonians 2:7, 8. [So] being affectionately [desirous] of you, we were willing to have imparted unto you, not the gospel of [God only], but also [our own souls]. So also he speaks of his bowels of love, Philippians 1:8, Philemon verse 12 and 20. So he speaks of his [earnest] care for others, 2 Corinthians 8:16. And of his Bowels of Pity or Mercy towards them, Philippians 2:1. And of his concern for others, even to Anguish of Heart, 2 Corinthians 2:4. For out of much Affection, and Anguish of Heart, I wrote unto you, with many Tears; not that you should be grieved; but that you might know the Love which I have more abundantly unto you. He speaks of the great [conflict] of his soul for them, Colossians 2:1. He speaks of great and [continual] Grief that he had in his Heart from [love] to the Jews, Romans [9]:2. He speaks of his Mouth's being opened, and his Heart enlarged towards Christians, 2 Corinthians 6:11. O you Corinthians, our Mouth is open unto you, our Heart is enlarged!** He often speaks of his affectionate and longing Desires, 1 Thessalonians 2:8; Romans 1:11; Philippians 1:8; and chapter 4:1; 2 Timothy 1:4. The same Apostle is very often, in his epistles, expressing the affection of Joy, 2 Corinthians 1:12; and chapter 7:7; and verse 9 and 16; Philippians [1]:4; and chapter 2:1, 2; and chapter 3:3; Colossians 1:24; 1 Thessalonians 3:9. He speaks of his rejoicing with great Joy, Philippians 4:10; Philemon 1:7. Of his joying and rejoicing, Philippians 2:17. And of his rejoicing exceedingly, [2 Corinthians] 7:13. And of his being filled with Comfort, and [exceeding joyful]. He speaks of himself as always [rejoicing], 2 Corinthians [6:10]. So he speaks of the Triumphs of his Soul, 2 Corinthians 2:14. And of his glorying in [tribulations], 2 Thessalonians 1:4 and Romans 5:3. He also expresses the affection of Hope; in Philippians 1:20 he speaks of his [earnest expectation], and his Hope. He likewise expresses [an] affection of [Zeal], 2 Corinthians 11:2, 3. And it appears by [his whole life], after his conversion, in the [Acts of the Apostles], and also by all his [Epistles], and the accounts he gives of himself there, that the affection of [Zeal], as having the cause of his Master, and the interest and prosperity of his church, for its object, was mighty in [him], continually inflaming his heart, strongly engaging to those great and constant labors he went through, instructing, exhorting, warning and reproving others, travailing in birth with them; contending with those powerful and innumerable enemies who continually opposed him, wrestling with principalities and powers, not [fighting] as one who beats the air, running the race set before him, continually pressing forwards through all manner of difficulties and sufferings: so that others thought him quite beside himself. And how full he was of affection, does further appear by his being so full of tears: In 2 Corinthians 2:4 he speaks of his [many] Tears, and to Acts 20:19. And of his Tears that he shed continually, Night and Day, verse 31.

Now if any one can consider these accounts given in the scripture of this great Apostle, and which he gives of himself, and yet not see that his religion consisted much in affection, must have a strange faculty of managing his eyes, to shut out the light which shines most full in his face.

The other instance I shall mention, is of the Apostle John, that beloved disciple, who was the nearest and dearest to his Master of any of the twelve, and was by him admitted to the greatest privileges of any of them: Being not only one of the three who were admitted to be present with him in the mount at his transfiguration, and at the raising of Jairus's daughter, and whom he took with him when he was in his agony, and one of the three spoken of by the Apostle Paul, as the three main pillars of the christian church; but was favored above all, in being admitted to lean on his Master's bosom, at his last supper, and in being chosen by Christ, as the disciple to whom he would reveal his wonderful dispensation towards his church, to the end of time; as we have an account in the Book of Revelation: And to shut up the canon of the New Testament, and of the whole scripture; being preserved much longer than all the rest of the apostles, to set all things in order in the christian church, after their death.

It is evident by all his writings, (as is generally observed by divines) that he was a person remarkably full of affection: His addresses to those whom he wrote to, being inexpressibly tender and pathetical, breathing nothing but the most fervent love; as though he were all made up of sweet and holy affection. The proofs of which cannot be given without disadvantage, unless we should transcribe his whole writings.

7. He whom God sent into the World, to be the Light of the World, and Head of the whole Church, and the perfect Example of true Religion and Virtue, for the Imitation of all, the Shepherd whom the whole Flock should follow wherever he goes, even the Lord Jesus Christ, was a Person who was remarkably of a tender and affectionate Heart; and his Virtue was expressed very much in the Exercises of holy Affections. He was the greatest Instance of Ardency, Vigour and Strength of Love, to both God and Man, that ever was. It was these Affections which got the Victory, in that mighty Struggle and Conflict of his Affections, in his Agonies, when he prayed more earnestly, and offered strong Crying and Tears, and wrestled in Tears and in Blood. Such was the Power of the Exercises of his holy Love, that they were stronger than Death, and in that great Struggle, overcame those strong Exercises of the natural Affections of Fear and Grief, when he was sore amazed, and his Soul was exceeding sorrowful, even unto Death. And he also appeared to be full of Affection, in the Course of his Life. We read of his great Zeal, fulfilling that in the sixty-ninth Psalm, The Zeal of thine House hath eaten me up, John 2:17. We read of his Grief for the Sins of Men, Mark 3:5. He looked round about on them with Anger, being grieved for the Hardness of their Hearts. And his breaking forth in Tears and Exclamations, from the Consideration of the Sin and Misery of ungodly Men, and on the Sight of the City of Jerusalem, which was full of such Inhabitants, Luke 19:41, 42. And when he was come near, he beheld the City, and wept over it, saying, If you had known, even you, at least in this your Day, the Things which belong unto your Peace! but now they are hidden from your Eyes. With Chapter 13:34. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which kills the Prophets, and stones them that are sent unto you, How often would I have gathered your Children together, as a Hen does gather her Brood under her Wings, and you would not! We read of Christ's earnest Desire, Luke 22:15. With Desire have I desired to eat this Passover with you, before I suffer. We often read of the Affection of Pity or Compassion in Christ, Matthew 15:32 and 18:34; Luke 7:13; and of his being moved with Compassion, Matthew 9:36 and 14:14; and Mark 6:34. And how tender did his Heart appear to be, on occasion of Mary's and Martha's Mourning for their Brother, and coming to him with their Complaints and Tears: Their Tears soon drew Tears from his Eyes: He was affected with their Grief, and wept with them; though he knew their Sorrow should so soon be turned into Joy, by their Brother's being raised from the Dead; see John 11. And how ineffably affectionate was that last and dying Discourse, which Jesus had with his eleven Disciples the Evening before he was crucified? When he told them he was going away, and foretold them the great Difficulties and Sufferings they should meet with in the World, when he was gone; and comforted and counseled them, as his dear little Children, and bequeathed to them his holy Spirit, and therein his Peace, and his Comfort and Joy, as it were in his last Will and Testament, in the thirteenth, fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth Chapters of John; and concluded the Whole with that affectionate intercessory Prayer for them, and his whole Church, in Chapter 17. Of all the Discourses ever penned, or uttered by the Mouth of any Man, this seems to be the most affectionate, and affecting.

8. The Religion of Heaven consists very much in Affection.

There is doubtless true Religion in Heaven, and true Religion in its utmost Purity and Perfection. But according to the Scripture Representation of the heavenly State, the Religion of Heaven consists chiefly in holy and mighty Love and Joy, and the Expression of these in most fervent and exalted Praises. So that the Religion of the Saints in Heaven, consists in the same Things with that Religion of the Saints on Earth, which is spoken of in our Text, namely Love, and Joy unspeakable, and full of Glory. Now it would be very foolish to pretend, that because the Saints in Heaven are not united to Flesh and Blood, and have no animal Fluids to be moved, (through the Laws of Union of Soul and Body) with those great Emotions of their Souls, that therefore their exceeding Love and Joy are no Affections. We are not speaking of the Affections of the Body, but of the Affections of the Soul, the chief of which are Love and Joy. When these are in the Soul, whether that be in the Body or out of it, the Soul is affected and moved. And when they are in the Soul, in that Strength in which they are in the Saints in Heaven, the Soul is mightily affected and moved, or, which is the same Thing, has great Affections. 'Tis true, we do not experimentally know what Love and Joy are in a Soul out of a Body, or in a glorified Body; that is we have not had Experience of Love and Joy in a Soul in these Circumstances; but the Saints on Earth do know what divine Love and Joy in the Soul are and they know what Love and Joy are of the same Kind, with the Love and Joy which are in Heaven, in separate Souls there. The Love and Joy of the Saints on Earth, is the Beginning and Dawning of the Light, Life, and Blessedness of Heaven, and is like their Love and Joy there; or rather, the same in Nature, though not the same with it, or like to it, in Degree and Circumstances. This is evident by many Scriptures, as Proverbs 4:18; John 4:14; and Chapter 6:40, 47, 50, 51, 54, 58; First John 3:15; First Corinthians 13:8, 9, 10, 11, 12. 'Tis unreasonable therefore to suppose, that the Love and Joy of the Saints in Heaven, not only differ in Degree and Circumstances, from the holy Love and Joy of the Saints on Earth, but is so entirely different in Nature, that they are no Affections; and merely because they have no Blood and animal Spirits to be set in Motion by them, which Motion of the Blood and animal Spirits is not of the Essence of these Affections, in Men on the Earth, but the Effect of them; although by their Reaction they may make some circumstantial Difference in the Sensation of the Mind. There is a Sensation of the Mind which loves and rejoices, that is antecedent to any Effects on the Fluids of the Body; and this Sensation of the Mind, therefore does not depend on these Motions in the Body, and so may be in the Soul without the Body. And wherever there are the Exercises of Love and Joy, there is that Sensation of the Mind, whether it be in the Body, or out; and that inward Sensation, or kind of spiritual Sense, or Feeling, and Motion of the Soul, is what is called Affection; The Soul when it thus feels, (if I may so say) and is thus moved, is said to be affected, and especially when this inward Sensation and Motion, are to a very high Degree, as they are in the Saints in Heaven. If we can learn any thing of the State of Heaven from the Scripture, the Love and Joy that the Saints have there, is exceeding great and vigorous; impressing the Heart with the strongest and most lively Sensation, of inexpressible Sweetness, mightily moving, animating, and engaging them, making them like to a Flame of Fire. And if such Love and Joy are not Affections, then the Word Affection is of no Use in Language. Will any say, that the Saints in Heaven, in beholding the Face of their Father, and the Glory of their Redeemer, and contemplating his wonderful Works, and particularly his laying down his Life for them, have their Hearts nothing moved and affected, by all which they behold or consider?

Hence therefore the Religion of Heaven, consisting chiefly in holy Love and Joy, consists very much in Affection: And therefore undoubtedly, true Religion consists very much in Affection. The Way to learn the true Nature of any Thing, is to go where that Thing is to be found in its Purity and Perfection. If we would know the Nature of true Gold, we must view it, not in the Ore, but when it is refined. If we would learn what true Religion is, we must go where there is true Religion, and nothing but true Religion, and in its highest Perfection, without any Defect or Mixture. All who are truly religious are not of this World, they are Strangers here, and belong to Heaven; they are born from above, Heaven is their native Country, and the Nature which they receive by this heavenly Birth, is a heavenly Nature, they receive an Anointing from Above; that Principle of true Religion which is in them, is a Communication of the Religion of Heaven; their Grace is the Dawn of Glory; and God fits them for that World by conforming them to it.

9. This appears from the Nature and Design of the Ordinances and Duties, which God hath appointed, as Means and Expressions of true Religion.

To instance in the Duty of Prayer: 'Tis manifest, we are not appointed, in this Duty, to declare God's Perfections, his Majesty, Holiness, Goodness, and All-sufficiency, and our own Meanness, Emptiness, Dependence, and Unworthiness, and our Wants and Desires, to inform God of these Things, or to incline his Heart, and prevail with him to be willing to show us Mercy; but suitably to affect our own Hearts with the Things we express, and so to prepare us to receive the Blessings we ask. And such Gestures, and Manner of external Behaviour in the Worship of God, which Custom has made to be Significations of Humility and Reverence, can be of no further Use, than as they have some Tendency to affect our own Hearts, or the Hearts of others.

And the Duty of singing Praises to God, seems to be appointed wholly to excite and express religious Affections. No other Reason can be assigned, why we should express ourselves to God in Verse, rather than in Prose, and do it with Music, but only, that such is our Nature and Frame, that these Things have a Tendency to move our Affections.

The same thing appears in the Nature and Design of the Sacraments, which God hath appointed. God, considering our Frame, hath not only appointed that we should be told of the great Things of the Gospel, and of the Redemption of Christ, and instructed in them by his Word; but also that they should be, as it were, exhibited to our View, in sensible Representations, in the Sacraments, the more to affect us with them.

And the impressing divine Things on the Hearts and Affections of Men, is evidently one great and main End for which God has ordained, that his Word delivered in the holy Scriptures, should be opened, applied, and set home upon Men, in Preaching. And therefore it does not answer the Aim which God had in this Institution, merely for Men to have good Commentaries and Expositions on the Scripture, and other good Books of Divinity; because, although these may tend, as well as Preaching, to give Men a good doctrinal or speculative Understanding of the Work of God, yet they have not an equal Tendency to impress them on Men's Hearts and Affections. God hath appointed a particular, and lively Application of his Word, to Men, in the Preaching of it, as a fit Means to affect Sinners, with the Importance of the Things of Religion, and their own Misery, and Necessity of a Remedy, and the Glory and Sufficiency of a Remedy provided; and to stir up the pure Minds of the Saints, and quicken their Affections, by often bringing the great Things of Religion to their Remembrance, and setting them before them in their proper Colours, though they know them, and have been fully instructed in them already; Second Peter 1:12, 13. And particularly, to promote those two Affections in them, which are spoken of in the Text, Love and Joy: Christ gave some Apostles, and some Prophets, and some Evangelists, and some Pastors and Teachers, that the Body of Christ might be edified in Love, Ephesians 4:11, 12, 16. The Apostle, in instructing and counselling Timothy, concerning the Work of the Ministry, informs him that the great End of that Word which a Minister is to preach, is Love or Charity, First Timothy 1:3, 4, 5. And another Affection which God has appointed Preaching as a Means to promote in the Saints, is Joy; and therefore Ministers are called Helpers of their Joy, Second Corinthians 1:24.

10. It is an evidence that true religion, or holiness of heart, lies very much in the affection of the heart, that the Scriptures place the sin of the heart very much in hardness of heart. Thus the Scriptures do everywhere. It was hardness of heart, which excited grief and displeasure in Christ towards the Jews, Mark 3:5. He looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts. It is from men's having such a heart as this, that they treasure up wrath for themselves. Romans 2:5. After thy hardness and impenitent heart, treasurest up unto thyself wrath, against the day of wrath, and revelation of the righteous judgment of God. The reason given why the house of Israel would not obey God, was that they were hard-hearted, Ezekiel 3:7. But the house of Israel will not hearken unto thee; for they will not hearken unto me: For all the house of Israel are impudent and hard-hearted. The wickedness of that perverse rebellious generation in the wilderness, is ascribed to the hardness of their hearts; Psalm 95:7-10, Today, if ye will hear my voice, harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness; when your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work: Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said it is a people that do err in their heart, etc. This is spoken of as what prevented Zedekiah's turning to the Lord, 2 Chronicles 36:13. He stiffened his neck, and hardened his heart, from turning to the Lord God of Israel. This principle is spoken of, as that from whence men are without the fear of God, and depart from God's ways. Isaiah 63:17. O Lord, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear? And men's rejecting Christ, and opposing Christianity, is laid to this principle; Acts 19:9. But when divers were hardened, and believed not, but spake evil of that way before the multitude; God's leaving men to the power of the sin and corruption of the heart, is often expressed by God's [hardening] their hearts; Romans 9:18. Therefore hath he mercy [on whom] he will [have] mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. John 12:40. He hath [blinded] their mind, and hardened their hearts. And the Apostle seems to speak of an evil heart, that departs from the living God, and a hard heart, as the same thing. Hebrews 3:8. Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, etc. Verse 12, 13. Take heed brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God, but exhort one another daily, while it is called Today; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. And that great work of God in conversion, which consists in delivering a person from the power of sin, and mortifying corruption, is expressed, once and again, by God's taking away the heart of stone, and giving an heart of flesh, Ezekiel 11:10 and Chapter 36:26.

Now by a hard heart, is plainly meant an unaffected heart, or a heart not easy to be moved with virtuous affections, like a stone, insensible, stupid, unmoved and hard to be impressed. Hence the hard heart is called a [stony] heart, and is opposed to an heart of flesh, that has feeling, and is sensibly touched and moved. We read in Scripture of a hard heart, and a tender heart: And doubtless we are to understand these, as contrary the one to the other. But what is a tender heart, but a heart which is easily impressed with what ought to affect it? God commends Josiah, because his heart was tender; and it is evident by those things which are mentioned as expressions and evidences of this tenderness of heart, that by his heart being tender is meant, his heart being easily moved with religious and pious affection; 2 Kings 22:19. Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before the Lord, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become a desolation, and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and hast wept before me; I also have heard thee, saith the Lord. And this is one thing, wherein it is necessary we should become as little children, in order to our entering into the kingdom of God, even that we should have our hearts tender, and easily affected and moved in spiritual and divine things, as little children have in other things.

It is very plain in some places, in the texts themselves, that by hardness of heart is meant a heart void of affection. So to signify the Ostrich's being without natural affection to her young, it is said, Job 39:16. She hardeneth her heart against her young ones, as though they were not hers. So a person having a heart unaffected in time of danger, is expressed by his hardening his heart, Proverbs 28:14. Happy is the man that feareth alway; but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief.

Now therefore since it is so plain, that by a hard heart, in Scripture, is meant a heart destitute of pious affections, and since also the Scriptures do so frequently place the sin and corruption of the heart in hardness of heart; it is evident, that the grace and holiness of the heart, on the contrary, must, in a great measure, consist in its having pious affections, and being easily susceptible of such affection. Divines are generally agreed, that sin radically and fundamentally consists in what is negative, or privative, having its root and foundation in a privation or want of holiness. And therefore undoubtedly, if it be so that sin does very much consist in hardness of heart, and so in the want of pious affections of heart; holiness does consist very much in those pious affections.

I am far from supposing that all affections do show a tender heart: Hatred, anger, vain-glory, and other selfish and self-exalting affections, may greatly prevail in the hardest heart. But yet it is evident that hardness of heart, and tenderness of heart, are expressions that relate to the affections of the heart, and denote the heart's being susceptible of, or shut up against, certain affections, of which I shall have occasion to speak more afterwards.

Upon the whole, I think it clearly and abundantly evident, that true religion lies very much in the affections. Not that I think these arguments prove, that religion in the hearts of the truly godly, is ever in exact proportion to the degree of affection, and present emotion of the mind. For undoubtedly, there is much affection in the true saints which is not spiritual: Their religious affections are often mixed; all is not from grace, but much from nature. And though the affections have not their seat in the body, yet the constitution of the body, may very much contribute to the present emotion of the mind. And the degree of religion is rather to be judged of by the fixedness and strength of the habit that is exercised in affection, whereby holy affection is habitual, than by the degree of the present exercise: And the strength of that habit is not always in proportion to outward effects and manifestations, or inward effects, in the hurry and vehemence, and sudden changes of the course of the thoughts of the mind. But yet it is evident, that religion consists so much in affection, as that without holy affection there is no true religion. And no light in the understanding is good, which does not produce holy affection in the heart; no habit or principle in the heart is good, which has no such exercise; and no external fruit is good, which does not proceed from such exercises.

Having thus considered the evidence of the proposition laid down, I proceed to some inferences.

1. We may hence learn how great their error is, who are for discarding all religious affections, as having nothing solid or substantial in them.

There seems to be too much of a disposition this way, prevailing in this land at this time. Because many who, in the late extraordinary season, appeared to have great religious affections, did not manifest a right temper of mind, and run into many errors, in the time of their affection, and the heat of their zeal; and because the high affections of many seem to be so soon come to nothing, and some who seemed to be mightily raised and swallowed with joy and zeal, for a while, seem to have returned like the dog to his vomit: Hence religious affections in general are grown out of credit, with great numbers, as though true religion did not at all consist in them. Thus we easily, and naturally run from one extreme to another. A little while ago we were in the other extreme; there was a prevalent disposition to look upon all high religious affections, as eminent exercises of true grace, without much inquiring into the nature and source of those affections, and the manner in which they arose: If persons did but appear to be indeed very much moved and raised, so as to be full of religious talk, and express themselves with great warmth and earnestness, and to be filled, or to be very full, as the phrases were; it was too much the manner, without further examination, to conclude such persons were full of the Spirit of God, and had eminent experience of his gracious influences. This was the extreme which was prevailing three or four years ago. But of late, instead of esteeming and admiring all religious affections, without distinction, it is a thing much more prevalent, to reject and discard all without distinction. Herein appears the subtlety of Satan. While he saw that affections were much in vogue, knowing the greater part of the land were not versed in such things, and had not had much experience of great religious affections, to enable them to judge well of them, and distinguish between true and false; then he knew he could best play his game, by sowing tares amongst the wheat, and mingling false affections with the works of God's Spirit: He knew this to be a likely way to delude and eternally ruin many souls, and greatly to wound religion in the saints, and entangle them in a dreadful wilderness, and by and by, to bring all religion into disrepute. But now, when the ill consequences of these false affections appear, and it is become very apparent, that some of those emotions which made a glaring show, and were by many greatly admired, were in reality nothing; the Devil sees it to be for his interest to go another way to work, and to endeavour to his utmost to propagate and establish a persuasion, that all affections and sensible emotions of the mind, in things of religion, are nothing at all to be regarded, but are rather to be avoided, and carefully guarded against, as things of a pernicious tendency. This he knows is the way to bring all religion to a mere lifeless formality, and effectually shut out the power of godliness, and every thing which is spiritual, and to have all true Christianity turned out of doors. For although to true religion, there must indeed be something else besides affection; yet true religion consists so much in the affections, that there can be no true religion without them. He who has no religious affection, is in a state of spiritual death, and is wholly destitute of the powerful, quickening, saving influences of the Spirit of God upon his heart. As there is no true religion, where there is nothing else but affection; so there is no true religion where there is no religious affection. As on the one hand, there must be light in the understanding, as well as an affected fervent heart, where there is heat without light, there can be nothing divine or heavenly in that heart; so on the other hand, where there is a kind of light without heat, a head stored with notions and speculations, with a cold and unaffected heart, there can be nothing divine in that light, that knowledge is no true spiritual knowledge of divine things. If the great things of religion are rightly understood, they will affect the heart. The reason why men are not affected by such infinitely great, important, glorious, and wonderful things, as they often hear and read of, in the word of God, is undoubtedly because they are blind; if they were not so, it would be impossible, and utterly inconsistent with human nature, that their hearts should be otherwise, than strongly impressed, and greatly moved by such things.

This manner of slighting all religious Affections, is the way exceedingly to harden the hearts of men, and to encourage them in their stupidity and senselessness, and to keep them in a state of spiritual death as long as they live, and bring them at last to death eternal. The prevailing prejudice against religious Affections at this day, in the land, is apparently of awful effect, to harden the hearts of sinners, and damp the graces of many of the saints, and stunt the life and power of religion, and preclude the effect of ordinances, and hold us down in a state of dullness and apathy, and undoubtedly causes many persons greatly to offend God, in entertaining mean and low thoughts of the extraordinary work he has lately wrought in this land.

And for persons to despise and cry down all religious Affections, is the way to shut all religion out of their own hearts, and to make thorough work in ruining their souls.

They who condemn high affections in others, are certainly not likely to have high affections themselves. And let it be observed, that they who have but little religious affection, have certainly but little religion. And they who condemn others for their religious Affections, and have none themselves, have no religion.

There are false Affections, and there are true. A man's having much Affection, does not prove that he has any true religion: but if he has no Affection, it proves that he has no true religion. The right way, is not to reject all affections, nor to approve all; but to distinguish between affections, approving some, and rejecting others; separating between the wheat and the chaff, the gold and the dross, the precious and the vile.

Secondly, if it be so, that true religion lies much in the Affections, hence we may infer, that such means are to be desired, as have much of a tendency to move the affections. Such books, and such a way of preaching the word, and administration of ordinances, and such a way of worshipping God in prayer, and singing praises, is much to be desired, as has a tendency deeply to affect the hearts of those who attend these means.

Such a kind of means, would formerly have been highly approved of and applauded by the generality of the people of the land, as the most excellent and profitable, and having the greatest tendency to promote the ends of the means of grace. But the prevailing taste seems of late strangely to be altered: that pathetical manner of praying and preaching, which would formerly have been admired and approved, and that for this reason, because it had such a tendency to move the affections, now, in great multitudes, immediately excites disgust, and moves no other affections, than those of displeasure and contempt.

Perhaps, formerly the generality (at least of the common people) were in the extreme, of looking too much to an affectionate address, in public performances: but now, a very great part of the people, seem to have gone far into a contrary extreme. Indeed there may be such means, as may have a great tendency to stir up the passions of weak and ignorant persons, and yet have no great tendency to benefit their souls. For though they may have a tendency to excite affections, they may have little or none to excite gracious affections, or any affections tending to grace. But undoubtedly, if the things of religion, in the means used, are treated according to their nature, and exhibited truly, so as tends to convey just apprehensions, and a right judgment of them; the more they have a tendency to move the affections, the better.

Thirdly, if true religion lies much in the affections, hence we may learn, what great cause we have to be ashamed and confounded before God, that we are no more affected with the great things of religion. It appears from what has been said, that this arises from our having so little true religion.

God has given to mankind affections, for the same purpose which he has given all the faculties and principles of the human soul for, namely that they might be subservient to man's chief end, and the great business for which God has created him, that is the business of religion. And yet how common is it among mankind, that their affections are much more exercised and engaged in other matters, than in religion! In things which concern men's worldly interest, their outward delights, their honour and reputation, and their natural relations, they have their desires eager, their appetites vehement, their love warm and affectionate, their zeal ardent; in these things their hearts are tender and sensible, easily moved, deeply impressed, much concerned, very sensibly affected, and greatly engaged; much depressed with grief at worldly losses, and highly raised with joy at worldly successes and prosperity. But how insensible and unmoved are most men, about the great things of another world! How dull are their affections! How heavy and hard their hearts in these matters! Here their love is cold, their desires languid, their zeal low, and their gratitude small. How they can sit and hear of the infinite height and depth and length and breadth of the love of God in Christ Jesus, of his giving his infinitely dear Son, to be offered up a sacrifice for the sins of men, and of the unparalleled love of the innocent, holy and tender Lamb of God, manifested in his dying agonies, his bloody sweat, his loud and bitter cries, and bleeding heart, and all this for enemies, to redeem them from deserved, eternal burnings, and to bring to unspeakable and everlasting joy and glory; and yet be cold, and heavy, insensible, and regardless! Where are the exercises of our affections proper, if not here? What is it that does more require them? And what can be a fit occasion of their lively and vigorous exercise, if not such an one as this? Can any thing be set in our view, greater and more important? Any thing more wonderful and surprising? Or more nearly concerning our interest? Can we suppose the wise Creator implanted such principles in the human nature as the affections, to be of use to us, and to be exercised on certain proper occasions, but to lie still on such an occasion as this? Can any Christian, who believes the truth of these things, entertain such thoughts?

If we ought ever to exercise our affections at all, and if the Creator has not unwisely constituted the human nature, in making these principles a part of it, when they are vain and useless; then they ought to be exercised about those objects which are most worthy of them. But is there any thing, which Christians can find in heaven or earth, so worthy to be the objects of their admiration and love, their earnest and longing desires, their hope, and their rejoicing, and their fervent zeal, as those things that are held forth to us in the gospel of Jesus Christ? In which, not only are things declared most worthy to affect us, but they are exhibited in the most affecting manner. The glory and beauty of the blessed Jehovah, which is most worthy in itself, to be the object of our admiration and love, is there exhibited in the most affecting manner that can be conceived of, as it appears shining in all its lustre, in the face of an incarnate, infinitely loving, meek, compassionate, dying Redeemer. All the virtues of the Lamb of God, his humility, patience, meekness, submission, obedience, love and compassion, are exhibited to our view, in a manner the most tending to move our affections, of any that can be imagined; as they all had their greatest trial, and their highest exercise, and so their brightest manifestation, when he was in the most affecting circumstances; even when he was under his last sufferings, those unutterable and unparalleled sufferings, he endured, from his tender love and pity to us. There also, the hateful nature of our sins is manifested in the most affecting manner possible; as we see the dreadful effects of them, in what our Redeemer, who undertook to answer for us, suffered for them. And there we have the most affecting manifestations of God's hatred of sin, and his wrath and justice in punishing it; as we see his justice in the strictness and inflexibleness of it, and his wrath in its terribleness, in so dreadfully punishing our sins, in One who was infinitely dear to him, and loving to us. So has God disposed things, in the affair of our redemption, and in his glorious dispensations, revealed to us in the gospel, as though every thing were purposely contrived in such a manner, as to have the greatest, possible tendency to reach our hearts in the most tender part, and move our affections most sensibly and strongly. How great cause have we therefore to be humbled to the dust, that we are no more affected!

PART 1.

In these words, the apostle represents the state of the minds of the Christians he wrote to, under the persecutions they were then the subjects of. These persecutions are what he has respect to, in the two preceding verses, when he speaks of the trial of their faith, and of their being in heaviness through manifold temptations.

Such trials are of threefold benefit to true religion: Hereby the truth of it is manifested, and it appears to be indeed true religion: They, above all other things, have a tendency to distinguish between true religion and false, and to cause the difference between them evidently to appear. Hence they are called by the name of trials, in the verse next preceding the text, and in innumerable other places: They try the faith and religion of professors, of what sort it is, as apparent gold is tried in the fire, and manifested, whether it be true gold or no. And the faith of true Christians being thus tried and proved to be true, is found to praise, and honor, and glory; as in that preceding verse.

And then, these trials are of further benefit to true religion; they not only manifest the truth of it, but they make its genuine beauty and amiableness remarkably to appear. True virtue never appears so lovely, as when it is most oppressed: And the divine excellency of real Christianity, is never exhibited with such advantage, as when under the greatest trials: Then it is that true faith appears much more precious than gold; and upon this account, is [reconstructed: found] to praise, and honor, and glory.

And again, another benefit that such trials are of to true religion, is, that they purify and increase it. They not only manifest it to be true, but also tend to refine it, and deliver it from those mixtures of that which is false, which encumber and impede it; that nothing may be left but that which is true. They tend to cause the amiableness of true religion to appear to the best advantage, as was before observed; and not only so, but they tend to increase its beauty, by establishing and confirming it, and making it more lively and vigorous, and purifying it from those things that obscured its luster and glory. As gold that is tried in the fire, is purged from its alloy, and all remainders of dross, and comes forth more solid and beautiful; so true faith being tried as gold is tried in the fire, becomes more precious; and thus also is found unto praise, and honor, and glory. The apostle seems to have respect to each of these benefits, that persecutions are of to true religion, in the verse preceding the text.

And in the text, the apostle observes how true religion operated in the Christians he wrote to, under their persecutions, whereby these benefits of persecution appeared in them; or what manner of operation of true religion, in them, it was, whereby their religion, under persecution, was manifested to be true religion, and eminently appeared in the genuine beauty and amiableness of true religion, and also appeared to be increased and purified, and so was like to be found unto praise, and honor, and glory, at the appearing of Jesus Christ. And there were two kinds of operation, or exercise of true religion, in them, under their sufferings, that the apostle takes notice of in the text, wherein these benefits appeared.

1. Love to Christ; Whom having not seen, you love. The world was ready to wonder, what strange principle it was, that influenced them to expose themselves to so great sufferings, to forsake the things that were seen, and renounce all that was dear and pleasant, which was the object of sense: They seemed to the men of the world about them, as though they were beside themselves, and to act as though they hated themselves; there was nothing in their view, that could induce them thus to suffer, and support them under, and carry them through such trials. But although there was nothing that was seen, nothing that the world saw, or that the Christians themselves ever saw with their bodily eyes, that thus influenced and supported them; yet they had a supernatural principle of love to something unseen; they loved Jesus Christ, for they saw him spiritually, whom the world saw not, and whom they themselves had never seen with bodily eyes.

2. Joy in Christ. Though their outward sufferings were very grievous, yet their inward spiritual joys were greater than their sufferings, and these supported them, and enabled them to suffer with cheerfulness.

There are two things which the apostle takes notice of in the text concerning this joy. 1. The manner in which it rises, the way in which Christ, though unseen, is the foundation of it, namely, by faith; which is the evidence of things not seen; In whom, though now you see him not, yet believing, you rejoice. 2. The nature of this joy; unspeakable, and full of glory. Unspeakable in the kind of it; very different from worldly joys, and carnal delights; of a vastly more pure, sublime and heavenly nature, being something supernatural, and truly divine, and so ineffably excellent; the sublimity, and exquisite sweetness of which, there were no words to set forth. Unspeakable also in degree; it pleasing God to give them this holy joy, with a liberal hand, and in large measure, in their state of persecution.

Their joy was full of glory: Although the joy was unspeakable, and no words were sufficient to describe it; yet something might be said of it, and no words more fit to represent its excellency, than these, that it was full of glory; or, as it is in the original, glorified joy. In rejoicing with this joy, their minds were filled, as it were, with a glorious brightness, and their natures exalted and perfected: It was a most worthy, noble rejoicing, that did not corrupt and debase the mind, as many carnal joys do; but did greatly beautify and dignify it: It was a prelibation of the joy of heaven, that raised their minds to a degree of heavenly blessedness: It filled their minds with the light of God's glory, and made them themselves to shine with some communication of that glory.

Hence the proposition or doctrine, that I would raise from these words is this,

DOCTRINE. True religion, in great part, consists in holy affections.

We see that the apostle, in observing and remarking the operations and exercises of religion, in the Christians he wrote to, wherein their religion appeared to be true and of the right kind, when it had its greatest trial of what sort it was, being tried by persecution as gold is tried in the fire, and when their religion not only proved true, but was more pure, and cleansed from its dross and mixtures of that which was not true, and when religion appeared in them most in its genuine excellency and native beauty, and was found to praise, and honor, and glory; he singles out the religious affections of love and joy, that were then in exercise in them: These are the exercises of religion he takes notice of, wherein their religion did thus appear true and pure, and in its proper glory.

Here I would,

1. Show what is intended by the affections,

2. Observe some things which make it evident, that a great part of true religion lies in the affections.

1. It may be inquired, what the affections of the mind are?

I answer, the affections are no other, than the more vigorous and sensible exercises of the inclination and will of the soul.

God has endued the soul with two faculties: One is that by which it is capable of perception and speculation, or by which it discerns and views and judges of things; which is called the understanding. The other faculty is that by which the soul does not merely perceive and view things, but is some way inclined with respect to the things it views or considers; either is inclined to them, or is disinclined, and averse from them; or is the faculty by which the soul does not behold things, as an indifferent unaffected spectator, but either as liking or disliking, pleased or displeased, approving or rejecting. This faculty is called by various names: It is sometimes called the inclination: And, as it has respect to the actions that are determined and governed by it, is called the will: And the mind, with regard to the exercises of this faculty, is often called the heart.

The exercises of this faculty are of two sorts; either those by which the soul is carried out towards the things that are in view, in approving of them, being pleased with them, and inclined to them; or those in which the soul opposes the things that are in view, in disapproving them, and in being displeased with them, averse from them, and rejecting them.

And as the exercises of the inclination and will of the soul are various in their kinds, so they are much more various in their degrees. There are some exercises of pleasedness or displeasedness, inclination or disinclination, wherein the soul is carried but a little beyond a state of perfect indifference. And there are other degrees above this, wherein the approbation or dislike, pleasedness or aversion, are stronger; wherein we may rise higher and higher, till the soul comes to act vigorously and sensibly, and the actings of the soul are with that strength that (through the laws of the union which the Creator has fixed between soul and body) the motion of the blood and animal spirits begins to be sensibly altered; whence oftentimes arises some bodily sensation, especially about the heart and vitals, that are the fountain of the fluids of the body: From whence it comes to pass, that the mind, with regard to the exercises of this faculty, perhaps in all nations and ages, is called the heart. And it is to be noted, that they are these more vigorous and sensible exercises of this faculty, that are called the affections.

The will, and the affections of the soul, are not two faculties; the affections are not essentially distinct from the will, nor do they differ from the mere actings of the will and inclination of the soul, but only in the liveliness, and sensibleness of exercise.

It must be confessed, that language is here somewhat imperfect, and the meaning of words in a considerable measure loose and unfixed, and not precisely limited by custom, which governs the use of language. In some sense, the affection of the soul differs nothing at all from the will and inclination, and the will never is in any exercise any further than it is affected; it is not moved out of a state of perfect indifference, any otherwise than as it is affected one way or other, and acts nothing voluntarily any further. But yet there are many actings of the will and inclination, that are not so commonly called affections: In every thing we do, wherein we act voluntarily, there is an exercise of the will and inclination, it is our inclination that governs us in our actions: But all the actings of the inclination and will, in all our common actions of life, are not ordinarily called affections. Yet, what are commonly called affections are not essentially different from them, but only in the degree and manner of exercise. In every act of the will whatsoever, the soul either likes or dislikes, is either inclined or disinclined to what is in view: These are not essentially different from those affections of love and hatred: That liking or inclination of the soul to a thing, if it be in a high degree, and be vigorous and lively, is the very same thing with the affection of love: And that disliking and disinclining, if in a great degree, is the very same with hatred. In every act of the will for, or towards something not present, the soul is in some degree inclined to that thing; and that inclination, if in a considerable degree, is the very same with the affection of desire. And in every degree of the act of the will, wherein the soul approves of something present, there is a degree of pleasedness; and that pleasedness, if it be in a considerable degree, is the very same with the affection of joy or delight. And if the will disapproves of what is present, the soul is in some degree displeased, and if that displeasedness be great, it is the very same with the affection of grief or sorrow.

Such seems to be our Nature, and such the Laws of the Union of Soul and Body, that there never is in any Case whatsoever, any lively and vigorous Exercise of the Will or Inclination of the Soul, without some Effect upon the Body, in some Alteration of the Motion of its Fluids, and especially of the animal Spirits. And on the other Hand, from the same Laws of the Union of Soul and Body, the Constitution of the Body, and the Motion of its Fluids, may promote the Exercise of the Affections. But yet, it is not the Body, but the Mind only, that is the proper Seat of the Affections. The Body of Man is no more capable of being really the Subject of Love or Hatred, Joy or Sorrow, Fear or Hope, than the Body of a Tree, or than the same Body of Man is capable of thinking and understanding. As it is the Soul only that has Ideas, so it is the Soul only that is pleased or displeased with its Ideas. As it is the Soul only that thinks, so it is the Soul only that loves or hates, rejoices or is grieved at what it thinks of. Nor are these Motions of the animal Spirits, and Fluids of the Body, any thing properly belonging to the Nature of the Affections; though they always accompany them, in the present State: but are only Effects or Concomitants of the Affections, that are entirely distinct from the Affections themselves, and no Way essential to them; so that an unbodied Spirit may be as capable of Love and Hatred, Joy or Sorrow, Hope or Fear, or other Affections, as one that is united to a Body.

The Affections and Passions are frequently spoken of as the same; and yet, in the more common Use of Speech, there is in some Respect a Difference; and Affection is a Word, that in its ordinary Signification, seems to be something more extensive than Passion; being used for all vigorous lively Actings of the Will or Inclination; but Passion for those that are more sudden, and whose Effects on the animal Spirits are more violent, and the Mind more overpowered, and less in its own Command.

As all the Exercises of the Inclination and Will, are either in approving and liking, or disapproving and rejecting; so the Affections are of two Sorts. They are those by which the Soul is carried out to what is in view, cleaving to it, or seeking it; or those by which it is averse from it, and opposes it.

Of the former Sort are Love, Desire, Hope, Joy, Gratitude, Complacence. Of the latter Kind, are Hatred, Fear, Anger, Grief, and such like; which it is needless now to stand particularly to define.

And there are some Affections wherein there is a Composition of each of the aforementioned Kinds of Actings of the Will; as in the Affection of Pity, there is something of the former Kind, towards the Person suffering, and something of the Latter; towards what he suffers. And so in Zeal, there is in it high Approbation of some Person or Thing, together with vigorous Opposition to what is conceived to be contrary to it.

There are other mixed Affections that might be also mentioned, but I hasten to the

2. Thing proposed, Which was to observe some Things that render it evident, that true Religion, in great Part, consists in the Affections. And here,

1. What has been said of the Nature of the Affections, makes this evident, and may be sufficient, without adding any thing further, to put this Matter out of Doubt: For who will deny that true Religion consists, in a great Measure, in vigorous and lively Actings of the Inclination and Will of the Soul, or the fervent Exercises of the Heart.

That Religion which God requires, and will accept, do not consist in weak, dull and lifeless Wouldings, raising us but a little above a State of Indifference. God, in his Word, greatly insists upon it, that we be in good Earnest, fervent in Spirit, and our Hearts vigorously engaged in Religion: Romans 12. 11. Be ye fervent in Spirit, serving the Lord. Deuteronomy 10. 12. And now Israel, What doth the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all his Ways, and to love him, and to serve the Lord thy God, with all thy Heart, and with all thy Soul? And Chapter 6. 4, 5. Hear, O Israel; the Lord our God is one Lord; and thou shalt love the Lord thy God, with all thy Heart, and with all thy Soul, and with all thy Might. It is such a fervent, vigorous Engagedness of the Heart in Religion, that is the Fruit of a real Circumcision of the Heart, or true Regeneration, and that has the Promises of Life; Deuteronomy 30. 6. And the Lord thy God will circumcise thine Heart, and the Heart of thy Seed, to love the Lord thy God, with all thy Heart, and with all thy Soul, that thou mayest live.

If we be not in good earnest in Religion, and our Wills and Inclinations be not strongly exercised, we are nothing. The Things of Religion are so great, that there can be no Suitableness in the Exercises of our Hearts, to their Nature and Importance, unless they be lively and powerful. In nothing, is Vigour in the Actings of our Inclinations so requisite, as in Religion; and in nothing is Lukewarmness so odious. True Religion is evermore a powerful Thing; and the Power of it appears, in the first Place, in the inward Exercises of it in the Heart, where is the principal and original Seat of it. Hence true Religion is called the Power of Godliness, in Distinction from the external Appearances of it, that are the Form of it, 2 Timothy 3. 5. Having a Form of Godliness, but denying the Power of it. The Spirit of God, in those that have sound and solid Religion, is a Spirit of powerful holy Affection; and therefore, God is said to have given them the Spirit of Power, and of Love, and of a sound Mind, 2 Timothy 1. 7. And such, when they receive the Spirit of God, in his sanctifying and saving Influences, are said to be baptized with the Holy Ghost, and with Fire; by reason of the Power and Fervour of those Exercises the Spirit of God excites in their Hearts, whereby their Hearts, when Grace is in exercise, may be said to burn within them; as is said of the Disciples, Luke 24. 32.

The Business of Religion is, from Time to Time, compared to those Exercises, wherein Men are wont to have their Hearts and Strength greatly exercised and engaged; such as Running, Wrestling or Agonizing for a great Prize or Crown, and Fighting with strong Enemies that seek our Lives, and Warring as those that by Violence take a City or Kingdom.

And though true Grace has various Degrees, and there are some that are but Babes in Christ, in whom the Exercise of the Inclination and Will towards divine and heavenly Things, is comparatively weak; yet every one that has the Power of Godliness in his Heart, has his Inclinations and Heart exercised towards God and divine Things, with such Strength and Vigour, that these holy Exercises do prevail in him above all carnal or natural Affections, and are effectual to overcome them. For every true Disciple of Christ, loves him above Father or Mother, Wife and Children, Brethren and Sisters, Houses and Lands; yea, than his own Life. From hence it follows, that wherever true Religion is, there are vigorous Exercises of the Inclination and Will, towards divine Objects. But by what was said before, the vigorous, lively and sensible Exercises of the Will, are no other than the Affections of the Soul.

2. The Author of the human Nature has not only given Affections to Men, but has made them very much the Spring of Men's Actions. As the Affections do not only necessarily belong to the human Nature, but are a very great Part of it; so (inasmuch as by Regeneration, Persons are renewed in the whole Man, and sanctified throughout) holy Affections do not only necessarily belong to true Religion, but are a very great Part of that. And as true Religion is of a practical Nature, and God hath so constituted the human Nature, that the Affections are very much the Spring of Men's Actions, this also shows, that true Religion must consist very much in the Affections.

Such is Man's Nature, that he is very inactive, any otherwise than he is influenced by some Affection, either Love or Hatred, Desire, Hope, Fear or some other. These Affections we see to be the Springs that set Men a going, in all the Affairs of Life, and engage them in all their Pursuits. These are the Things that put Men forward, and carry them along, in all their worldly Business; and especially are Men excited and animated by these, in all Affairs, wherein they are earnestly engaged, and which they pursue with Vigour. We see the World of Mankind to be exceeding busy and active; and the Affections of Men are the Springs of the Motion. Take away all Love and Hatred, all Hope and Fear, all Anger, Zeal and affectionate Desire, and the World would be, in a great Measure, motionless and dead; there would be no such Thing as Activity amongst Mankind, or any earnest Pursuit whatsoever. It is Affection that engages the covetous Man, and him that is greedy of worldly Profits, in his Pursuits; and it is by the Affections, that the ambitious Man is put forward in his Pursuit of worldly Glory; and it is the Affections also that actuate the voluptuous Man, in his Pursuit of Pleasure and sensual Delights. The World continues, from Age to Age, in a continual Commotion and Agitation, in a Pursuit of these Things; but take away all Affection, and the Spring of all this Motion would be gone, and the Motion itself would cease. And as in worldly Things, worldly Affections are very much the Spring of Men's Motion and Action; so in religious Matters, the Spring of their Actions are very much religious Affections. He that has doctrinal Knowledge and Speculation only, without Affection, never is engaged in the Business of Religion.

3. Nothing is more manifest in Fact, than that the Things of Religion take hold of Men's Souls, no further than they affect them. There are Multitudes that often hear the Word of God, and therein hear of those Things that are infinitely great and important, and that most nearly concern them, and all that is heard seems to be wholly ineffectual upon them, and to make no Alteration in their Disposition or Behavior; and the Reason is, they are not affected with what they hear. There are many that often hear of the glorious Perfections of God, his almighty Power, and boundless Wisdom, his infinite Majesty, and that Holiness of God, by which he is of purer Eyes than to behold Evil, and cannot look on Iniquity, and the Heavens are not pure in his Sight, and of God's infinite Goodness and Mercy, and hear of the great Works of God's Wisdom, Power and Goodness, wherein there appear the admirable Manifestations of these Perfections; they hear particularly of the unspeakable Love of God and Christ, and of the great Things that Christ has done and suffered, and of the great Things of another World, of eternal Misery, in bearing the Fierceness and Wrath of almighty God, and of endless Blessedness and Glory in the Presence of God, and the Enjoyment of his dear Love; they also hear the peremptory Commands of God, and his gracious Counsels and Warnings, and the sweet Invitations of the Gospel. I say, they often hear these Things, and yet remain as they were before, with no sensible Alteration on them, either in Heart or Practice, because they are not affected with what they hear; and never will be so until they are affected. I am bold to assert, that there never was any considerable Change wrought in the Mind or Conversation of any one Person, by anything of a religious Nature, that ever he read, heard or saw, that had not his Affections moved. Never was a natural Man engaged earnestly to seek his Salvation. Never were any such brought to cry after Wisdom, and lift up their Voice for Understanding, and to wrestle with God in Prayer for Mercy; and never was one humbled, and brought to the Foot of God, from any thing that ever he heard or imagined of his own Unworthiness and Deservings of God's Displeasure; nor was ever one induced to fly for Refuge unto Christ, while his Heart remained unaffected. Nor was there ever a Saint awakened out of a cold, lifeless Frame, or recovered from a declining State in Religion, and brought back from a lamentable Departure from God, without having his Heart affected. And in a Word, there never was any Thing considerable brought to pass in the Heart or Life of any Man living, by the Things of Religion, that had not his Heart deeply affected by those Things.

4. The holy Scriptures do everywhere place Religion very much in the Affections; such as Fear, Hope, Love, Hatred, Desire, Joy, Sorrow, Gratitude, Compassion and Zeal.

The Scriptures place much of Religion in godly Fear; insomuch that it is often spoken of as the Character of those that are truly religious Persons, that they tremble at God's Word, that they fear before him, that their Flesh trembles for Fear of him, and that they are afraid of his Judgments, that his Excellency makes them afraid, and his Dread falls upon them; and the like: And a compellation commonly given the Saints in Scripture, is, Fearers of God, or they that fear the Lord. And because the Fear of God is a great Part of true Godliness, hence true Godliness in general, is very commonly called by the Name of the Fear of God; as everyone knows, that knows anything of the Bible.

So Hope in God and in the Promises of his Word, is often spoken of in the Scripture, as a very considerable Part of true Religion. It is mentioned as one of the three great Things of which Religion consists, 1 Corinthians 13:13. Hope in the Lord is also frequently mentioned as the Character of the Saints: Psalm 146:5. Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his Help, whose Hope is in the Lord his God. Jeremiah 17:7. Blessed is the Man that trusteth in the Lord, whose Hope the Lord is. Psalm 31:24. Be of good Courage, and he shall strengthen your Heart, all ye that Hope in the Lord. And the like in many other Places. Religious Fear and Hope are, once and again, joined together, as jointly constituting the Character of the true Saints. Psalm 33:18. Behold the Eye of the Lord is upon them that Fear him, upon them that Hope in his Mercy. Psalm 147:11. The Lord taketh Pleasure in them that Fear him, in those that Hope in his Mercy. Hope is so great a Part of true Religion, that the Apostle says we are saved by Hope. Romans 8:24. And this is spoken of as the Helmet of the Christian Soldier. 1 Thessalonians 5:8. And for an Helmet the Hope of Salvation; and the sure and steadfast Anchor of the Soul, which preserves it from being cast away by the Storms of the evil World. Which Hope we have as an Anchor of the Soul; a Benefit which true Saints receive by it.

The Scriptures place Religion very much in the Affection of Love, in Love to God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and Love to the People of God, and to Mankind. The Texts in which this is manifest, both in the Old Testament, and New, are innumerable. But of this more afterwards.

The contrary Affection of Hatred also, as having Sin for its Object, is spoken of in Scripture, as no inconsiderable Part of true Religion. It is spoken of as that by which true Religion may be known and distinguished, Proverbs 8:13. The fear of the Lord is to hate Evil. And accordingly the Saints are called upon to give Evidence of their Sincerity by this, Psalm 97:10. Ye that fear the Lord hate Evil. And the Psalmist often mentions it as an Evidence of his Sincerity; Psalm 101:2-3. I will walk within my House with a perfect Heart; I will set no wicked Thing before mine Eyes: I hate the Work of them that turn aside. Psalm 119:104. I hate every false Way. See Verse 128. Again Psalm 139:21. Do I not hate them, O Lord, that hate thee.

So holy Desire, exercised in Longings, Hungerings and Thirstings after God and Holiness, is often mentioned in Scripture as an important Part of true Religion; Isaiah 26:8. The Desire of our Soul is to thy Name, and to the Remembrance of thee. Psalm 27:4. One Thing have I desired of the Lord, and that will I seek after; that I may 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. Psalm 42:1-2. As the Heart panteth after the Water-brooks, so panteth my Soul after thee, O God; My Soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: When shall I come and appear before God? Psalm 63:1-2. My Soul thirsteth for thee; my Flesh longeth for thee, in a dry and thirsty Land, where no Water is, to see thy Power and thy Glory, so as I have seen thee in the Sanctuary. Psalm 84:1-2. How amiable are thy Tabernacles, O Lord of Hosts! My Soul longeth, yea, even fainteth, for the Courts of the Lord; my Heart and my Flesh crieth out for the living God. Psalm 119:20. My Soul breaketh for the Longing it hath unto thy Judgments, at all Times. So Psalm 73:25 and 143:6 and 130:6. Song of Solomon 3:1-2 and 6:8. Such a holy Desire and Thirst of Soul is mentioned, as one of those great Things which renders or denotes a Man truly blessed, in the Beginning of Christ's Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:6. Blessed are they that do hunger and thirst after Righteousness, for they shall be filled. And this holy Thirst is spoken of, as a great Thing in the Condition of a Participation of the Blessings of eternal Life, Revelation 21:6. I will give unto him that is athirst, of the Fountain of the Water of Life freely.

The Scriptures speak of holy Joy, as a great Part of true Religion. So is it represented in the Text. And as an important Part of Religion, it is often exhorted to, and pressed, with great Earnestness; Psalm 37:4. Delight thy self in the Lord, and he shall give thee the Desires of thine Heart. Psalm 97:12. Rejoice in the Lord, ye Righteous. So Psalm 33:1. Rejoice in the Lord, O ye Righteous. Matthew 5:12. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad. Philippians 3:1. Finally Brethren, rejoice in the Lord. And Chapter 4:4. Rejoice in the Lord alway, and again I say rejoice. 1 Thessalonians 5:16. Rejoice evermore. Psalm 149:2. Let Israel rejoice in him that made him; let the Children of Zion be joyful in their King. This is mentioned among the principal Fruits of the Spirit of Grace, Galatians 5:22. The Fruit of the Spirit is Love, Joy, etc. The Psalmist mentions his holy Joy, as an Evidence of his Sincerity, Psalm 119:14. I have rejoiced in the Way of thy Testimonies, as much as in all Riches.

Religious Sorrow, Mourning, and Brokenness of Heart, are also frequently spoken of as a great Part of true Religion. These Things are often mentioned as distinguishing Qualities of the true Saints, and a great Part of their Character; Matthew 5:4. Blessed are they that mourn; for they shall be comforted. Psalm 34:18. The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken Heart, and saveth such as be of a contrite Spirit. Isaiah 61:1-2. The Lord hath anointed me—to bind up the Broken-hearted,—to comfort all that mourn. This godly Sorrow, and Brokenness of Heart is often spoken of, not only, as a great Thing in the distinguishing Character of the Saints, but that in them, which is peculiarly acceptable and pleasing to God; Psalm 51:17. The Sacrifices of God are a broken Spirit; a broken and a contrite Heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. Isaiah 57:15. Thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth Eternity, whose Name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy Place, with him also that is of a humble and contrite Spirit, to revive the Spirit of the Humble, and to revive the Heart of the contrite ones. Chapter 66:2. To this Man will I look, even to him that is poor, and of a contrite Spirit.

Another Affection often mentioned, as that in the Exercise of which much of true Religion appears, is Gratitude; especially as exercised in Thankfulness and Praise to God. This being so much spoken of in the Book of Psalms, and other Parts of the holy Scriptures, I need not mention particular Texts.

Again, The holy Scriptures do frequently speak of Mercy, as a very great and essential Thing in true Religion; insomuch that good Men are in Scripture denominated from it; and a merciful Man, and a good Man, are equivalent Terms in Scripture; Isaiah 57:1. The Righteous perisheth, and no Man layeth it to Heart: and merciful Men are taken away. And the Scripture speaks of this Quality, as that by which, in a peculiar Manner, a righteous Man is distinguished; Psalm 37:21. The Righteous sheweth Mercy, and giveth; and Verse 26, He is ever merciful, and lendeth. Psalm 112:4. Colossians 3:12. Put ye on, as the elect of God, bowels of mercies, etc. This is one of those great Things, by which those that are truly Blessed are described by our Saviour, Matthew 5:7. Blessed are the Merciful, for they shall obtain Mercy. And this our Saviour speaks of, as one of the weightier Matters of the Law. Matthew 23:23. Woe unto you Scribes and Pharisees, Hypocrites! for ye pay Tithe of Mint, and Anise, and Cummin, and have omitted the weightier Matters of the Law, Judgment, Mercy, and Faith. To the like Purpose is that, Micah 6:8. He hath shewed thee, O Man, what is good; And what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and love Mercy, and walk humbly with thy God? And also that, Hosea 6:6. For I desired Mercy, and not Sacrifice. Which seems to have been a Text much delighted in by our Saviour, by his Manner of citing it once and again; Matthew 9:13 and 12:7.

Zeal is also spoken of, as a very essential Part of the Religion of true Saints. It is spoken of as a great Thing Christ had in view, in giving himself for our Redemption; Titus 2:14. Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar People, zealous of good Works. And this is spoken of, as the great Thing wanting in the lukewarm Laodiceans, Revelation 3:15, 16, 19.

I have mentioned but a few Texts, out of an innumerable multitude, all over the Scripture, which place Religion very much in the Affections. But what has been observed, may be sufficient to show that they who would deny that much of true Religion lies in the Affections, and maintain the Contrary, must throw away what we have been wont to own for our Bible, and get some other Rule, by which to judge of the Nature of Religion.

5. The Scriptures do represent true Religion, as being summarily comprehended in Love, the Chief of the Affections, and Fountain of all other Affections.

So our blessed Saviour represents the Matter, in answer to the Lawyer, who asked him, which was the great Commandment of the Law. Matthew 22:37, 38, 39, 40. Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God, with all thy Heart, and with all thy Soul, and with all thy Mind. Which words signify as much, as that those two Commandments comprehend the Duty prescribed, and the Religion taught in the Law and the Prophets. And the Apostle Paul does from Time to Time make the same Representation of the Matter; as in Romans 13:8. He that loveth another hath fulfilled the Law. So likewise in 1 Timothy 1:5. Now the End of the Commandment is Charity out of a pure Heart, etc. So the same Apostle speaks of Love, as the greatest Thing in Religion, and as the Vitals, Essence and Soul of it; without which, the greatest Knowledge and Gifts, and the most glaring Profession, and every thing else which appertains to Religion, are vain and worthless; and represents it as the Fountain from whence proceeds all that is good, in 1 Corinthians 13 throughout; for that which is there rendered charity, in the Original, is *Agape*, the proper English of which is Love.

Now although it be true, that the Love thus spoken of, includes the whole of a sincerely benevolent Propensity of the Soul, towards God and Man; yet it may be considered, that it is evident from what has been before observed, that this Propensity or Inclination of the Soul, when in sensible and vigorous Exercise, becomes Affection, and is no other than affectionate Love. And surely it is such vigorous and fervent Love which Christ speaks of, as the Sum of all Religion, when he speaks of Loving God with all our Hearts, with all our Souls, and with all our Minds, and our Neighbour as ourselves, as the Sum of all that was taught and prescribed in the Law and the Prophets.

Indeed it cannot be supposed, when this Affection of Love is here, and in other Scriptures, spoken of as the Sum of all Religion, that hereby is meant the Act, exclusive of the Habit, or that the Exercise of the Understanding is excluded, which is implied in all reasonable Affection. But it is doubtless true, and evident from these Scriptures, that the Essence of all true Religion lies in holy Love; and that in this divine Affection, and an habitual Disposition to it, and that Light which is the Foundation of it, and those Things which are the Fruits of it, consists the Whole of Religion.

From hence it clearly and certainly appears, that great Part of true Religion consists in the Affections. For Love is not only one of the Affections, but it is the first and chief of the Affections, and the Fountain of all the Affections. From Love arises Hatred of those Things which are contrary to what we love, or which oppose and thwart us in those Things that we delight in: And from the various Exercises of Love and Hatred, according to the Circumstances of the Objects of these Affections, as present or absent, certain or uncertain, probable or improbable Affections of Desire, Fear, Joy, Gratitude, etc. a vigorous, affectionate, and fervent Love to God, other religious Affections: hence Fear of Sin, and Joy in God when God is and sensibly present, and Grief when he is absent, and a joyful when a future Enjoyment God is expected, and fervent for the Glory of God. And in like Manner, from a fervent Love to Men, will arise all other virtuous Affections towards Men.

6. The Religion of the most eminent Saints we have an Account of in the Scripture, consisted much in holy Affections.

I shall take particular Notice of three eminent Saints, which have expressed the Frame and Sentiments of their own Hearts, and so described their own Religion, and the Manner of their Intercourse with God, in the Writings which they have left us, that are a Part of the sacred Canon.

The first Instance I shall take notice of, is David, that Man after God's own Heart; who has given us a lively Portraiture of his Religion, in the Book of Psalms. Those holy Songs of his, he has there left us, are nothing else but the Expressions and Breathings of devout and holy Affections; such as an humble and fervent Love to God, Admiration of his glorious Perfections and wonderful Works, earnest Desires, Thirstings and Pantings of Soul after God, Delight and Joy in God, a sweet and melting Gratitude to God for his great Goodness, an holy Exultation and Triumph of Soul in the Favour, Sufficiency and Faithfulness of God, his Love to, and Delight in the Saints the excellent of the Earth, his great Delight in the Word and Ordinance of God, his Grief for his own and others Sins, and his fervent Zeal for God, and against the Enemies of God and his Church. And these Expressions of holy Affection, which the Psalms of David are every where full of, are the more to our present Purpose, because those Psalms are not only the Expressions of the Religion of so eminent a Saint that God speaks of as so agreeable to his Mind; but were also, by the Direction of the Holy Ghost, penned for the Use of the Church of God in its public Worship, not only in that Age, but in after Ages; as being fitted to express the Religion of all Saints, in all Ages, as well as the Religion of the Psalmist. And it is moreover to be observed, that David, in the Book of Psalms, speaks not as a private Person, but as the Psalmist of Israel, as the subordinate Head of the Church of God, and Leader in their Worship and Praises; and in many of the Psalms, speaks in the Name of Christ, as personating him in these Breathings forth of holy Affection, and in many other Psalms, he speaks in the Name of the Church.

Another Instance I shall observe, is the Apostle Paul who was, in many Respects, the Chief of all the Ministers of the New Testament; being above all others, a chosen vessel unto Christ, to bear his Name before the Gentiles, and made the chief Instrument of propagating and establishing the Christian Church in the World, and of distinctly revealing the glorious Mysteries of the Gospel for the Instruction of the Church in all Ages; and as has not been improbably thought by some the most eminent Servant of Christ that ever lived, received to the highest Rewards in the heavenly Kingdom of his Master. By what is said of him in the Scripture, he appears to have been a Person that was full of Affection. And it appears by very many Things that the Religion he expresses in his Epistles consisted very much in holy Affections. It appears by all his Life he was, in the Course of his Life, actuated and swallowed up, by a most fervent Love to his glorious Lord, esteeming all Things as Loss, for the Excellency of the Knowledge of him, and esteeming them but Dung that he might win him. He represents himself, as overpowered by this holy Affection, and as it were compelled by it to go forward in his Service, through all Difficulties and Sufferings, 2 Corinthians 5. 14. And his Epistles are full of Expressions of an overflowing Affection towards the People of Christ: He speaks of his dear Love to them 2 Corinthians 12. 19. Philippians 4. 1. 2. Timothy 1. 2. Of his abundant Love, 2 Corinthians 2. 4. And of his affectionate and tender Love, as of a Nurse towards her Children, 1 Thessalonians 2. 7. 8. We were gentle among you; even as a Nurse affectionately desirous of you, we were willing to have imparted unto you, not the Gospel of God only, but also our own Souls. So also he speaks of his Bowels of Love, Philippians 1. 8. Philemon verse 12. and 20. So he speaks of his earnest Care for others, 2 Corinthians 8. 16. and of his Bowels of Pity or Mercy towards them, Philippians 2. 1. and of his Concern for others, even to Anguish of Heart, 2 Corinthians 2. 4. For out of much Affection, and Anguish of Heart, I wrote unto you, with many Tears; not that ye should be grieved; but that ye might know the Love which I have more abundantly unto you. He speaks of the great Conflict of his Soul for them, Colossians 2. 1. He speaks of great and continual Grief that he had in his Heart from Love to the Jews, Romans 9. 2. He speaks of his Mouth's being opened, and his Heart enlarged towards Christians, 2 Corinthians 6. 11. O ye Corinthians, our Mouth is open unto you, our Heart is enlarged!** He often speaks of his affectionate and longing Desires, 1 Thessalonians 2. 8. Romans 1. 11. Philippians 1. 8. and Chapter 4. 1. 2 Timothy 1. 4. The same Apostle is very often, in his Epistles, expressing the Affection of Joy, 2 Corinthians 1. 12. and Chapter 7. 7. and verse 9. and 16. Philippians 1. 4. and Chapter 2. 1. 2. and Chapter 3. 3. Colossians 1. 24. 1 Thessalonians 3. 9. He speaks of his rejoicing with great Joy, Philippians 4. 10. Philemon 1, 7. of his joying and rejoicing, Philippians 2. 17. and of his rejoicing exceedingly, 2 Corinthians 7. 13. And of his being filled with Comfort, and exceeding joyful 2 Corinthians 7. 4. He speaks of himself as always rejoicing, 2 Corinthians 6. 10. So he speaks of the Triumphs of his Soul, 2 Corinthians 2. 14. And of his glorying in Tribulations, 2 Thessalonians 1. 4. and Romans 5. 3. He also expresses the Affection of Hope; in Philippians 1. 20. he speaks of his earnest Expectation, and his Hope. He likewise expresses an Affection of Godly Zeal 2 Corinthians 11. 2, 3. And it appears by all his History, after his Conversion, in the Acts, and also by all his Epistles, and the Accounts he gives of himself there, That the Affection of Love, as having the Cause of his Master, and the Interest and Prosperity of his Church, for its Object, was mighty in him, continually inflaming his Heart, strongly engaging to those great and constant Labours he went through, instructing, exhorting, warning and reproving Others, travailing in Birth with them; conflicting with these powerful and innumerable Enemies who continually opposed him, wrestling with Principalities and Powers, not fighting as one who beats the Air, running the Race set before him, continually pressing forwards through all Manner of Difficulties and Sufferings: so that others thought him quite beside himself. And how full he was of Affection, does further appear by his being so full of Tears: In 2 Corinthians 2. 4. he speaks of his many Tears, and to Acts 20. 19. And of his Tears that he shed continually, Night and Day, verse 31.

Now if any one can consider these Accounts given in the Scripture of this great Apostle, and which he gives of himself, and yet not see that his Religion consisted much in Affection, must have a strange Faculty of managing his Eyes, to shut out the Light which shines most full in his Face.

The other Instance I shall mention, is of the Apostle John, that beloved Disciple, who was the nearest and dearest to his Master of any of the Twelve, and was by him admitted to the greatest Privileges of any of them: Being not only one of the three who were admitted to be present with him in the Mount at his Transfiguration, and at the raising of Jairus's Daughter, and whom he took with him when he was in his Agony, and one of the three spoken of by the Apostle Paul, as the three main Pillars of the christian Church; but was favoured above all, in being admitted to lean on his Master's Bosom, at his last Supper, and in being chosen by Christ, as the Disciple to whom he would reveal his wonderful Dispensation towards his Church, to the End of Time; as we have an Account in the Book of Revelation: And to shut up the Canon of the New Testament, and of the whole Scripture; being preserved much longer than all the rest of the Apostles, to set all Things in Order in the christian Church, after their Death.

It is evident by all his Writings, (as is generally observed by Divines) that he was a Person remarkably full of Affection: His Addresses to those whom he wrote to, being inexpressibly tender and pathetical, breathing nothing but the most fervent Love; as though he were all made up of sweet and holy Affection. The Proofs of which cannot be given without Disadvantage, unless we should transcribe his whole Writings.

7. He whom God sent into the World, to be the Light of the World, and Head of the whole Church, and the perfect Example of true Religion and Virtue, for the Imitation of all, the Shepherd whom the whole Flock should follow wherever he goes, even the Lord Jesus Christ, was a Person who was remarkably of a tender and affectionate Heart; and his Virtue was expressed very much in the Exercises of holy Affections. He was the greatest Instance of Ardency, Vigour and Strength of Love, to both God and Man, that ever was. It was these Affections which got the Victory, in that mighty Struggle and Conflict of his Affections, in his Agonies, when he prayed more earnestly, and offered strong Crying and Tears, and wrestled in Tears and in Blood. Such was the Power of the Exercises of his holy Love, that they were stronger than Death, and in that great Struggle, overcame those strong Exercises of the natural Affections of Fear and Grief, when he was sore amazed, and his Soul was exceeding sorrowful, even unto Death. And he also appeared to be full of Affection, in the Course of his Life. We read of his great Zeal, fulfilling that in the sixty-ninth Psalm, The Zeal of thine House hath eaten me up, John 2. 17. We read of his Grief for the Sins of Men, Mark 3. 5. He looked round about on them with Anger, being grieved for the Hardness of their Hearts. And his breaking forth in Tears and Exclamations, from the Consideration of the Sin and Misery of ungodly Men, and on the Sight of the City of Jerusalem, which was full of such Inhabitants, Luke 19. 41, 42. And when he was come near, he beheld the City, and wept over it, saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy Day, the Things which belong unto thy Peace! but now they are hid from thine Eyes. With Chapter 13. 34. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the Prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee, How often would I have gathered thy Children together, as a Hen doth gather her Brood under her Wings, and ye would not! We read of Christ's earnest Desire, Luke 22. 15. With Desire have I desired to eat this Passover with you, before I suffer. We often read of the Affection of Pity or Compassion in Christ, Matthew 15. 32. and 18. 34. Luke 7. 13. and of his being moved with Compassion, Matthew 9. 36 and 14. 14. and Mark 6. 34. And how tender did his Heart appear to be, on occasion of Mary's and Martha's Mourning for their Brother, and coming to him with their Complaints and Tears: Their Tears soon drew Tears from his Eyes: He was affected with their Grief, and wept with them; though he knew their Sorrow should so soon be turned into Joy, by their Brother's being raised from the Dead; see John 11. And how ineffably affectionate was that last and dying Discourse, which Jesus had with his eleven Disciples the Evening before he was crucified? when he told them he was going away, and foretold them the great Difficulties and Sufferings they should meet with in the World, when he was gone; and comforted and counseled them, as his dear little Children, and bequeathed to them his holy Spirit, and therein his Peace, and his Comfort and Joy, as it were in his last Will and Testament, in the thirteenth, fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth Chapters of John; and concluded the Whole with that affectionate intercessory Prayer for them, and his whole Church, in Chapter 17. Of all the Discourses ever penned, or uttered by the Mouth of any Man, this seems to be the most affectionate, and affecting.

8. The Religion of Heaven consists very much in Affection.

There is doubtless true Religion in Heaven, and true Religion in its utmost Purity and Perfection. But according to the Scripture Representation of the heavenly State, the Religion of Heaven consists chiefly in holy and mighty Love and Joy, and the Expression of these in most fervent and exalted Praises. So that the Religion of the Saints in Heaven, consists in the same Things with that Religion of the Saints on Earth, which is spoken of in our Text, namely Love, and Joy unspeakable, and full of Glory. Now it would be very foolish to pretend, that because the Saints in Heaven are not united to Flesh and Blood, and have no animal Fluids to be moved, (through the Laws of Union of Soul and Body) with those great Emotions of their Souls, that therefore their exceeding Love and Joy are no Affections. —We are not speaking of the Affections of the Body, but of the Affections of the Soul, the chief of which are Love and Joy. When these are in the Soul, whether that be in the Body or out of it, the Soul is affected and moved. And when they are in the Soul, in that Strength in which they are in the Saints in Heaven, the Soul is mightily affected and moved, or, which is the same Thing, has great Affections. It is true, we do not experimentally know what Love and Joy are in a Soul out of a Body, or in a glorified Body; that is we have not had Experience of Love and Joy in a Soul in these Circumstances; but the Saints on Earth do know what divine Love and Joy in the Soul are and they know what Love and Joy are of the same Kind, with the Love and Joy which are in Heaven, in separate Souls there. The Love and Joy of the Saints on Earth, is the Beginning and Dawning of the Light, Life, and Blessedness of Heaven, and is like their Love and Joy there; or rather, the same in Nature, though not the same with it, or like to it, in Degree and Circumstances. This is evident by many Scriptures, as Proverbs 4. 18. John 4. 14. and Chapter 6. 40, 47, 50, 51, 54, 58. 1 John 3. 15. 1 Corinthians 13. 8, 9, 10, 11, 12. It is unreasonable therefore to suppose, that the Love and Joy of the Saints in Heaven, not only differ in Degree and Circumstances, from the holy Love and Joy of the Saints on Earth, but is so entirely different in Nature, that they are no Affections; and merely because they have no Blood and animal Spirits to be set in Motion by them, which Motion of the Blood and animal Spirits is not of the Essence of these Affections, in Men on the Earth, but the Effect of them; although by their Reaction they may make some circumstantial Difference in the Sensation of the Mind. There is a Sensation of the Mind which loves and rejoices, that is antecedent to any Effects on the Fluids of the Body; and this Sensation of the Mind, therefore does not depend on these Motions in the Body, and so may be in the Soul without the Body. And wherever there are the Exercises of Love and Joy, there is that Sensation of the Mind, whether it be in the Body, or out; and that inward Sensation, or kind of spiritual Sense, or Feeling, and Motion of the Soul, is what is called Affection; The Soul when it thus feels, (if I may so say) and is thus moved, is said to be affected, and especially when this inward Sensation and Motion, are to a very high Degree, as they are in the Saints in Heaven. If we can learn any thing of the State of Heaven from the Scripture, the Love and Joy that the Saints have there, is exceeding great and vigorous; impressing the Heart with the strongest and most lively Sensation, of inexpressible Sweetness, mightily moving, animating, and engaging them, making them like to a Flame of Fire. And if such Love and Joy be not Affections, then the Word Affection is of no Use in Language. —Will any say, that the Saints in Heaven, in beholding the Face of their Father, and the Glory of their Redeemer, and contemplating his wonderful Works, and particularly his laying down his Life for them, have their Hearts nothing moved and affected, by all which they behold or consider?

Hence therefore the Religion of Heaven, consisting chiefly in holy Love and Joy, consists very much in Affection: And therefore undoubtedly, true Religion consists very much in Affection. The Way to learn the true Nature of any Thing, is to go where that Thing is to be found in its Purity and Perfection. If we would know the Nature of true Gold, we must view it, not in the Ore, but when it is refined. If we would learn what true Religion is, we must go where there is true Religion, and nothing but true Religion, and in its highest Perfection, without any Defect or Mixture. All who are truly religious are not of this World, they are Strangers here, and belong to Heaven; they are born from above, Heaven is their native Country, and the Nature which they receive by this heavenly Birth, is an heavenly Nature, they receive an Anointing from Above; that Principle of true Religion which is in them, is a Communication of the Religion of Heaven; their Grace is the Dawn of Glory; and God fits them for that World by conforming them to it.

9. This appears from the Nature and Design of the Ordinances and Duties, which God hath appointed, as Means and Expressions of true Religion.

To instance in the Duty of Prayer: It is manifest, we are not appointed, in this Duty, to declare God's Perfections, his Majesty, Holiness, Goodness, and All-sufficiency, and our own Meanness, Emptiness, Dependence, and Unworthiness, and our Wants and Desires, to inform God of these Things, or to incline his Heart, and prevail with him to be willing to show us Mercy; but suitably to affect our own Hearts with the Things we express, and so to prepare us to receive the Blessings we ask. And such Gestures, and Manner of external Behaviour in the Worship of God, which Custom has made to be Significations of Humility and Reverence, can be of no further Use, than as they have some Tendency to affect our own Hearts, or the Hearts of others.

And the Duty of singing Praises to God, seems to be appointed wholly to excite and express religious Affections. No other Reason can be assigned, why we should express ourselves to God in Verse, rather than in Prose, and do it with Music, but only, that such is our Nature and Frame, that these Things have a Tendency to move our Affections.

The same thing appears in the Nature and Design of the Sacraments, which God hath appointed. God, considering our Frame, hath not only appointed that we should be told of the great Things of the Gospel, and of the Redemption of Christ, and instructed in them by his Word; but also that they should be, as it were, exhibited to our View, in sensible Representations, in the Sacraments, the more to affect us with them.

And the impressing divine Things on the Hearts and Affections of Men, is evidently one great and main End for which God has ordained, that his Word delivered in the holy Scriptures, should be opened, applied, and set home upon Men, in Preaching. And therefore it does not answer the Aim which God had in this Institution, merely for Men to have good Commentaries and Expositions on the Scripture, and other good Books of Divinity; because, although these may tend, as well as Preaching, to give Men a good doctrinal or speculative Understanding of the Work of God, yet they have not an equal Tendency to impress them on Men's Hearts and Affections. God hath appointed a particular, and lively Application of his Word, to Men, in the Preaching of it, as a fit Means to affect Sinners, with the Importance of the Things of Religion, and their own Misery, and Necessity of a Remedy, and the Glory and Sufficiency of a Remedy provided; and to stir up the pure Minds of the Saints, and quicken their Affections, by often bringing the great Things of Religion to their Remembrance, and setting them before them in their proper Colours, though they know them, and have been fully instructed in them already; 2 Peter 1. 12, 13. And particularly, to promote those two Affections in them, which are spoken of in the Text, Love and Joy: Christ gave same Apostles, and some Prophets, and some Evangelists, and some Pastors and Teachers, that the Body of Christ might be edified in Love, Ephesians 4. 11, 12, 16. The Apostle, in instructing and counselling Timothy, concerning the Work of the Ministry, informs him that the great End of that Word which a Minister is to preach, is Love or Charity, 1 Timothy 1. 3, 4, 5. And another Affection which God has appointed Preaching as a Means to promote in the Saints, is Joy; and therefore Ministers are called Helpers of their Joy, 2 Corinthians 1. 24.

10. It is an Evidence that true Religion, or Holiness of Heart, lies very much in the Affection of the Heart, that the Scriptures place the Sin of the Heart very much in Hardness of Heart. Thus the Scriptures do everywhere. It was Hardness of Heart, which excited Grief and Displeasure in Christ towards the Jews, Mark 3. 5. He looked round about on them with Anger, being grieved for the Hardness of their Hearts. It is from Men's having such a Heart as this, that they treasure up Wrath for themselves. Romans 2. 5. After your Hardness and impenitent Heart, you treasure up unto yourself Wrath, against the Day of Wrath, and Revelation of the righteous Judgment of God. The Reason given why the House of Israel would not obey God, was that they were hard-hearted, Ezekiel 3. 7. But the House of Israel will not listen to you; for they will not listen to me: For all the House of Israel are impudent and hard-hearted. The Wickedness of that perverse rebellious Generation in the Wilderness, is ascribed to the Hardness of their Hearts; Psalm 95. 7, 10, Today, if you will hear my Voice, harden not your Heart, as in the Provocation, and as in the Day of Temptation in the Wilderness; when your Fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my Work: Forty Years long was I grieved with this Generation, and said it is a People that do err in their Heart, and so forth. This is spoken of as what prevented Zedekiah's turning to the Lord, 2 Chronicles 36. 13. He stiffened his Neck, and hardened his Heart, from turning to the Lord God of Israel. This Principle is spoken of, as that from whence Men are without the Fear of God, and depart from God's Ways; Isaiah 63. 17. O Lord, why hast thou made us to err from thy Ways, and hardened our Heart from thy Fear? And Men's rejecting Christ, and opposing Christianity, is laid to this Principle; Acts 19. 9. But when various were hardened, and believed not, but spoke Evil of that Way before the Multitude; God's leaving Men to the Power of the Sin and Corruption of the Heart, is often expressed by God's hardening their Hearts; Romans 9, 18. Therefore hath he Mercy on whom he will have Mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. John 12. 40. He hath blinded their Mind, and hardened their Hearts. And the Apostle seems to speak of an evil Heart, that departs from the living God, and a hard Heart, as the same Thing. Hebrews 3. 8. Harden not your Heart, as in the Provocation, and so forth. Verse 12, 13. Take heed Brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil Heart of Unbelief in departing from the living God, but exhort one another daily, while it is called Today; lest any of you be hardened through the Deceitfulness of Sin. And that great Work of God in Conversion, which consists in delivering a Person from the Power of Sin, and mortifying Corruption, is expressed, once and again, by God's taking away the Heart of Stone, and giving an Heart of Flesh, Ezekiel 11. 10. and Chapter 36. 26.

Now by a hard Heart, is plainly meant an unaffected Heart, or a Heart not easy to be moved with virtuous Affections, like a Stone, insensible, stupid, unmoved and hard to be impressed. Hence the hard Heart is called a stony Heart, and is opposed to an Heart of Flesh, that has feeling, and is sensibly touched and moved. We read in Scripture of a hard Heart, and a tender Heart: And doubtless we are to understand these, as contrary the one to the other. But what is a tender Heart, but a Heart which is easily impressed with what ought to affect it? God commends Josiah, because his Heart was tender; and it is evident by those Things which are mentioned as Expressions and Evidences of this Tenderness of Heart, that by his Heart being tender is meant, his Heart being easily moved with religious and pious Affection; 2 Kings 22. 19. Because your Heart was tender, and you have humbled yourself before the Lord, when you heard what I spoke against this Place, and against the Inhabitants thereof, that they should become a Desolation, and a Curse, and have torn your Clothes, and have wept before me; I also have heard you, says the Lord. And this is one thing, wherein it is necessary we should become as little Children, in order to our entering into the Kingdom of God, even that we should have our Hearts tender, and easily affected and moved in spiritual and divine Things, as little Children have in other Things.

It is very plain in some Places, in the Texts themselves, that by Hardness of Heart is meant a Heart void of Affection. So to signify the Ostrich's being without natural Affection to her Young, it is said, Job 39. 16. She hardens her Heart against her young ones, as though they were not hers. So a Person having a Heart unaffected in Time of Danger, is expressed by his hardening his Heart, Proverbs 28. 14. Happy is the Man that fears always; but he that hardens his Heart shall fall into Mischief.

Now therefore since it is so plain, that by a hard Heart, in Scripture, is meant a Heart destitute of pious Affections, and since also the Scriptures do so frequently place the Sin and Corruption of the Heart in Hardness of Heart; it is evident, that the Grace and Holiness of the Heart, on the contrary, must, in a great Measure, consist in its having pious Affections, and being easily susceptive of such Affection. Divines are generally agreed, that Sin radically and fundamentally consists in what is negative, or privative, having its Root and Foundation in a Privation or Want of Holiness. And therefore undoubtedly, if it be so that Sin does very much consist in Hardness of Heart, and so in the Want of pious Affections of Heart; Holiness does consist very much in those pious Affections.

I am far from supposing that all Affections do show a tender Heart: Hatred, Anger, Vain-glory, and other selfish and self-exalting Affections, may greatly prevail in the hardest Heart. But yet it is evident that Hardness of Heart, and Tenderness of Heart, are Expressions that relate to the Affections of the Heart, and denote the Heart's being susceptible of, or shut up against, certain Affections, of which I shall have Occasion to speak more afterwards.

Upon the Whole, I think it clearly and abundantly evident, that true Religion lies very much in the Affections. Not that I think these Arguments prove, that Religion in the Hearts of the truly Godly, is ever in exact Proportion to the Degree of Affection, and present Emotion of the Mind. For undoubtedly, there is much Affection in the true Saints which is not spiritual: Their religious Affections are often mixed; all is not from Grace, but much from Nature. And though the Affections have not their Seat in the Body, yet the Constitution of the Body, may very much contribute to the present Emotion of the Mind. And the Degree of Religion is rather to be judged of by the Fixedness and Strength of the Habit that is exercised in Affection, whereby holy Affection is habitual, than by the Degree of the present Exercise: And the Strength of that Habit is not always in Proportion to outward Effects and Manifestations, or inward Effects, in the Hurry and Vehemence, and sudden Changes of the Course of the Thoughts of the Mind. But yet it is evident, that Religion consists so much in Affection, as that without holy Affection there is no true Religion. And no Light in the Understanding is good, which does not produce holy Affection in the Heart; no Habit or Principle in the Heart is good, which has no such Exercise; and no external Fruit is good, which does not proceed from such Exercises.

Having thus considered the Evidence of the Proposition laid down, I proceed to some Inferences.

1. We may hence learn how great their Error is, who are for discarding all religious Affections, as having nothing solid or substantial in them.

There seems to be too much of a Disposition this Way, prevailing in this Land at this Time. Because many who, in the late extraordinary Season, appeared to have great religious Affections, did not manifest a right Temper of Mind, and run into many Errors, in the Time of their Affection, and the Heat of their Zeal; and because the high Affections of many seem to be so soon come to nothing, and some who seemed to be mightily raised and swallowed with Joy and Zeal, for a While, seem to have returned like the Dog to his Vomit: Hence religious Affections in general are grown out of Credit, with great Numbers, as though true Religion did not at all consist in them. Thus we easily, and naturally run from one Extreme to another. A little while ago we were in the other Extreme; there was a prevalent Disposition to look upon all high religious Affections, as eminent Exercises of true Grace, without much inquiring into the Nature and Source of those Affections, and the Manner in which they arose: If Persons did but appear to be indeed very much moved and raised, so as to be full of religious Talk, and express themselves with great Warmth and Earnestness, and to be filled, or to be very full, as the Phrases were; it was too much the Manner, without further Examination, to conclude such Persons were full of the Spirit of God, and had eminent Experience of his gracious Influences. This was the Extreme which was prevailing three or four Years ago. But of late, instead of esteeming and admiring all religious Affections, without Distinction, it is a Thing much more prevalent, to reject and discard all without Distinction. Herein appears the Subtlety of Satan. While he saw that Affections were much in Vogue, knowing the greater Part of the Land were not versed in such Things, and had not had much Experience of great religious Affections, to enable them to judge well of them, and distinguish between true and false; then he knew he could best play his Game, by sowing Tares amongst the Wheat, and mingling false Affections with the Works of God's Spirit: He knew this to be a likely Way to delude and eternally ruin many Souls, and greatly to wound Religion in the Saints, and entangle them in a dreadful Wilderness, and by and by, to bring all Religion into Disrepute. But now, when the ill Consequences of these false Affections appear, and it is become very apparent, that some of those Emotions which made a glaring Show, and were by many greatly admired, were in Reality Nothing; the Devil sees it to be for his Interest to go another Way to work, and to endeavour to his utmost to propagate and establish a Persuasion, that all Affections and sensible Emotions of the Mind, in Things of Religion, are nothing at all to be regarded, but are rather to be avoided, and carefully guarded against, as Things of a pernicious Tendency. This he knows is the Way to bring all Religion to a mere lifeless Formality, and effectually shut out the Power of Godliness, and every Thing which is spiritual, and to have all true Christianity turned out of Doors. For although to true Religion, there must indeed be something else besides Affection; yet true Religion consists so much in the Affections, that there can be no true Religion without them. He who has no religious Affection, is in a State of spiritual Death, and is wholly destitute of the powerful, quickening, saving Influences of the Spirit of God upon his Heart. As there is no true Religion, where there is nothing else but Affection; so there is no true Religion where there is no religious Affection. As on the one Hand, there must be Light in the Understanding, as well as an affected fervent Heart, where there is Heat without Light, there can be nothing divine or heavenly in that Heart; so on the other Hand, where there is a Kind of Light without Heat, a Head stored with Notions and Speculations, with a cold and unaffected Heart, there can be nothing divine in that Light, that Knowledge is no true spiritual Knowledge of divine Things. If the great Things of Religion are rightly understood, they will affect the Heart. The Reason why Men are not affected by such infinitely great, important, glorious, and wonderful Things, as they often hear and read of, in the Word of God, is undoubtedly because they are blind; if they were not so, it would be impossible, and utterly inconsistent with human Nature, that their Hearts should be otherwise, than strongly impressed, and greatly moved by such Things.

This Manner of slighting all religious Affections, is the Way exceedingly to harden the Hearts of Men, and to encourage them in their Stupidity and Senselessness, and to keep them in a State of spiritual Death as long as they live, and bring them at last to Death eternal. The prevailing Prejudice against religious Affections at this Day, in the Land, is apparently of awful Effect, to harden the Hearts of Sinners, and damp the Graces of many of the Saints, and stunt the Life and Power of Religion, and preclude the Effect of Ordinances, and hold us down in a State of Dullness and Apathy, and undoubtedly causes many Persons greatly to offend God, in entertaining mean and low Thoughts of the extraordinary Work he has lately wrought in this Land.

And for Persons to despise and cry down all religious Affections, is the Way to shut all Religion out of their own Hearts, and to make thorough Work in ruining their Souls.

They who condemn high Affections in others, are certainly not likely to have high Affections themselves. And let it be observed, that they who have but little religious Affection, have certainly but little Religion. And they who condemn others for their religious Affections, and have none themselves, have no Religion.

There are false Affections, and there are true. A Man's having much Affection, does not prove that he has any true Religion: But if he has no Affection, it proves that he has no true Religion. The right Way, is not to reject all Affections, nor to approve all; but to distinguish between Affections, approving some, and rejecting others; separating between the Wheat and the Chaff, the Gold and the Dross, the Precious and the Vile.

2. If it be so, that true Religion lies much in the Affections, hence we may infer, that such Means are to be desired, as have much of a Tendency to move the Affections. Such Books, and such a Way of Preaching the Word, and Administration of Ordinances, and such a Way of worshipping God in Prayer, and singing Praises, is much to be desired, as has a Tendency deeply to affect the Hearts of those who attend these Means.

Such a Kind of Means, would formerly have been highly approved of and applauded by the Generality of the People of the Land, as the most excellent and profitable, and having the greatest Tendency to promote the Ends of the Means of Grace. But the prevailing Taste seems of late strangely to be altered: That pathetic Manner of Praying and Preaching, which would formerly have been admired and esteemed, and that for this Reason, because it had such a Tendency to move the Affections, now, in great Multitudes, immediately excites Disgust, and moves no other Affections, than those of Displeasure and Contempt.

Perhaps, formerly the Generality (at least of the common People) were in the Extreme, of looking too much to an affectionate Address, in public Performances: But now, a very great Part of the People, seem to have gone far into a contrary Extreme. Indeed there may be such Means, as may have a great Tendency to stir up the Passions of weak and ignorant Persons, and yet have no great Tendency to Benefit their Souls. For though they may have a Tendency to excite Affections, they may have little or none to excite gracious Affections, or any Affections tending to Grace. But undoubtedly, if the Things of Religion, in the Means used, are treated according to their Nature, and exhibited truly, so as tends to convey just Apprehensions, and a right Judgment of them; the more they have a Tendency to move the Affections, the better.

3. If true Religion lies much in the Affections, hence we may learn, what great Cause we have to be ashamed and confounded before God, that we are no more affected with the great Things of Religion. It appears from what has been said, that this arises from our having so little true Religion.

God has given to Mankind Affections, for the same Purpose which he has given all the Faculties and Principles of the human Soul for, namely that they might be subservient to Man's chief End, and the great Business for which God has created him, that is the Business of Religion. And yet how common is it among Mankind, that their Affections are much more exercised and engaged in other Matters, than in Religion! In Things which concern Men's worldly Interest, their outward Delights, their Honour and Reputation, and their natural Relations, they have their Desires eager, their Appetites vehement, their Love warm and affectionate, their Zeal ardent; in these Things their Hearts are tender and sensible, easily moved, deeply impressed, much concerned, very sensibly affected, and greatly engaged; much depressed with Grief at worldly Losses, and highly raised with Joy at worldly Successes and Prosperity. But how insensible and unmoved are most Men, about the great Things of another World! How dull are their Affections! How heavy and hard their Hearts in these Matters! Here their Love is cold, their Desires languid, their Zeal low, and their Gratitude small. How they can sit and hear of the infinite Height and Depth and Length and Breadth of the Love of God in Christ Jesus, of his giving his infinitely dear Son, to be offered up a Sacrifice for the Sins of Men, and of the unparalleled Love of the innocent, holy and tender Lamb of God, manifested in his dying Agonies, his bloody Sweat, his loud and bitter Cries, and bleeding Heart, and all this for Enemies, to redeem them from deserved, eternal Burnings, and to bring to unspeakable and everlasting Joy and Glory; and yet be cold, and heavy, insensible, and regardless! Where are the Exercises of our Affections proper, if not here? What is it that does more require them? And what can be a fit Occasion of their lively and vigorous Exercise, if not such an one as this? Can any Thing be set in our View, greater and more important? Any Thing more wonderful and surprising? Or more nearly concerning our Interest? Can we suppose the wise Creator implanted such Principles in the human Nature as the Affections, to be of Use to us, and to be exercised on certain proper Occasions, but to lie still on such an Occasion as this? Can any Christian, who believes the Truth of these Things, entertain such Thoughts?

If we ought ever to exercise our Affections at all, and if the Creator has not unwisely constituted the human Nature, in making these Principles a Part of it, when they are vain and useless; then they ought to be exercised about those Objects which are most worthy of them. But is there any Thing, which Christians can find in Heaven or Earth, so worthy to be the Objects of their Admiration and Love, their earnest and longing Desires, their Hope, and their Rejoicing, and their fervent Zeal, as those Things that are held forth to us in the Gospel of Jesus Christ? In which, not only are Things declared most worthy to affect us, but they are exhibited in the most affecting Manner. The Glory and Beauty of the blessed Jehovah, which is most worthy in itself, to be the Object of our Admiration and Love, is there exhibited in the most affecting Manner that can be conceived of, as it appears shining in all its Lustre, in the Face of an incarnate, infinitely loving, meek, compassionate, dying Redeemer. All the Virtues of the Lamb of God, his Humility, Patience, Meekness, Submission, Obedience, Love and Compassion, are exhibited to our View, in a manner the most tending to move our Affections, of any that can be imagined; as they all had their greatest Trial, and their highest Exercise, and so their brightest Manifestation, when he was in the most affecting Circumstances; even when he was undergoing his last Sufferings, those unutterable and unparalleled Sufferings, he endured, from his tender Love and Pity to us. There also, the hateful Nature of our Sins is manifested in the most affecting Manner possible; as we see the dreadful Effects of them, in what our Redeemer, who undertook to answer for us, suffered for them. And there we have the most affecting Manifestations of God's Hatred of Sin, and his Wrath and Justice in punishing it; as we see his Justice in the Strictness and Inflexibleness of it, and his Wrath in its Terribleness, in so dreadfully punishing our Sins, in One who was infinitely dear to him, and loving to us. So has God disposed Things, in the Affair of our Redemption, and in his glorious Dispensations, revealed to us in the Gospel, as though every Thing were purposely contrived in such a Manner, as to have the greatest, possible Tendency to reach our Hearts in the most tender Part, and move our Affections most sensibly and strongly. How great Cause have we therefore to be humbled to the Dust, that we are no more affected!

Part 1.

In these words, the apostle describes the inner state of the Christians he was writing to, who were enduring persecution at the time. These persecutions are what he refers to in the two preceding verses, when he speaks of the trial of their faith and of their being in sorrow through various trials.

Such trials benefit true religion in three ways. First, they reveal its truth — they make it apparent that the faith is genuine. More than anything else, trials tend to distinguish between true religion and false, and to make that difference clearly visible. This is why they are called trials in the preceding verse and throughout Scripture — they test the faith and religion of those who profess it, just as gold is tested in fire to prove whether it is genuine. When the faith of true Christians is tested and proved genuine, it is found to result in praise, honor, and glory, as that preceding verse shows.

Second, these trials benefit true religion not only by revealing its truth but also by making its genuine beauty and excellence stand out. True virtue never appears more attractive than when it is most oppressed, and the divine excellence of authentic Christianity is never displayed to better advantage than under the greatest trials. It is then that true faith appears far more precious than gold, and for this reason is found to result in praise, honor, and glory.

Third, such trials benefit true religion by purifying and increasing it. They not only prove it to be true, but also refine it — stripping away the false elements that burden and hinder it, so that only what is genuine remains. They cause the beauty of true religion to appear to its best advantage, as noted above, and beyond that they actually increase that beauty by establishing and strengthening it, making it more lively and vigorous, and purifying it from the things that had obscured its brightness and glory. Just as gold tested in fire is purged of all impurities and dross and comes forth more solid and beautiful, so true faith tested in this way becomes more precious — and is thus also found to result in praise, honor, and glory. The apostle seems to have all three of these benefits of persecution in mind in the verse preceding the passage.

In this passage, the apostle describes how true religion was working in the Christians he wrote to during their persecutions — and through this operation, these benefits of persecution became visible in them. He is showing what kind of operation of true religion it was that, under persecution, proved their religion to be genuine, displayed its beauty and excellence in a striking way, and also showed it to be growing and being purified — so that it was on track to be found unto praise, honor, and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. There were two kinds of operation — two exercises of true religion — in them under their sufferings, through which these benefits appeared, and which the apostle notes in this passage.

First, love to Christ: 'Whom having not seen, you love.' The world was ready to wonder what strange principle drove these believers to expose themselves to such great suffering — forsaking visible things and renouncing everything that was dear and pleasant to the senses. To the people around them, they seemed to be out of their minds, acting as though they hated themselves. From the world's perspective, there was nothing that could account for such suffering or sustain them through it. But although there was nothing visible — nothing that the world saw, or that the Christians themselves had ever seen with their own eyes — that drove and sustained them, they had a supernatural principle of love for something unseen. They loved Jesus Christ, for they saw Him spiritually in a way the world could not, and in a way they had never seen Him with their physical eyes.

Second, joy in Christ. Though their outward sufferings were very severe, their inward spiritual joy was greater than their sufferings, and that joy sustained them and enabled them to suffer with cheerfulness.

The apostle notes two things about this joy. First, the way it arises — the way that Christ, though unseen, is its foundation, namely through faith, which is the evidence of things not seen: 'in whom, though now you see Him not, yet believing, you rejoice.' Second, the nature of this joy: 'inexpressible and full of glory.' It was inexpressible in its kind — very different from worldly joys and physical pleasures, of a far purer, more elevated, and more heavenly nature, being something supernatural and truly divine, so exquisitely excellent that no words could describe it. It was also inexpressible in degree, as God pleased to give them this holy joy abundantly and in great measure in their season of persecution.

Their joy was full of glory. Although the joy was inexpressible and no words could fully describe it, something could be said — and no words more fittingly captured its excellence than 'full of glory,' or as the original has it, 'glorified joy.' In rejoicing with this joy, their minds were filled with a kind of glorious brightness, and their very natures were elevated and ennobled. It was a most worthy and noble rejoicing that did not corrupt or degrade the mind as many carnal joys do, but greatly beautified and dignified it. It was a foretaste of the joy of heaven that lifted their minds to a degree of heavenly blessedness. It filled their minds with the light of God's glory and caused them to shine with some measure of that glory reflected back.

From these words I draw the following proposition, or doctrine:

Doctrine: True religion consists, in great part, in holy affections.

Notice that when the apostle observes the operations and exercises of religion in the Christians he wrote to — when their religion appeared most genuinely true under the greatest trials, being tested like gold in fire — and when their religion not only proved true but was purified of all impurities and false mixtures, and when religion appeared in them most fully in its proper excellence and native beauty, found to result in praise, honor, and glory — it is the religious affections of love and joy that he singles out as then being in exercise in them. These are the specific exercises of religion he points to as proving their faith to be true and pure and in its proper glory.

Here I would do two things.

First, explain what is meant by the affections.

Second, note some things that make it evident that a great part of true religion lies in the affections.

First, what are the affections of the mind?

The affections are simply the more vigorous and strongly felt exercises of the inclination and will of the soul.

God has endowed the soul with two faculties. One is the capacity for perception and understanding — the faculty by which the soul discerns, views, and judges things. This is called the understanding. The other faculty is the one by which the soul does not merely perceive and view things, but is moved toward or away from them — drawn to them or pushed away from them. Rather than observing things as a detached, unaffected spectator, the soul through this faculty responds to things with liking or disliking, pleasure or displeasure, approval or rejection. This faculty is called by various names. Considered in itself, it is called the inclination. Considered in relation to the actions it determines and governs, it is called the will. And the mind, with regard to the exercises of this faculty, is often called the heart.

The exercises of this faculty fall into two kinds: those by which the soul moves toward the things it perceives — approving them, taking pleasure in them, and being drawn to them — and those by which the soul opposes the things it perceives — disapproving them, being displeased with them, pulling away from them, and rejecting them.

The exercises of the inclination and will vary greatly not only in their kinds but even more so in their degrees. Some exercises of pleasure or displeasure, inclination or disinclination, carry the soul only a little beyond a state of perfect indifference. Above this there are higher degrees — stronger approval or dislike, stronger pleasure or aversion — and these can rise higher and higher until the soul acts vigorously and with strong feeling. At that point the actings of the soul are so intense that, through the laws governing the union of soul and body that the Creator has established, the motion of the blood and the body's vital spirits begins to be noticeably altered. This often produces some physical sensation, especially around the heart and the vital organs, which are the source of the body's fluids. It is for this reason that the mind — with regard to the exercises of this faculty — has been called the heart, apparently in all nations and throughout all ages. It should be noted that it is these more vigorous and strongly felt exercises of this faculty that are called the affections.

The will and the affections of the soul are not two separate faculties. The affections are not essentially distinct from the will, and they do not differ from the simple actings of the will and inclination of the soul — they differ only in the intensity and strength of the exercise.

It must be admitted that language is somewhat imprecise here, and the meaning of words in this area is somewhat loose and undefined, since language is governed by common usage rather than precise definition. In one sense, the affection of the soul differs not at all from the will and inclination — the will is never exercised at all except to the extent that it is affected; it is not moved out of a state of perfect indifference except as it is affected one way or another, and it acts voluntarily only to that extent. Yet there are many actings of the will and inclination that are not commonly called affections. In everything we do voluntarily, there is an exercise of the will and inclination — our inclination governs our actions — but not all the actings of the inclination and will in the ordinary actions of daily life are typically called affections. Yet what are commonly called affections are not essentially different from those ordinary actings — they differ only in degree and manner of exercise. In every act of the will, the soul either likes or dislikes, is inclined or disinclined toward what is in view. These are not essentially different from the affections of love and hatred. When the soul's liking or inclination toward something is strong, vigorous, and lively, it is the very same thing as the affection of love. And when the soul's disliking and disinclination is strong, it is the very same thing as hatred. In every act of the will toward something not yet present, the soul is inclined to some degree toward that thing — and when that inclination is considerable, it is the very same as the affection of desire. In every degree of the will's act of approving something present, there is a degree of pleasure — and when that pleasure is considerable, it is the very same as the affection of joy or delight. And when the will disapproves of something present, the soul is displeased to some degree — and when that displeasure is great, it is the very same as the affection of grief or sorrow.

Such is our nature, and such are the laws governing the union of soul and body, that there is never any lively and vigorous exercise of the will or inclination of the soul without some effect on the body — some change in the motion of its fluids, and especially of the vital spirits. Conversely, by those same laws of the union of soul and body, the condition of the body and the motion of its fluids can also promote the exercise of the affections. Yet the body is not the proper seat of the affections — only the mind is. The human body is no more capable of genuinely experiencing love or hatred, joy or sorrow, fear or hope, than the body of a tree is — or than the body itself is capable of thinking and understanding. Just as it is the soul alone that has ideas, so it is the soul alone that is pleased or displeased with its ideas. Just as it is the soul alone that thinks, so it is the soul alone that loves or hates, rejoices or grieves over what it thinks about. The physical motions of the vital spirits and bodily fluids do not properly belong to the nature of the affections, even though they always accompany them in our present state. They are only effects or accompaniments of the affections that are entirely distinct from the affections themselves and not essential to them — so that a disembodied spirit would be just as capable of love and hatred, joy or sorrow, hope or fear, or other affections as one united to a body.

Affections and passions are frequently used as synonyms, yet in common usage there is a distinction. Affection is the broader term, used for all vigorous and lively actings of the will or inclination, while passion refers more specifically to those that are more sudden, whose physical effects are more violent, and in which the mind is more overpowered and less in control of itself.

Just as all the exercises of the inclination and will involve either approving and liking or disapproving and rejecting, so the affections are of two kinds: those by which the soul moves toward what it perceives — cleaving to it or seeking it — and those by which the soul pulls away from it and opposes it.

The affections of the first kind include love, desire, hope, joy, gratitude, and satisfaction. The affections of the second kind include hatred, fear, anger, grief, and others like them, which need not be defined individually here.

Some affections are a blend of both kinds of will-actings. Pity, for example, contains something of the first kind toward the person who is suffering, and something of the second kind toward what that person is suffering. Similarly, zeal involves strong approval of some person or thing, along with vigorous opposition to whatever is seen as contrary to it.

There are other mixed affections that could be mentioned, but I will move on to the

second thing proposed: to note some things that make it evident that true religion consists, in great part, in the affections. And here,

First, what has already been said about the nature of the affections makes this evident on its own, and should be sufficient to settle the matter without anything further. For who would deny that true religion consists, in large measure, in vigorous and lively actings of the inclination and will of the soul — in the fervent exercises of the heart?

The religion that God requires and will accept does not consist in weak, dull, and lifeless wishes that raise us only slightly above indifference. God's Word insists emphatically that we be in earnest — fervent in spirit — with our hearts vigorously engaged in religion (Romans 12:11): 'Be fervent in spirit, serving the Lord.' Deuteronomy 10:12: 'And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, and to love Him, and to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul?' And Deuteronomy 6:4-5: 'Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one! And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.' It is this fervent, vigorous engagement of the heart in religion that is the fruit of true circumcision of the heart — that is, genuine regeneration — and that receives the promises of life (Deuteronomy 30:6): 'Moreover the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may live.'

If we are not genuinely earnest in religion and our wills and inclinations are not strongly engaged, we are nothing. The things of religion are so great that there can be no fitting response in the exercises of our hearts to their nature and importance unless those exercises are lively and powerful. In nothing is vigor of the inclination so necessary as in religion, and in nothing is lukewarmness so offensive. True religion is always a powerful thing, and its power shows itself first in the inward exercises of the heart, where its principal and original seat is. This is why true religion is called the power of godliness — in contrast to the external appearances of it, which are merely the form (2 Timothy 3:5): 'holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power.' The Spirit of God in those who have genuine and solid religion is a Spirit of powerful holy affection, and therefore God is said to have given them 'a spirit of power, and of love, and of a sound mind' (2 Timothy 1:7). Those who receive the Spirit of God in His sanctifying and saving influences are said to be baptized with the Holy Spirit and with fire — because of the power and intensity of the exercises that the Spirit of God stirs up in their hearts, so that their hearts, when grace is active, may be said to burn within them, as was said of the disciples in Luke 24:32.

The work of religion is repeatedly compared in Scripture to activities in which people exert their hearts and strength to the fullest: running, wrestling or straining for a great prize or crown, fighting strong enemies who seek to take one's life, and waging war as those who take a city or kingdom by force.

Though true grace comes in various degrees, and there are some who are only babes in Christ — in whom the exercise of the inclination and will toward divine and heavenly things is comparatively weak — yet everyone who has the power of godliness in his heart has his inclinations and heart exercised toward God and divine things with such strength and intensity that these holy exercises prevail over all carnal or natural affections and are effective in overcoming them. For every true disciple of Christ loves Him more than father or mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, houses and lands — yes, even more than his own life. It follows from this that wherever true religion is found, there are vigorous exercises of the inclination and will toward divine objects. But as was shown above, the vigorous, lively, and strongly felt exercises of the will are nothing other than the affections of the soul.

Second, the Author of human nature has not only given affections to human beings but has made them the primary spring of human action. Just as affections not only necessarily belong to human nature but are a very great part of it, so — since by regeneration a person is renewed in the whole person and sanctified throughout — holy affections not only necessarily belong to true religion but are a very great part of it. And since true religion is practical in nature, and God has so constituted human nature that the affections are very much the driving force behind human action, this also shows that true religion must consist very much in the affections.

Human nature is such that people are largely inactive unless moved by some affection — love or hatred, desire, hope, fear, or some other. These affections are the driving forces that set people in motion in all the affairs of life and engage them in all their pursuits. They are what pushes people forward and carries them along in all their worldly endeavors, and especially what excites and energizes them in whatever they pursue earnestly and with vigor. We see that the world of humanity is extremely busy and active, and the affections of people are the engine of that motion. Remove all love and hatred, all hope and fear, all zeal and passionate desire, and the world would largely come to a standstill. There would be no such thing as human activity, no earnest pursuit of anything. Affection is what drives the greedy man in his pursuit of worldly profit; it is affection that propels the ambitious man in his chase of worldly glory; and it is affection that moves the pleasure-seeker in his pursuit of physical delights. The world has continued from age to age in a constant motion and restless activity in pursuit of these things — but remove all affection, and the spring of that motion would be gone, and the motion itself would stop. And just as worldly affections are very much the engine of human action in worldly matters, so in religious matters, religious affections are very much the engine of action. The person who has only doctrinal knowledge and intellectual understanding, without affection, is never genuinely engaged in the business of religion.

Third, the fact is plainly evident that the things of religion take hold of people's souls only to the extent that they affect them. Multitudes often hear the Word of God — hearing things that are infinitely great and important, that concern them most closely — and yet all that they hear seems entirely without effect, producing no change in their disposition or behavior. The reason is that they are not affected by what they hear. Many people regularly hear of the glorious perfections of God: His almighty power and boundless wisdom, His infinite majesty, His holiness that is too pure to look on evil and cannot tolerate iniquity, before whom even the heavens are not pure, and of God's infinite goodness and mercy. They hear of the great works of God's wisdom, power, and goodness, in which these perfections appear so wonderfully. They hear specifically of the unspeakable love of God and Christ, of the great things Christ has done and suffered, of the great realities of the world to come — of eternal misery in bearing the fierce wrath of almighty God, and of endless blessedness and glory in God's presence and the enjoyment of His love. They also hear God's plain commands and His gracious counsel and warnings and the warm invitations of the Gospel. Yet they hear all these things and remain as they were before, with no noticeable change either in heart or practice — because they are not affected by what they hear, and they never will be changed until they are affected. I am bold to assert that no significant change has ever been wrought in the mind or conduct of any person by anything of a religious nature — anything read, heard, or seen — without the affections being moved. No unregenerate person has ever been earnestly seeking his salvation, crying out for wisdom, lifting up his voice for understanding, and wrestling with God in prayer for mercy, without being affected. No one has ever been humbled and brought to the foot of God by any sense of his own unworthiness and deserving of God's displeasure, nor has anyone ever been moved to flee to Christ for refuge, while the heart remained unaffected. Nor has any believer ever been awakened out of a cold and lifeless spiritual condition, or recovered from a declining state in religion and brought back from a grievous departure from God, without the heart being affected. In a word, nothing significant has ever been accomplished in the heart or life of any person by the things of religion without the heart being deeply affected by them.

Fourth, throughout the holy Scriptures, religion is placed very much in the affections — such as fear, hope, love, hatred, desire, joy, sorrow, gratitude, compassion, and zeal.

Scripture places much of religion in godly fear — so much so that it is frequently used as the defining characteristic of those who are truly religious. They tremble at God's Word, they fear before Him, their flesh trembles in fear of Him, they are afraid of His judgments, His excellence makes them afraid, and His dread falls upon them. The common title given to the saints in Scripture is 'those who fear God' or 'those who fear the Lord.' Because the fear of God is such a large part of true godliness, true godliness in general is very commonly called simply 'the fear of God' — as everyone who knows the Bible at all well knows.

Hope in God and in the promises of His Word is also spoken of in Scripture as a very significant part of true religion. It is mentioned as one of the three great things of which religion consists (1 Corinthians 13:13). Hope in the Lord is frequently mentioned as a characteristic of the saints. Psalm 146:5: 'How blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God.' Jeremiah 17:7: 'Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose trust is the Lord.' Psalm 31:24: 'Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who hope in the Lord.' And there are many other similar passages. Religious fear and hope are also joined together more than once as jointly defining the character of true believers. Psalm 33:18: 'Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope for His lovingkindness.' Psalm 147:11: 'The Lord favors those who fear Him, those who wait for His lovingkindness.' Hope is so great a part of true religion that the apostle says we are saved by hope (Romans 8:24). And hope is described as the helmet of the Christian soldier (1 Thessalonians 5:8): 'and as a helmet, the hope of salvation.' It is also the sure and steadfast anchor of the soul that keeps it from being driven off course by the storms of the evil world (Hebrews 6:19): 'This hope we have as an anchor of the soul' — a benefit that true believers receive through faith.

Scripture places religion very much in the affection of love — love for God, love for the Lord Jesus Christ, love for God's people, and love for humanity in general. The texts that show this, in both the Old Testament and the New, are countless. More on this later.

The opposite affection — hatred — when directed toward sin, is also spoken of in Scripture as a significant part of true religion. It is presented as a mark by which true religion can be known and distinguished (Proverbs 8:13): 'The fear of the Lord is to hate evil.' Accordingly, the saints are called to demonstrate their sincerity by this (Psalm 97:10): 'Hate evil, you who love the Lord.' The psalmist mentions it as evidence of his own sincerity (Psalm 101:2-3): 'I will walk within my house in the integrity of my heart. I will set no worthless thing before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away.' Psalm 119:104: 'I hate every false way.' (See also verse 128.) Again, Psalm 139:21: 'Do I not hate those who hate You, O Lord?'

Holy desire — expressed in longings, hungerings, and thirsting after God and holiness — is also frequently mentioned in Scripture as an important part of true religion. Isaiah 26:8: 'The desire of our souls is for Your name and the remembrance of You.' Psalm 27:4: 'One thing I have asked from the Lord, that I shall seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord and to meditate in His temple.' Psalm 42:1-2: 'As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; when shall I come and appear before God?' Psalm 63:1-2: 'My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. Thus I have seen You in the sanctuary, to see Your power and Your glory.' Psalm 84:1-2: 'How lovely are Your dwelling places, O Lord of hosts! My soul longed and even yearned for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.' Psalm 119:20: 'My soul is crushed with longing after Your ordinances at all times.' See also Psalm 73:25; 143:6; 130:6; Song of Solomon 3:1-2 and 6:8. Such holy desire and thirsting of the soul is listed among the great things that mark a person as truly blessed, at the opening of Christ's Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:6): 'Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.' And this holy thirst is spoken of as an important condition for receiving the blessings of eternal life (Revelation 21:6): 'I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.'

Scripture speaks of holy joy as a great part of true religion. It is presented as such in the passage we are considering. As an important part of religion, it is frequently commanded and urged with great earnestness. Psalm 37:4: 'Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart.' Psalm 97:12: 'Be glad in the Lord, you righteous ones.' Psalm 33:1: 'Sing for joy in the Lord, O you righteous ones.' Matthew 5:12: 'Rejoice and be glad.' Philippians 3:1: 'Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord.' Philippians 4:4: 'Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.' 1 Thessalonians 5:16: 'Rejoice always.' Psalm 149:2: 'Let Israel be glad in his Maker; let the sons of Zion rejoice in their King.' Joy is listed among the chief fruits of the Spirit of grace (Galatians 5:22): 'The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy...' The psalmist mentions his holy joy as evidence of his sincerity (Psalm 119:14): 'I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, as much as in all riches.'

Religious sorrow, mourning, and brokenness of heart are also frequently spoken of as a great part of true religion. These qualities are often listed as distinguishing marks of true believers and a major part of their character. Matthew 5:4: 'Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.' Psalm 34:18: 'The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.' Isaiah 61:1-2: 'The Lord has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to comfort all who mourn.' This godly sorrow and brokenness of heart is spoken of not only as a distinguishing mark of the saints but as something that is particularly acceptable and pleasing to God. Psalm 51:17: 'The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.' Isaiah 57:15: 'Thus says the high and exalted One who lives forever, whose name is Holy: I dwell on a high and holy place, and also with the contrite and lowly of spirit in order to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite.' Isaiah 66:2: 'To this one I will look, to him who is humble and contrite of spirit.'

Another affection frequently mentioned as a significant expression of true religion is gratitude — especially as expressed in thankfulness and praise to God. This is spoken of so extensively in the Psalms and throughout Scripture that citing individual texts is unnecessary.

Scripture also frequently speaks of mercy as a very great and essential part of true religion — so much so that good people in Scripture are identified by this quality, and 'a merciful person' and 'a good person' are essentially equivalent terms. Isaiah 57:1: 'The righteous man perishes, and no man takes it to heart; and devout men are taken away.' Scripture speaks of this quality as one that especially marks a person out. Psalm 37:21: 'The righteous is gracious and gives,' and verse 26: 'All day long he is gracious and lends.' Psalm 112:4: 'He is gracious and compassionate and righteous.' Colossians 3:12: 'Put on, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, a heart of compassion...' Mercy is one of the great qualities that mark those who are truly blessed, as our Savior describes them (Matthew 5:7): 'Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.' Christ speaks of mercy as one of the weightier matters of the law (Matthew 23:23): 'Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness.' To the same effect is Micah 6:8: 'He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?' And also Hosea 6:6: 'For I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice.' This appears to have been a text our Savior was especially fond of, given the way He cited it repeatedly in Matthew 9:13 and 12:7.

Zeal is also spoken of as a very essential part of the religion of true believers. It is mentioned as a great goal Christ had in view in giving Himself for our redemption (Titus 2:14): 'who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.' And the absence of zeal is identified as the great failing of the lukewarm Laodiceans in Revelation 3:15-16, 19.

I have cited only a few texts from the countless passages throughout Scripture that locate religion very much in the affections. But what has been shown should be sufficient to demonstrate that those who would deny that much of true religion lies in the affections — and who maintain the contrary — must set aside what we have always recognized as our Bible and find some other standard by which to judge the nature of religion.

Fifth, Scripture represents true religion as summed up in love — the chief of all affections and the fountain from which all other affections flow.

This is how our blessed Savior presents the matter in answer to the lawyer who asked which commandment was the greatest. Matthew 22:37-40: 'Jesus said to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' These words indicate that the two great commandments together contain all the duty and religion taught in the Law and the Prophets. The apostle Paul makes the same point repeatedly, as in Romans 13:8: 'He who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.' And in 1 Timothy 1:5: 'But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart...' The same apostle speaks of love as the greatest thing in religion — its very life, essence, and soul — without which the greatest knowledge and gifts, the most impressive religious profession, and everything else belonging to religion is empty and worthless. He presents love as the fountain from which everything good flows, in 1 Corinthians 13 throughout. The word translated 'charity' there is in the original the Greek word agape, which in English is simply love.

Now, while it is true that the love spoken of here includes the entire sincere disposition of the soul toward God and others, it is evident from what was observed above that when this disposition or inclination of the soul is in vigorous and strongly felt exercise, it becomes affection — it is nothing other than affectionate love. And surely it is this vigorous and fervent love that Christ speaks of as the sum of all religion, when He speaks of loving God with all our hearts, all our souls, and all our minds, and our neighbor as ourselves — as the sum of everything taught and commanded in the Law and the Prophets.

It should not be supposed, when this affection of love is spoken of here and in other scriptures as the sum of all religion, that this means only the outward act and not the inner habit, or that the exercise of the understanding is excluded — for all reasonable affection implies understanding. But it is undoubtedly true, and plain from these scriptures, that the essence of all true religion lies in holy love. And in this divine affection — together with a habitual disposition toward it, the understanding that serves as its foundation, and the fruits that flow from it — consists the whole of religion.

From this it clearly and certainly follows that a great part of true religion consists in the affections. For love is not only one of the affections — it is the first and chief of all the affections, and the fountain from which all the others flow. From love arises hatred of the things that oppose what we love or that hinder us from what we delight in. And from the various exercises of love and hatred — depending on the nature and circumstances of their objects, whether present or absent, certain or uncertain, likely or unlikely — arise all the other affections: desire, fear, joy, gratitude, and so on. From a vigorous, affectionate, and fervent love for God flow all the other religious affections — a fear of sin, joy in God when He is near and sensibly present, grief when He seems absent, joyful hope when a future enjoyment of God is anticipated, and fervent zeal for God's glory. In the same way, from a fervent love for others will arise all other virtuous affections toward them.

Sixth, the religion of the most outstanding believers we read of in Scripture consisted very much in holy affections.

I will take particular notice of three eminent believers who have expressed the frame and disposition of their own hearts — and so described their own religion and their manner of relating to God — in their writings that are preserved for us as part of the biblical canon.

The first example I will note is David — the man after God's own heart — who has given us a vivid portrait of his religion in the book of Psalms. The holy songs he has left us there are nothing other than the expressions and outpourings of devout and holy affections: a humble and fervent love for God, wonder at His glorious perfections and wonderful works, earnest desires and thirsting and longing of soul after God, delight and joy in God, a sweet and tender gratitude to God for His great goodness, a holy exultation and triumph of soul in God's favor and sufficiency and faithfulness, his love for and delight in God's people — the excellent of the earth — his great delight in God's Word and worship, his grief for his own sin and the sins of others, and his fervent zeal for God and against the enemies of God and His church. These expressions of holy affection that fill every page of David's Psalms are all the more relevant to our current subject because those Psalms are not only the expressions of the religion of so outstanding a believer — one whom God Himself commends as so pleasing to His heart — but were also written under the direction of the Holy Spirit for the use of God's church in its public worship, not only in that age but in all ages to come, as expressions fitted to capture the religion of all believers in every era, as well as the religion of the psalmist himself. It is also worth noting that David in the Psalms speaks not as a private individual, but as the psalmist of Israel — as the subordinate leader of God's church and guide in its worship and praise. In many of the Psalms he speaks in the name of Christ, voicing these outpourings of holy affection on Christ's behalf, and in many others he speaks in the name of the church.

Another example is the apostle Paul, who was in many respects the foremost of all the ministers of the New Testament — above all others a chosen vessel to bear Christ's name before the Gentiles, the chief instrument for spreading and establishing the Christian church in the world, and for clearly revealing the glorious mysteries of the Gospel for the instruction of the church throughout all ages. Some have not unreasonably considered him the most outstanding servant of God who ever lived, destined to receive the highest rewards in his Master's heavenly kingdom. By what Scripture says of him, he clearly appears to have been a person full of affection. And it is very evident that the religion expressed in his letters consists very much in holy affections. All his writings show that he was, throughout his life, wholly driven and consumed by a most ardent love for his glorious Lord — counting everything else as loss compared to the surpassing worth of knowing Him, and regarding it all as rubbish that he might gain Christ. He describes himself as overpowered by this holy affection, and virtually compelled by it to press forward in his service through all difficulties and sufferings (2 Corinthians 5:14). His letters overflow with affection toward the people of Christ. He speaks of his deep love for them (2 Corinthians 12:15; Philippians 4:1-2). Of his abundant love (2 Corinthians 2:4). And of his tender, motherly love for them, like a nursing mother with her children (1 Thessalonians 2:7-8): 'Having so fond an affection for you, we were well-pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives.' He also speaks of his deep affection for them (Philippians 1:8; Philemon 12 and 20). He speaks of his earnest concern for others (2 Corinthians 8:16). And of his tender compassion toward them (Philippians 2:1). And of his concern for others rising to anguish of heart (2 Corinthians 2:4): 'For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote to you with many tears; not so that you would be made sorrowful, but that you might know the love which I have especially for you.' He speaks of the great conflict of his soul for them (Colossians 2:1). He speaks of great and continual grief in his heart out of love for his fellow Jews (Romans 9:2). He speaks of his heart being opened wide to fellow Christians (2 Corinthians 6:11): 'Our mouth has spoken freely to you, O Corinthians, our heart is opened wide.' He frequently expresses affectionate and longing desire (1 Thessalonians 2:8; Romans 1:11; Philippians 1:8; 4:1; 2 Timothy 1:4). The same apostle very often expresses the affection of joy in his letters (2 Corinthians 1:12; 7:7, 9, 16; Philippians 1:4; 2:1-2; 3:3; Colossians 1:24; 1 Thessalonians 3:9). He speaks of rejoicing with great joy (Philippians 4:10; Philemon 7). Of his joying and rejoicing (Philippians 2:17). And of his rejoicing exceedingly (2 Corinthians 7:13). And of being filled with comfort and overflowing with joy. He speaks of himself as always rejoicing (2 Corinthians 6:10). He speaks of the triumphs of his soul (2 Corinthians 2:14). And of glorying in tribulations (2 Thessalonians 1:4; Romans 5:3). He also expresses the affection of hope — in Philippians 1:20 he speaks of his earnest expectation and hope. He likewise expresses the affection of zeal (2 Corinthians 11:2-3). And it is plain from his entire life as recorded in Acts, and from all his letters and the accounts he gives of himself there, that the affection of zeal — with the cause of his Master and the welfare and advance of His church as its object — was mighty in him, continually firing his heart and strongly driving him to those great and relentless labors he undertook: instructing, exhorting, warning, and reproving others, laboring for them like a woman in childbirth; contending against powerful and numerous enemies who constantly opposed him, wrestling against rulers and authorities, not fighting as one who beats the air, running the race set before him, continually pressing forward through every kind of difficulty and suffering — so much so that others thought he was completely out of his mind. How full of affection he was is further evident from the fact that he was so frequently moved to tears. In 2 Corinthians 2:4 he speaks of his many tears, and in Acts 20:19. And of the tears he shed continuously, night and day, in Acts 20:31.

If anyone can read these accounts of this great apostle — given both by Scripture and by himself — and still not see that his religion consisted very much in affection, that person must have a remarkable ability to close his eyes against the light shining most directly in his face.

The third example I will mention is the apostle John — that beloved disciple who was closer to his Master than any of the twelve, and admitted to greater privileges than any of them. He was one of the three present on the mountain at Christ's transfiguration, at the raising of Jairus's daughter, and with Him during His agony in the garden. He was one of the three whom the apostle Paul names as the three main pillars of the Christian church. Above all others, he was the one privileged to lean on his Master's breast at the Last Supper, and was chosen by Christ as the disciple to whom He would reveal His wonderful purposes for His church until the end of time — as recorded in the book of Revelation. He was also preserved far longer than all the other apostles to set things in order in the Christian church after their deaths, and to close the canon of the New Testament and of all Scripture.

It is evident from all his writings — as scholars of theology have generally observed — that he was a person remarkably full of affection. His words to those he wrote to are inexpressibly tender and moving, breathing nothing but the most fervent love, as though he were made entirely of sweet and holy affection. This cannot be adequately demonstrated without quoting his writings in full.

Seventh, the One whom God sent into the world to be its Light, the Head of the whole church, and the perfect example of true religion and virtue for all to imitate — the Shepherd whom the whole flock should follow wherever He goes, even the Lord Jesus Christ — was a person remarkably tender and affectionate in heart. His virtue was expressed very much in the exercise of holy affections. He was the greatest example of ardent, vigorous, and strong love — both toward God and toward human beings — that has ever existed. It was these affections that prevailed in that mighty struggle in His agony, when He prayed more earnestly and offered up strong cries and tears, and wrestled in tears and blood. Such was the power of His holy love in that great struggle that it proved stronger than death and overcame the intense natural affections of fear and grief — when He was deeply distressed and His soul was overwhelmed with sorrow, even to the point of death. He appeared full of affection throughout the course of His life as well. We read of His great zeal, fulfilling what was written in Psalm 69: 'Zeal for Your house has consumed Me' (John 2:17). We read of His grief over the sins of people (Mark 3:5): 'He looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart.' And of His breaking out in tears and cries of anguish at the sight of human sin and misery, and of the city of Jerusalem filled with such people (Luke 19:41-42): 'When He approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes.' And Luke 13:34: 'O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, just as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not have it!' We read of Christ's earnest desire (Luke 22:15): 'I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.' We often read of the affection of compassion in Christ (Matthew 15:32 and 18:34; Luke 7:13), and of His being moved with compassion (Matthew 9:36 and 14:14; Mark 6:34). How tender His heart was is seen in His response to Mary and Martha as they mourned for their brother and came to Him with their complaints and tears. Their tears quickly drew tears from His own eyes. He was moved by their grief and wept with them — even though He knew their sorrow would so soon be turned to joy when their brother was raised from the dead (see John 11). And how indescribably affectionate was that final conversation Jesus had with His eleven disciples on the evening before His crucifixion — when He told them He was going away, foretold the great difficulties and sufferings they would face in the world after He was gone, comforted and instructed them as His dear children, and bequeathed to them His Holy Spirit, and with it His peace, comfort, and joy, as it were in His last will and testament — in John 13, 14, 15, and 16 — concluding it all with that affectionate intercessory prayer for them and His whole church in chapter 17. Of all the conversations ever spoken or recorded by any human being, this seems to be the most filled with affection — and the most deeply moving.

Eighth, the religion of heaven consists very much in affection.

There is undoubtedly true religion in heaven, and true religion in its greatest purity and perfection. But according to Scripture's depiction of heaven, the religion there consists chiefly in holy and mighty love and joy, and in expressing those affections in the most fervent and exalted praise. So the religion of the saints in heaven consists in the same things as the religion of the saints on earth described in our text — namely love, and joy inexpressible and full of glory. It would be foolish to argue that because the saints in heaven are not joined to flesh and blood, and have no bodily fluids to be stirred by the great emotions of their souls, their surpassing love and joy are therefore not affections. We are not speaking of the affections of the body but of the affections of the soul, the chief of which are love and joy. When these are present in the soul — whether in the body or out of it — the soul is affected and moved. And when they are present in the soul at the intensity they are in the saints in heaven, the soul is mightily affected and moved — which is the same thing as saying it has great affections. It is true that we do not know from experience what love and joy are like in a soul apart from a body, or in a glorified body. But the saints on earth do know what divine love and joy in the soul are, and they know what love and joy of the same kind as the love and joy in heaven are like. The love and joy of believers on earth are the beginning and dawning of the light, life, and blessedness of heaven. They are like the love and joy there — or rather, they are the same in nature, though not the same in degree and circumstances. This is evident from many scriptures: Proverbs 4:18; John 4:14; John 6:40, 47, 50, 51, 54, 58; 1 John 3:15; 1 Corinthians 13:8-12. It is unreasonable to suppose that the love and joy of the saints in heaven differ from the holy love and joy of believers on earth not merely in degree and circumstances but so completely in nature that they are not affections at all — simply because the saints in heaven have no blood and vital spirits to be set in motion by them. That motion of the blood and vital spirits is not of the essence of these affections in people on earth but only their effect — and even then, by a kind of feedback effect, it may produce some circumstantial difference in the mind's sensation. There is a sensation of the mind that loves and rejoices which is prior to any effects on the body's fluids, and this sensation of the mind therefore does not depend on those physical motions and can exist in the soul without the body. Wherever love and joy are being exercised, this sensation of the mind is present — whether in the body or out of it. And this inward sensation, or kind of spiritual sense or feeling and movement of the soul, is what is called affection. The soul, when it thus feels (if I may put it that way) and is thus moved, is said to be affected — especially when this inward sensation and movement are at a very high degree, as they are in the saints in heaven. If we can learn anything about heaven from Scripture, the love and joy the saints have there are exceedingly great and vigorous — impressing the heart with the strongest and most vivid sense of inexpressible sweetness, powerfully moving, animating, and engaging them, making them like a flame of fire. If such love and joy are not affections, then the word affection has no use in the language. Would anyone say that the saints in heaven, as they behold the face of their Father, the glory of their Redeemer, and contemplate His wonderful works — and especially His laying down His life for them — have their hearts entirely unmoved and unaffected by all they behold and consider?

Since the religion of heaven consists chiefly in holy love and joy, it consists very much in affection. And therefore, undoubtedly, true religion consists very much in affection. The way to learn the true nature of anything is to go where that thing is found in its purity and perfection. If we want to know the nature of true gold, we must view it not in the ore but when it has been refined. If we want to learn what true religion is, we must go where there is true religion and nothing but true religion — in its highest perfection, without any defect or mixture. All who are truly religious are not of this world; they are strangers here and belong to heaven. They are born from above; heaven is their native country, and the nature they receive through this heavenly birth is a heavenly nature — they receive an anointing from above. The principle of true religion in them is a communication of the religion of heaven. Their grace is the dawn of glory, and God fits them for that world by conforming them to it.

Ninth, this is further shown by the nature and design of the practices and duties that God has appointed as the means and expressions of true religion.

Take prayer as an example. It is evident that we are not appointed in this duty to declare God's perfections — His majesty, holiness, goodness, and all-sufficiency — or our own smallness, emptiness, dependence, and unworthiness, and our needs and desires, in order to inform God of these things or to move His heart to be willing to show us mercy. Rather, the purpose is to affect our own hearts with the things we express, and so to prepare us to receive the blessings we ask for. Similarly, the postures and outward behaviors in the worship of God that by custom signify humility and reverence are of no use beyond what tendency they have to affect our own hearts or the hearts of others.

The duty of singing praises to God seems to be appointed entirely to stir up and express religious affections. There is no other reason why we should express ourselves to God in verse rather than prose, and do it with music, except that our nature is such that these things have a tendency to move our affections.

The same is evident from the nature and design of the sacraments that God has appointed. God, taking into account our nature, has not only appointed that we should be told about the great things of the Gospel and of Christ's redemption, and instructed in them through His Word, but also that these things should be, in a sense, placed before our eyes in tangible representations through the sacraments — in order to affect us with them more powerfully.

One of the great and primary purposes for which God has ordained that His Word in the holy Scriptures should be opened, applied, and pressed home upon people through preaching, is clearly the impressing of divine things upon the hearts and affections of people. This is why having good Bible commentaries, expositions, and theological books — though they may serve just as well as preaching to give people a sound doctrinal and intellectual understanding of God's work — is not enough on its own. They do not have an equal tendency to impress those truths upon people's hearts and affections. God has appointed the specific, personal application of His Word to people in preaching as a fitting means to affect sinners with the importance of the things of religion, their own misery, their need for rescue, and the glory and sufficiency of the rescue provided. It is also appointed to stir up the minds of believers and quicken their affections by regularly bringing the great things of religion before their attention and setting them out in their proper light — even to those who already know them and have been fully instructed in them (2 Peter 1:12-13). In particular, preaching is appointed to promote those two affections spoken of in our text — love and joy: 'And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers... for the building up of the body of Christ... in love' (Ephesians 4:11-12, 16). The apostle, in instructing and guiding Timothy concerning the ministry, informs him that the great goal of the Word a minister is to preach is love (1 Timothy 1:3-5). And another affection that God has appointed preaching to promote in believers is joy — which is why ministers are called 'helpers of your joy' (2 Corinthians 1:24).

Tenth, the fact that true religion — holiness of heart — consists very much in the affections of the heart is also shown by the fact that Scripture locates the sin of the heart very much in hardness of heart. Scripture does this throughout. It was hardness of heart that stirred grief and displeasure in Christ toward the Jews (Mark 3:5): 'He looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart.' It is from having such a heart that people store up wrath for themselves. Romans 2:5: 'Because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God.' The reason given why the house of Israel would not obey God was that they were hard-hearted (Ezekiel 3:7): 'But the house of Israel will not be willing to listen to you, since they are not willing to listen to Me. Surely the whole house of Israel is stubborn and obstinate.' The wickedness of that rebellious generation in the wilderness is attributed to the hardness of their hearts (Psalm 95:7-10): 'Today, if you would hear His voice, do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as in the day of Massah in the wilderness, when your fathers tested Me, they tried Me, though they had seen My work. For forty years I loathed that generation, and said they are a people who err in their heart...' This is named as what prevented Zedekiah from turning to the Lord (2 Chronicles 36:13): 'He stiffened his neck and hardened his heart from returning to the Lord God of Israel.' This principle is spoken of as the reason people have no fear of God and stray from His ways. Isaiah 63:17: 'Why, O Lord, do You cause us to stray from Your ways and harden our heart from fearing You?' People's rejecting Christ and opposing Christianity is also traced to this principle (Acts 19:9): 'But when some were becoming hardened and disobedient, speaking evil of the Way before the people...' God's abandoning people to the power of sin and corruption in their hearts is often expressed as God hardening their hearts. Romans 9:18: 'So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.' John 12:40: 'He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart.' The apostle seems to treat an evil heart that departs from the living God and a hard heart as the same thing. Hebrews 3:8: 'Do not harden your hearts, as when they provoked Me...' Verses 12-13: 'Take care, brothers, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called Today, so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.' And that great work of God in conversion — which consists in delivering a person from the power of sin and mortifying corruption — is described more than once as God's taking away the heart of stone and giving a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 11:19 and 36:26).

A hard heart plainly means an unaffected heart — a heart not easily moved by virtuous affections, like stone: insensible, unresponsive, unmoved, and resistant to impression. This is why the hard heart is called a stony heart and is contrasted with a heart of flesh that has feeling, is sensitive, and is moved. Scripture speaks of both a hard heart and a tender heart — and these are clearly meant as opposites. But what is a tender heart other than a heart that is easily impressed by what ought to affect it? God commends Josiah because his heart was tender, and the things mentioned as evidence of that tenderness make clear that it means his heart was easily moved by religious and godly affection (2 Kings 22:19): 'Because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before the Lord when you heard what I spoke against this place and against its inhabitants that they should become a desolation and a curse, and you have torn your clothes and wept before Me, I truly have heard you, declares the Lord.' This is also one of the ways in which we must become like little children in order to enter the kingdom of God — we must have hearts that are tender and easily affected and moved in spiritual and divine matters, just as little children are easily moved in other things.

In some scriptural passages the very words themselves make clear that a hard heart means a heart empty of affection. To indicate that the ostrich has no natural affection for her young, it is said (Job 39:16): 'She treats her young harshly, as if they were not hers.' Similarly, a person whose heart is unaffected in times of danger is described as hardening his heart (Proverbs 28:14): 'How blessed is the man who fears always, but he who hardens his heart will fall into calamity.'

Since it is so clear that a hard heart in Scripture means a heart lacking godly affections, and since Scripture so frequently locates the sin and corruption of the heart in hardness of heart, it follows plainly that grace and holiness of heart must consist, in great part, in the opposite — in having godly affections and being open and responsive to them. Theologians generally agree that sin is fundamentally and at its root negative or privative — that is, sin has its foundation in the absence or lack of holiness. Therefore, if sin very much consists in hardness of heart — and thus in the absence of godly affections — holiness must very much consist in those godly affections.

I am far from suggesting that all affections indicate a tender heart. Hatred, anger, pride, and other selfish and self-exalting affections may greatly prevail in the hardest heart. But it is evident that hardness of heart and tenderness of heart are expressions that relate to the affections of the heart — they describe a heart that is either open and responsive to, or closed and resistant to, certain affections — about which I will have occasion to say more later.

Taken altogether, I think it is clearly and abundantly evident that true religion lies very much in the affections. I do not mean by this that religion in the hearts of true believers is always exactly proportional to the degree of affection or present emotional intensity. True believers undoubtedly have much affection that is not spiritual — their religious affections are often mixed, with much coming from nature rather than grace. And although the affections do not have their seat in the body, the physical constitution of a person may greatly contribute to the present emotional intensity of the mind. The degree of true religion is better judged by the firmness and strength of the settled habit of holy affection — the degree to which it is a constant and established disposition — than by the intensity of any particular moment. And the strength of that habit is not always proportional to its outward expressions or inward effects in terms of mental agitation, vehemence, or sudden changes in the train of thought. Yet it is evident that religion consists so much in affection that without holy affection there is no true religion. No light in the understanding is genuinely good unless it produces holy affection in the heart. No principle or habit in the heart is genuinely good unless it exercises itself in holy affection. And no outward fruit is genuinely good unless it proceeds from such exercise.

Having considered the evidence for the proposition I laid down, I proceed now to some conclusions.

First, we can see from this how great an error it is for people to dismiss all religious affections as having nothing solid or substantial in them.

There seems to be too strong a tendency toward this kind of dismissal prevailing in this land at present. During the recent extraordinary season of revival, many who appeared to have strong religious affections did not display a right spirit and fell into many errors in the midst of their affection and the heat of their zeal. The intense affections of many also seemed to fade so quickly, and some who seemed to be powerfully lifted up and consumed with joy and zeal for a time appear to have returned like a dog to its vomit. As a result, religious affections in general have lost credibility with many people, as though true religion did not consist in them at all. This is how naturally and easily we run from one extreme to the other. Not long ago we were at the opposite extreme — there was a widespread tendency to regard all high religious affections as outstanding exercises of true grace, without much inquiry into the nature and source of those affections or the manner in which they arose. If a person appeared to be genuinely moved and elevated — full of religious talk, expressing himself with great warmth and earnestness, and described as 'filled' or 'very full,' as the common phrases went — it was too often the habit to conclude, without further examination, that such a person was filled with the Spirit of God and had outstanding experience of His gracious influences. That was the extreme that was prevalent three or four years ago. But more recently, instead of esteeming and admiring all religious affections without distinction, the far more common tendency is to reject and discard all of them without distinction. Here we see the craftiness of Satan. When he saw that affections were highly valued, knowing that most people in the land were inexperienced in such things and lacked the spiritual experience of strong religious affections that would enable them to judge and distinguish between true and false, he knew he could play his game best by sowing weeds among the wheat — mixing false affections with the genuine works of God's Spirit. He knew this was a likely way to deceive and eternally ruin many souls, to deeply wound religion in true believers and entangle them in a terrible wilderness, and eventually to bring all religion into disrepute. But now that the damaging consequences of these false affections have appeared — and it has become very obvious that some of those emotional displays that made such a striking impression and were so greatly admired by many were in reality nothing — the devil sees it is in his interest to work a different way. He now strives with all his might to spread and establish the conviction that all affections and stirrings of the mind in religious matters are worthless, to be avoided and carefully guarded against as things that lead to harm. He knows this is the way to reduce all religion to a mere lifeless formality, to effectively shut out the power of godliness and everything that is genuinely spiritual, and to drive true Christianity entirely away. For although true religion does indeed require something more than affection alone, true religion consists so much in the affections that there can be no true religion without them. The person who has no religious affection is in a state of spiritual death, entirely without the powerful, life-giving, saving work of the Spirit of God in his heart. Just as there is no true religion where there is nothing but affection, there is no true religion where there is no religious affection. On one hand, understanding is necessary alongside an affected and fervent heart — where there is heat without light, there can be nothing divine or heavenly in that heart. On the other hand, where there is a kind of light without warmth — a head full of ideas and theories with a cold and unaffected heart — there can be nothing divine in that light. Such knowledge is not true spiritual knowledge of divine things. If the great things of religion are genuinely understood, they will affect the heart. The reason people are not affected by such infinitely great, important, glorious, and wonderful things as they regularly hear and read of in God's Word is, without question, that they are spiritually blind. If they were not blind, it would be impossible — utterly contrary to human nature — for their hearts not to be powerfully impressed and deeply moved by such things.

This habit of dismissing all religious affections is a sure way to harden people's hearts further, to encourage them in their spiritual dullness and insensitivity, to keep them in a state of spiritual death throughout their lives, and to bring them at last to eternal death. The widespread prejudice against religious affections presently in this land is plainly having terrible effects: hardening the hearts of sinners, dampening the graces of many believers, stunting the life and power of religion, undermining the effect of the means of grace, holding people down in dullness and apathy, and undoubtedly causing many to greatly offend God by holding low and contemptuous views of the extraordinary work He has recently done in this land.

For people to despise and speak against all religious affections is the way to shut religion entirely out of their own hearts and to accomplish the complete ruin of their souls.

Those who condemn high affections in others are certainly unlikely to have high affections themselves. And let it be noted: those who have little religious affection have certainly little religion. And those who condemn others for their religious affections and have none themselves have no religion.

There are false affections and there are true ones. A person's having much affection does not prove he has genuine religion, but a person's having no affection proves he has no genuine religion. The right approach is not to reject all affections and not to approve all, but to distinguish among affections — approving some and rejecting others, separating the wheat from the chaff, the gold from the dross, the precious from the worthless.

Second, if true religion lies very much in the affections, we may conclude from this that means are to be valued that tend powerfully to move the affections. Books that do this, a style of preaching and administering the ordinances that does this, and a manner of worshipping God in prayer and singing praises that does this — all of these are greatly to be desired, as having a strong tendency to affect deeply the hearts of those who use them.

This kind of approach would formerly have been highly valued and praised by people generally throughout the land, as the most excellent and profitable — as having the greatest tendency to advance the purposes of the means of grace. But the prevailing taste seems recently to have changed in a strange way. The kind of earnest, heartfelt praying and preaching that would formerly have been admired and approved — and admired for exactly this reason, that it tended to move the affections — now immediately provokes disgust in large numbers of people, and stirs no affections in them other than displeasure and contempt.

Perhaps formerly the general tendency of the people — at least common people — was to place too much value on emotionally moving delivery in public worship. But now a very large portion of the people seem to have swung far into the opposite extreme. There certainly can be means that have a strong tendency to stir the feelings of weak and uninformed persons, and yet have little tendency to genuinely benefit their souls. Though such means may tend to excite emotions, they may have little or no tendency to excite godly affections or any affections that lead toward grace. But undoubtedly, when the things of religion in the means used are handled according to their true nature and presented accurately — so as to convey correct understanding and right judgment of them — the more tendency those means have to move the affections, the better.

Third, if true religion lies very much in the affections, we can see from this how much cause we have to be ashamed and humbled before God that we are not more affected by the great things of religion. As the foregoing discussion makes clear, this lack of affection arises from our having so little true religion.

God gave human beings affections for the same purpose He gave all the other faculties and principles of the human soul — to serve as instruments in humanity's chief end and the great business for which God created us, namely religion. And yet how common it is for people to have their affections far more engaged and exercised by other things than by religion! In matters that concern worldly interest, outward pleasures, honor and reputation, and natural relationships, people have eager desires, intense appetites, warm and affectionate love, and fervent zeal. In these things their hearts are tender and sensitive — easily moved, deeply impressed, greatly concerned, strongly affected, and powerfully engaged. They are deeply grieved at worldly losses and greatly elated by worldly success and prosperity. But how insensible and unmoved most people are about the great things of another world! How dull their affections are! How heavy and hard their hearts in these matters! Their love is cold, their desires languid, their zeal low, their gratitude small. They can sit and hear of the infinite height and depth and length and breadth of God's love in Christ Jesus — of His giving His infinitely dear Son to be offered as a sacrifice for human sin, and of the unparalleled love of the innocent, holy, and tender Lamb of God shown in His dying agonies, His bloody sweat, His loud and bitter cries, and His bleeding heart — all of this for His enemies, to redeem them from deserved, eternal punishment and to bring them to unspeakable and everlasting joy and glory — and yet remain cold, heavy, unmoved, and indifferent! Where, if not here, are our affections called for? What demands them more than this? And what occasion, if not this, is fit for their lively and vigorous exercise? Can anything greater or more important be placed before us? Anything more wonderful and astonishing? Anything that more nearly concerns our own interest? Can we suppose that the wise Creator planted such principles in human nature as the affections to be useful to us — to be exercised on certain appropriate occasions — but to remain inactive on an occasion such as this? Can any Christian who believes the truth of these things hold such a view?

If our affections ought ever to be exercised at all, and if the Creator did not unwisely design human nature in making these principles part of it — when otherwise they would be vain and useless — then they ought to be exercised about the objects most worthy of them. But is there anything Christians can find in heaven or on earth as worthy to be the object of their wonder and love, their earnest and longing desires, their hope and rejoicing and fervent zeal, as the things set before us in the Gospel of Jesus Christ? In the Gospel, not only are the most affection-worthy things declared, but they are presented in the most moving manner possible. The glory and beauty of the blessed God — most worthy in itself to be the object of our wonder and love — is displayed there in the most moving manner that can be imagined, shining in full brilliance in the face of an incarnate, infinitely loving, gentle, compassionate, dying Redeemer. All the virtues of the Lamb of God — His humility, patience, gentleness, submission, obedience, love, and compassion — are set before us in the manner best calculated to move our affections. They all found their greatest test and highest expression, and thus their clearest demonstration, when He was in the most affecting of circumstances — under His last sufferings, those unutterable and unequaled sufferings He endured out of His tender love and pity for us. There too the hateful nature of our sins is shown in the most affecting way possible, as we see their dreadful effects in what our Redeemer — who undertook to answer for us — suffered on their account. And there we have the most affecting revelation of God's hatred of sin and His wrath and justice in punishing it — His justice in its strictness and inflexibility, and His wrath in its terribleness, in punishing our sins so severely in One who was infinitely dear to Him and infinitely loving toward us. God has arranged everything in the work of our redemption and in the glorious purposes revealed to us in the Gospel as though every detail were deliberately designed to reach our hearts at their most tender point and to move our affections as powerfully and deeply as possible. How much cause we have, therefore, to be humbled to the dust that we are not more affected!

Part 1.

In these words, the apostle describes the inner state of the Christians he was writing to, who were enduring persecution at the time. These persecutions are what he refers to in the two preceding verses, when he speaks of the trial of their faith and of their being in sorrow through various trials.

Such trials benefit true religion in three ways. First, they reveal its truth — they make it apparent that the faith is genuine. More than anything else, trials tend to distinguish between true religion and false, and to make that difference clearly visible. This is why they are called trials in the preceding verse and throughout Scripture — they test the faith and religion of those who profess it, just as gold is tested in fire to prove whether it is genuine. When the faith of true Christians is tested and proved genuine, it is found to result in praise, honor, and glory, as that preceding verse shows.

Second, these trials benefit true religion not only by revealing its truth but also by making its genuine beauty and excellence stand out. True virtue never appears more attractive than when it is most oppressed, and the divine excellence of authentic Christianity is never displayed to better advantage than under the greatest trials. It is then that true faith appears far more precious than gold, and for this reason is found to result in praise, honor, and glory.

Third, such trials benefit true religion by purifying and increasing it. They not only prove it to be true, but also refine it — stripping away the false elements that burden and hinder it, so that only what is genuine remains. They cause the beauty of true religion to appear to its best advantage, as noted above, and beyond that they actually increase that beauty by establishing and strengthening it, making it more lively and vigorous, and purifying it from the things that had obscured its brightness and glory. Just as gold tested in fire is purged of all impurities and dross and comes forth more solid and beautiful, so true faith tested in this way becomes more precious — and is thus also found to result in praise, honor, and glory. The apostle seems to have all three of these benefits of persecution in mind in the verse preceding the passage.

In this passage, the apostle describes how true religion was working in the Christians he wrote to during their persecutions — and through this operation, these benefits of persecution became visible in them. He is showing what kind of operation of true religion it was that, under persecution, proved their religion to be genuine, displayed its beauty and excellence in a striking way, and also showed it to be growing and being purified — so that it was on track to be found unto praise, honor, and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. There were two kinds of operation — two exercises of true religion — in them under their sufferings, through which these benefits appeared, and which the apostle notes in this passage.

First, love to Christ: 'Whom having not seen, you love.' The world was ready to wonder what strange principle drove these believers to expose themselves to such great suffering — forsaking visible things and renouncing everything dear and pleasant to the senses. To the people around them they seemed to be out of their minds, acting as though they hated themselves. From the world's perspective, there was nothing that could account for such suffering or sustain them through it. But although there was nothing visible — nothing that the world saw, or that the Christians themselves had ever seen with their own eyes — that drove and sustained them, they had a supernatural principle of love for something unseen. They loved Jesus Christ, for they saw Him spiritually in a way the world could not, and in a way they had never seen Him with their physical eyes.

Second, joy in Christ. Though their outward sufferings were very severe, their inward spiritual joy was greater than their sufferings, and that joy sustained them and enabled them to suffer with cheerfulness.

The apostle notes two things about this joy. First, the way it arises — the way that Christ, though unseen, is its foundation, namely through faith, which is the evidence of things not seen: 'in whom, though now you see Him not, yet believing, you rejoice.' Second, the nature of this joy: 'inexpressible and full of glory.' It was inexpressible in its kind — very different from worldly joys and physical pleasures, of a far purer, more elevated, and more heavenly nature, being something supernatural and truly divine, so exquisitely excellent that no words could describe it. It was also inexpressible in degree, as God pleased to give them this holy joy abundantly and in great measure in their season of persecution.

Their joy was full of glory. Although the joy was inexpressible and no words could fully describe it, something could be said — and no words more fittingly captured its excellence than 'full of glory,' or as the original has it, 'glorified joy.' In rejoicing with this joy, their minds were filled with a kind of glorious brightness, and their very natures were elevated and ennobled. It was a most worthy and noble rejoicing that did not corrupt or degrade the mind as many carnal joys do, but greatly beautified and dignified it. It was a foretaste of the joy of heaven that lifted their minds to a degree of heavenly blessedness. It filled their minds with the light of God's glory and caused them to shine with some measure of that glory reflected back.

From these words I draw the following proposition, or doctrine:

Doctrine: True religion consists, in great part, in holy affections.

Notice that when the apostle observes the operations and exercises of religion in the Christians he wrote to — when their religion appeared most genuinely true under the greatest trial, being tested like gold in fire — and when their religion not only proved true but was purified of all impurities and false mixtures, and when religion appeared in them most fully in its proper excellence and native beauty, found to result in praise, honor, and glory — it is the religious affections of love and joy that he singles out as then being in exercise in them. These are the specific exercises of religion he points to as proving their faith to be true and pure and in its proper glory.

Here I would do two things.

First, explain what is meant by the affections.

Second, note some things that make it evident that a great part of true religion lies in the affections.

First, what are the affections of the mind?

The affections are simply the more vigorous and strongly felt exercises of the inclination and will of the soul.

God has endowed the soul with two faculties. One is the capacity for perception and understanding — the faculty by which the soul discerns, views, and judges things, which is called the understanding. The other faculty is the one by which the soul does not merely perceive and view things, but is moved toward or away from them — drawn to them or pushed away from them. Rather than observing things as a detached, unaffected spectator, the soul through this faculty responds to things with liking or disliking, pleasure or displeasure, approval or rejection. This faculty is called by various names. Considered in itself, it is called the inclination. Considered in relation to the actions it determines and governs, it is called the will. And the mind, with regard to the exercises of this faculty, is often called the heart.

The exercises of this faculty fall into two kinds: those by which the soul moves toward the things it perceives — approving them, taking pleasure in them, and being drawn to them — and those by which the soul opposes the things it perceives — disapproving them, being displeased with them, pulling away from them, and rejecting them.

The exercises of the inclination and will vary greatly not only in their kinds but even more in their degrees. Some exercises of pleasure or displeasure, inclination or disinclination, carry the soul only a little beyond a state of perfect indifference. Above this there are higher degrees — stronger approval or dislike, stronger pleasure or aversion — and these can rise higher and higher until the soul acts vigorously and with strong feeling. At that point the actings of the soul are so intense that, through the laws governing the union of soul and body that the Creator has established, the motion of the blood and the body's vital spirits begins to be noticeably altered. This often produces some physical sensation, especially around the heart and the vital organs, which are the source of the body's fluids. It is for this reason that the mind — with regard to the exercises of this faculty — has been called the heart, apparently in all nations and throughout all ages. It should be noted that it is these more vigorous and strongly felt exercises of this faculty that are called the affections.

The will and the affections of the soul are not two separate faculties. The affections are not essentially distinct from the will, and they do not differ from the simple actings of the will and inclination of the soul — they differ only in the intensity and strength of the exercise.

It must be admitted that language is somewhat imprecise here, and the meaning of words in this area is somewhat loose and undefined, since language is governed by common usage rather than precise definition. In one sense, the affection of the soul differs not at all from the will and inclination — the will is never exercised at all except to the extent that it is affected; it is not moved out of a state of perfect indifference except as it is affected one way or another, and it acts voluntarily only to that extent. Yet there are many actings of the will and inclination that are not commonly called affections. In everything we do voluntarily, there is an exercise of the will and inclination — our inclination governs our actions — but not all the actings of the inclination and will in the ordinary actions of daily life are typically called affections. Yet what are commonly called affections are not essentially different from those ordinary actings — they differ only in degree and manner of exercise. In every act of the will, the soul either likes or dislikes, is inclined or disinclined toward what is in view. These are not essentially different from the affections of love and hatred. When the soul's liking or inclination toward something is strong, vigorous, and lively, it is the very same thing as the affection of love. And when the soul's disliking and disinclination is strong, it is the very same thing as hatred. In every act of the will toward something not yet present, the soul is inclined to some degree toward that thing — and when that inclination is considerable, it is the very same as the affection of desire. In every degree of the will's act of approving something present, there is a degree of pleasure — and when that pleasure is considerable, it is the very same as the affection of joy or delight. And when the will disapproves of something present, the soul is displeased to some degree — and when that displeasure is great, it is the very same as the affection of grief or sorrow.

Such is our nature, and such are the laws governing the union of soul and body, that there is never any lively and vigorous exercise of the will or inclination of the soul without some effect on the body — some change in the motion of its fluids, and especially of the vital spirits. Conversely, by those same laws of the union of soul and body, the condition of the body and the motion of its fluids can also promote the exercise of the affections. Yet the body is not the proper seat of the affections — only the mind is. The human body is no more capable of genuinely experiencing love or hatred, joy or sorrow, fear or hope, than the body of a tree is — or than the body itself is capable of thinking and understanding. Just as it is the soul alone that has ideas, so it is the soul alone that is pleased or displeased with its ideas. Just as it is the soul alone that thinks, so it is the soul alone that loves or hates, rejoices or grieves over what it thinks about. The physical motions of the vital spirits and bodily fluids do not properly belong to the nature of the affections, even though they always accompany them in our present state. They are only effects or accompaniments of the affections that are entirely distinct from the affections themselves and not essential to them — so that a disembodied spirit would be just as capable of love and hatred, joy or sorrow, hope or fear, or other affections as one united to a body.

Affections and passions are frequently used as synonyms, yet in common usage there is a distinction. Affection is the broader term, used for all vigorous and lively actings of the will or inclination, while passion refers more specifically to those that are more sudden, whose physical effects are more violent, and in which the mind is more overpowered and less in control of itself.

Just as all the exercises of the inclination and will involve either approving and liking or disapproving and rejecting, so the affections are of two kinds. They are those by which the soul moves toward what it perceives — cleaving to it or seeking it — and those by which the soul pulls away from it and opposes it.

The affections of the first kind include love, desire, hope, joy, gratitude, and satisfaction. The affections of the second kind include hatred, fear, anger, grief, and others like them, which need not be defined individually here.

Some affections are a blend of both kinds of will-actings. Pity, for example, contains something of the first kind toward the person who is suffering, and something of the second kind toward what that person is suffering. Similarly, zeal involves strong approval of some person or thing, along with vigorous opposition to whatever is seen as contrary to it.

There are other mixed affections that could be mentioned, but I will move on to the

second thing proposed: to note some things that make it evident that true religion consists, in great part, in the affections. And here,

First, what has already been said about the nature of the affections makes this evident on its own, and should be sufficient to settle the matter without anything further. For who would deny that true religion consists, in large measure, in vigorous and lively actings of the inclination and will of the soul — in the fervent exercises of the heart?

The religion that God requires and will accept does not consist in weak, dull, and lifeless wishes that raise us only slightly above indifference. God's Word insists emphatically that we be in earnest — fervent in spirit — with our hearts vigorously engaged in religion (Romans 12:11): 'Be fervent in spirit, serving the Lord.' Deuteronomy 10:12: 'And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, and to love Him, and to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul?' And Deuteronomy 6:4-5: 'Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one! And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.' It is this fervent, vigorous engagement of the heart in religion that is the fruit of true circumcision of the heart — that is, genuine regeneration — and that receives the promises of life (Deuteronomy 30:6): 'Moreover the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may live.'

If we are not genuinely earnest in religion and our wills and inclinations are not strongly engaged, we are nothing. The things of religion are so great that there can be no fitting response in the exercises of our hearts to their nature and importance unless those exercises are lively and powerful. In nothing is vigor of the inclination so necessary as in religion, and in nothing is lukewarmness so offensive. True religion is always a powerful thing, and its power shows itself first in the inward exercises of the heart, where its principal and original seat is. This is why true religion is called the power of godliness — in contrast to the external appearances of it, which are merely the form (2 Timothy 3:5): 'holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power.' The Spirit of God in those who have genuine and solid religion is a Spirit of powerful holy affection, and therefore God is said to have given them 'a spirit of power, and of love, and of a sound mind' (2 Timothy 1:7). Those who receive the Spirit of God in His sanctifying and saving influences are said to be baptized with the Holy Spirit and with fire — because of the power and intensity of the exercises that the Spirit of God stirs up in their hearts, so that their hearts, when grace is active, may be said to burn within them, as was said of the disciples in Luke 24:32.

The work of religion is repeatedly compared in Scripture to activities in which people exert their hearts and strength to the fullest: running, wrestling or straining for a great prize or crown, fighting strong enemies who seek to take one's life, and waging war as those who take a city or kingdom by force.

Though true grace comes in various degrees, and there are some who are only babes in Christ — in whom the exercise of the inclination and will toward divine and heavenly things is comparatively weak — yet everyone who has the power of godliness in his heart has his inclinations and heart exercised toward God and divine things with such strength and intensity that these holy exercises prevail over all carnal or natural affections and are effective in overcoming them. For every true disciple of Christ loves Him more than father or mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, houses and lands — yes, even more than his own life. It follows from this that wherever true religion is found, there are vigorous exercises of the inclination and will toward divine objects. But as was shown above, the vigorous, lively, and strongly felt exercises of the will are nothing other than the affections of the soul.

Second, the Author of human nature has not only given affections to human beings but has made them the primary spring of human action. Just as affections not only necessarily belong to human nature but are a very great part of it, so — since by regeneration a person is renewed in the whole person and sanctified throughout — holy affections not only necessarily belong to true religion but are a very great part of it. And since true religion is practical in nature, and God has so constituted human nature that the affections are very much the driving force behind human action, this also shows that true religion must consist very much in the affections.

Human nature is such that people are largely inactive unless moved by some affection — love or hatred, desire, hope, fear, or some other. These affections are the driving forces that set people in motion in all the affairs of life and engage them in all their pursuits. They are what pushes people forward and carries them along in all their worldly endeavors, and especially what excites and energizes them in whatever they pursue earnestly and with vigor. We see that the world of humanity is extremely busy and active, and the affections of people are the engine of that motion. Remove all love and hatred, all hope and fear, all anger, zeal, and passionate desire, and the world would largely come to a standstill. There would be no such thing as human activity, no earnest pursuit of anything. Affection is what drives the greedy man in his pursuit of worldly profit; it is affection that propels the ambitious man in his chase of worldly glory; and it is affection that moves the pleasure-seeker in his pursuit of physical delights. The world has continued from age to age in constant motion and restless activity in pursuit of these things — but remove all affection, and the spring of that motion would be gone, and the motion itself would stop. And just as worldly affections are very much the engine of human action in worldly matters, so in religious matters, religious affections are very much the engine of action. The person who has only doctrinal knowledge and intellectual understanding, without affection, is never genuinely engaged in the business of religion.

Third, the fact is plainly evident that the things of religion take hold of people's souls only to the extent that they affect them. Multitudes often hear the Word of God — hearing things that are infinitely great and important, that concern them most closely — and yet all that they hear seems entirely without effect, producing no change in their disposition or behavior. The reason is that they are not affected by what they hear. Many people regularly hear of the glorious perfections of God: His almighty power and boundless wisdom, His infinite majesty, His holiness that is too pure to look on evil and cannot tolerate iniquity, before whom even the heavens are not pure; and of God's infinite goodness and mercy; and of the great works of God's wisdom, power, and goodness in which these perfections appear so wonderfully. They hear specifically of the unspeakable love of God and Christ, of the great things Christ has done and suffered, of the great realities of the world to come — eternal misery in bearing the fierce wrath of almighty God, and endless blessedness and glory in God's presence and the enjoyment of His love. They also hear God's plain commands and His gracious counsel and warnings and the warm invitations of the Gospel. Yet they hear all these things and remain as they were before, with no noticeable change either in heart or practice — because they are not affected by what they hear, and they never will be changed until they are affected. I am bold to assert that no significant change has ever been wrought in the mind or conduct of any person by anything of a religious nature — anything read, heard, or seen — without the affections being moved. No unregenerate person has ever been earnestly seeking his salvation. No one has ever been crying out for wisdom, lifting up his voice for understanding, and wrestling with God in prayer for mercy, or been humbled and brought to the foot of God by any sense of his own unworthiness and deserving of God's displeasure, nor has anyone ever been moved to flee to Christ for refuge, while the heart remained unaffected. Nor has any believer ever been awakened out of a cold and lifeless spiritual condition, or recovered from a declining state in religion and brought back from a grievous departure from God, without the heart being affected. In a word, nothing significant has ever been accomplished in the heart or life of any person by the things of religion without the heart being deeply affected by them.

Fourth, throughout the holy Scriptures, religion is placed very much in the affections — such as fear, hope, love, hatred, desire, joy, sorrow, gratitude, compassion, and zeal.

Scripture places much of religion in godly fear — so much so that it is frequently used as the defining characteristic of those who are truly religious: they tremble at God's Word, they fear before Him, their flesh trembles in fear of Him, they are afraid of His judgments, His excellence makes them afraid, and His dread falls upon them. The common title given to the saints in Scripture is 'those who fear God' or 'those who fear the Lord.' Because the fear of God is such a large part of true godliness, true godliness in general is very commonly called simply 'the fear of God' — as everyone who knows the Bible at all well knows.

Hope in God and in the promises of His Word is also spoken of in Scripture as a very significant part of true religion. It is mentioned as one of the three great things of which religion consists (1 Corinthians 13:13). Hope in the Lord is frequently mentioned as a characteristic of the saints: Psalm 146:5: 'How blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God.' Jeremiah 17:7: 'Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose trust is the Lord.' Psalm 31:24: 'Be strong and let your heart take courage, all you who hope in the Lord.' And there are many other similar passages. Religious fear and hope are more than once joined together as jointly defining the character of true believers. Psalm 33:18: 'Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope for His lovingkindness.' Psalm 147:11: 'The Lord favors those who fear Him, those who wait for His lovingkindness.' Hope is so great a part of true religion that the apostle says we are saved by hope (Romans 8:24). And hope is described as the helmet of the Christian soldier (1 Thessalonians 5:8): 'and as a helmet, the hope of salvation' — and the sure and steadfast anchor of the soul that keeps it from being driven off course by the storms of the evil world. 'This hope we have as an anchor of the soul' — a benefit that true believers receive through it.

Scripture places religion very much in the affection of love — love for God, love for the Lord Jesus Christ, love for God's people, and love for humanity in general. The texts that show this, in both the Old Testament and the New, are countless. More on this later.

The opposite affection — hatred — when directed toward sin, is also spoken of in Scripture as a significant part of true religion. It is presented as a mark by which true religion can be known and distinguished (Proverbs 8:13): 'The fear of the Lord is to hate evil.' Accordingly, the saints are called to demonstrate their sincerity by this (Psalm 97:10): 'Hate evil, you who love the Lord.' The psalmist mentions it as evidence of his own sincerity (Psalm 101:2-3): 'I will walk within my house in the integrity of my heart. I will set no worthless thing before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away.' Psalm 119:104: 'I hate every false way.' (See also verse 128.) Again, Psalm 139:21: 'Do I not hate those who hate You, O Lord?'

Holy desire — expressed in longings, hungerings, and thirsting after God and holiness — is also frequently mentioned in Scripture as an important part of true religion. Isaiah 26:8: 'The desire of our souls is for Your name and the remembrance of You.' Psalm 27:4: 'One thing I have asked from the Lord, that I shall seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord and to meditate in His temple.' Psalm 42:1-2: 'As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; when shall I come and appear before God?' Psalm 63:1-2: 'My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. Thus I have seen You in the sanctuary, to see Your power and Your glory.' Psalm 84:1-2: 'How lovely are Your dwelling places, O Lord of hosts! My soul longed and even yearned for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.' Psalm 119:20: 'My soul is crushed with longing after Your ordinances at all times.' See also Psalm 73:25 and 143:6 and 130:6. Song of Solomon 3:1-2 and 6:8. Such holy desire and thirsting of the soul is listed among the great things that mark a person as truly blessed, at the opening of Christ's Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:6): 'Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.' And this holy thirst is spoken of as an important condition for receiving the blessings of eternal life (Revelation 21:6): 'I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.'

Scripture speaks of holy joy as a great part of true religion. It is presented as such in the passage we are considering. As an important part of religion, it is frequently commanded and urged with great earnestness. Psalm 37:4: 'Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart.' Psalm 97:12: 'Be glad in the Lord, you righteous ones.' Psalm 33:1: 'Sing for joy in the Lord, O you righteous ones.' Matthew 5:12: 'Rejoice and be glad.' Philippians 3:1: 'Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord.' Philippians 4:4: 'Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.' 1 Thessalonians 5:16: 'Rejoice always.' Psalm 149:2: 'Let Israel be glad in his Maker; let the sons of Zion rejoice in their King.' Joy is listed among the chief fruits of the Spirit of grace (Galatians 5:22): 'The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy...' The psalmist mentions his holy joy as evidence of his sincerity (Psalm 119:14): 'I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, as much as in all riches.'

Religious sorrow, mourning, and brokenness of heart are also frequently spoken of as a great part of true religion. These qualities are often listed as distinguishing marks of true believers and a major part of their character. Matthew 5:4: 'Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.' Psalm 34:18: 'The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.' Isaiah 61:1-2: 'The Lord has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to comfort all who mourn.' This godly sorrow and brokenness of heart is spoken of not only as a distinguishing mark of the saints but as something that is particularly acceptable and pleasing to God. Psalm 51:17: 'The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.' Isaiah 57:15: 'Thus says the high and exalted One who lives forever, whose name is Holy: I dwell on a high and holy place, and also with the contrite and lowly of spirit in order to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite.' Isaiah 66:2: 'To this one I will look, to him who is humble and contrite of spirit.'

Another affection frequently mentioned as a significant expression of true religion is gratitude — especially as expressed in thankfulness and praise to God. This is spoken of so extensively in the Psalms and throughout Scripture that citing individual texts is unnecessary.

Scripture also frequently speaks of mercy as a very great and essential part of true religion — so much so that good people in Scripture are identified by this quality, and 'a merciful person' and 'a good person' are essentially equivalent terms. Isaiah 57:1: 'The righteous man perishes, and no man takes it to heart; and devout men are taken away.' Scripture speaks of this quality as one that especially marks a righteous person. Psalm 37:21: 'The righteous is gracious and gives,' and verse 26: 'All day long he is gracious and lends.' Psalm 112:4. Colossians 3:12: 'Put on, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, a heart of compassion...' Mercy is one of the great qualities that mark those who are truly blessed, as our Savior describes them (Matthew 5:7): 'Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.' Christ speaks of mercy as one of the weightier matters of the law (Matthew 23:23): 'Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness.' To the same effect is Micah 6:8: 'He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?' And also Hosea 6:6: 'For I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice.' This appears to have been a text our Savior was especially fond of, given the way He cited it repeatedly in Matthew 9:13 and 12:7.

Zeal is also spoken of as a very essential part of the religion of true believers. It is mentioned as a great goal Christ had in view in giving Himself for our redemption (Titus 2:14): 'who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.' And the absence of zeal is identified as the great failing of the lukewarm Laodiceans in Revelation 3:15-16, 19.

I have cited only a few texts from the countless passages throughout Scripture that place religion very much in the affections. But what has been shown should be sufficient to demonstrate that those who would deny that much of true religion lies in the affections — and who maintain the contrary — must set aside what we have always recognized as our Bible and find some other standard by which to judge the nature of religion.

Fifth, Scripture represents true religion as summed up in love — the chief of all affections and the fountain from which all other affections flow.

This is how our blessed Savior presents the matter in answer to the lawyer who asked which commandment was the greatest. Matthew 22:37-40: 'Jesus said to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' These words indicate that the two great commandments together contain all the duty and religion taught in the Law and the Prophets. The apostle Paul makes the same point repeatedly, as in Romans 13:8: 'He who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.' And in 1 Timothy 1:5: 'But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart...' The same apostle speaks of love as the greatest thing in religion — its very life, essence, and soul — without which the greatest knowledge and gifts, the most impressive religious profession, and everything else belonging to religion is empty and worthless. He presents love as the fountain from which everything good flows, in 1 Corinthians 13 throughout. The word translated 'charity' there is in the original the Greek word agape, which in English is simply love.

Now, while it is true that the love spoken of here includes the entire sincere disposition of the soul toward God and others, it is evident from what was observed above that when this disposition or inclination of the soul is in vigorous and strongly felt exercise, it becomes affection — it is nothing other than affectionate love. And surely it is this vigorous and fervent love that Christ speaks of as the sum of all religion, when He speaks of loving God with all our hearts, all our souls, and all our minds, and our neighbor as ourselves — as the sum of everything taught and commanded in the Law and the Prophets.

It should not be supposed, when this affection of love is spoken of here and in other scriptures as the sum of all religion, that this means only the outward act and not the inner habit, or that the exercise of the understanding is excluded — for all reasonable affection implies understanding. But it is undoubtedly true, and plain from these scriptures, that the essence of all true religion lies in holy love. And in this divine affection — together with a habitual disposition toward it, the understanding that serves as its foundation, and the fruits that flow from it — consists the whole of religion.

From this it clearly and certainly follows that a great part of true religion consists in the affections. For love is not only one of the affections — it is the first and chief of all the affections, and the fountain from which all the others flow. From love arises hatred of the things that oppose what we love or that hinder us from what we delight in. And from the various exercises of love and hatred — depending on the circumstances of their objects, whether present or absent, certain or uncertain, likely or unlikely — arise the other affections: desire, fear, joy, gratitude, and so on. From a vigorous, affectionate, and fervent love for God flow all the other religious affections — fear of sin, joy in God when He is near and sensibly present, grief when He seems absent, joyful hope when a future enjoyment of God is anticipated, and fervent zeal for God's glory. In the same way, from a fervent love for others will arise all other virtuous affections toward them.

Sixth, the religion of the most outstanding believers we read of in Scripture consisted very much in holy affections.

I will take particular notice of three eminent believers who have expressed the frame and disposition of their own hearts — and so described their own religion and their manner of relating to God — in their writings that are preserved for us as part of the biblical canon.

The first example I will note is David — the man after God's own heart — who has given us a vivid portrait of his religion in the book of Psalms. The holy songs he has left us there are nothing other than the expressions and outpourings of devout and holy affections: a humble and fervent love for God, wonder at His glorious perfections and wonderful works, earnest desires and thirsting and longing of soul after God, delight and joy in God, a sweet and tender gratitude to God for His great goodness, a holy exultation and triumph of soul in God's favor and sufficiency and faithfulness, his love for and delight in God's people — the excellent of the earth — his great delight in God's Word and worship, his grief for his own sin and the sins of others, and his fervent zeal for God and against the enemies of God and His church. These expressions of holy affection that fill every page of David's Psalms are all the more relevant to our current subject because those Psalms are not only the expressions of the religion of so outstanding a believer — one whom God Himself commends as so pleasing to His heart — but were also written under the direction of the Holy Spirit for the use of God's church in its public worship, not only in that age but in all ages to come, as expressions fitted to capture the religion of all believers in every era, as well as the religion of the psalmist himself. It is also worth noting that David in the Psalms speaks not as a private individual, but as the psalmist of Israel — as the subordinate leader of God's church and guide in its worship and praise. In many of the Psalms he speaks in the name of Christ, voicing these outpourings of holy affection on Christ's behalf, and in many others he speaks in the name of the church.

Another example is the apostle Paul, who was in many respects the foremost of all the ministers of the New Testament — above all others a chosen vessel to bear Christ's name before the Gentiles, the chief instrument for spreading and establishing the Christian church in the world, and for clearly revealing the glorious mysteries of the Gospel for the instruction of the church throughout all ages. Some have not unreasonably considered him the most outstanding servant of Christ who ever lived, destined to receive the highest rewards in his Master's heavenly kingdom. By what Scripture says of him, he clearly appears to have been a person full of affection. And very many things make it evident that the religion expressed in his letters consisted very much in holy affections. All his life shows that he was wholly driven and consumed by a most fervent love for his glorious Lord — counting everything else as loss compared to the surpassing worth of knowing Him, and regarding it all as rubbish that he might gain Christ. He describes himself as overpowered by this holy affection, and virtually compelled by it to press forward in his service through all difficulties and sufferings (2 Corinthians 5:14). His letters overflow with affection toward the people of Christ. He speaks of his deep love for them (2 Corinthians 12:19; Philippians 4:1-2; 1 Timothy 1:2). Of his abundant love (2 Corinthians 2:4). And of his tender, motherly love for them, like a nursing mother with her children (1 Thessalonians 2:7-8): 'We proved to be gentle among you, as a nursing mother tenderly cares for her own children. Having so fond an affection for you, we were well-pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives.' He also speaks of his deep affection for them (Philippians 1:8; Philemon 12 and 20). He speaks of his earnest concern for others (2 Corinthians 8:16) and of his tender compassion toward them (Philippians 2:1), and of his concern for others rising to anguish of heart (2 Corinthians 2:4): 'For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote to you with many tears; not so that you would be made sorrowful, but that you might know the love which I have especially for you.' He speaks of the great conflict of his soul for them (Colossians 2:1). He speaks of great and continual grief in his heart out of love for his fellow Jews (Romans 9:2). He speaks of his heart being opened wide to fellow Christians (2 Corinthians 6:11): 'Our mouth has spoken freely to you, O Corinthians, our heart is opened wide.' He frequently expresses affectionate and longing desire (1 Thessalonians 2:8; Romans 1:11; Philippians 1:8; 4:1; 2 Timothy 1:4). The same apostle very often expresses the affection of joy in his letters (2 Corinthians 1:12; 7:7, 9, 16; Philippians 1:4; 2:1-2; 3:3; Colossians 1:24; 1 Thessalonians 3:9). He speaks of rejoicing with great joy (Philippians 4:10; Philemon 7), of his joying and rejoicing (Philippians 2:17), and of his rejoicing exceedingly (2 Corinthians 7:13). And of being filled with comfort and overflowing with joy (2 Corinthians 7:4). He speaks of himself as always rejoicing (2 Corinthians 6:10). He speaks of the triumphs of his soul (2 Corinthians 2:14), and of glorying in tribulations (2 Thessalonians 1:4; Romans 5:3). He also expresses the affection of hope — in Philippians 1:20 he speaks of his earnest expectation and hope. He likewise expresses the affection of godly zeal (2 Corinthians 11:2-3). And it is plain from his entire history after his conversion in Acts, and from all his letters and the accounts he gives of himself there, that the affection of love — with the cause of his Master and the welfare and advance of His church as its object — was mighty in him, continually firing his heart and strongly driving him to those great and relentless labors he undertook: instructing, exhorting, warning, and reproving others, laboring for them like a woman in childbirth; contending with powerful and numerous enemies who constantly opposed him, wrestling against rulers and authorities, not fighting as one who beats the air, running the race set before him, continually pressing forward through every kind of difficulty and suffering — so much so that others thought he was completely out of his mind. How full of affection he was is further evident from the fact that he was so frequently moved to tears. In 2 Corinthians 2:4 he speaks of his many tears, and in Acts 20:19. And of the tears he shed continuously, night and day, in Acts 20:31.

If anyone can read these accounts of this great apostle — given both by Scripture and by himself — and still not see that his religion consisted very much in affection, that person must have a remarkable ability to close his eyes against the light shining most directly in his face.

The third example I will mention is the apostle John — that beloved disciple who was closer to his Master than any of the twelve, and admitted to greater privileges than any of them. He was one of the three present on the mountain at Christ's transfiguration, at the raising of Jairus's daughter, and with Him during His agony in the garden. He was one of the three whom the apostle Paul names as the three main pillars of the Christian church. Above all others, he was the one privileged to lean on his Master's breast at the Last Supper, and was chosen by Christ as the disciple to whom He would reveal His wonderful purposes for His church until the end of time — as recorded in the book of Revelation. He was also preserved far longer than all the other apostles to set things in order in the Christian church after their deaths, and to close the canon of the New Testament and of all Scripture.

It is evident from all his writings — as theologians have generally observed — that he was a person remarkably full of affection. His words to those he wrote to are inexpressibly tender and moving, breathing nothing but the most fervent love, as though he were made entirely of sweet and holy affection. This cannot be adequately demonstrated without quoting his writings in full.

Seventh, the One whom God sent into the world to be its Light, the Head of the whole church, and the perfect example of true religion and virtue for all to imitate — the Shepherd whom the whole flock should follow wherever He goes, even the Lord Jesus Christ — was a person remarkably tender and affectionate in heart. His virtue was expressed very much in the exercise of holy affections. He was the greatest example of ardent, vigorous, and strong love — both toward God and toward human beings — that has ever existed. It was these affections that prevailed in that mighty struggle in His agony, when He prayed more earnestly and offered up strong cries and tears, and wrestled in tears and blood. Such was the power of His holy love in that great struggle that it proved stronger than death and overcame the intense natural affections of fear and grief — when He was deeply distressed and His soul was overwhelmed with sorrow, even to the point of death. He appeared full of affection throughout the course of His life as well. We read of His great zeal, fulfilling what was written in Psalm 69: 'Zeal for Your house has consumed Me' (John 2:17). We read of His grief over the sins of people (Mark 3:5): 'He looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart.' And of His breaking out in tears and cries of anguish at the sight of human sin and misery, and of the city of Jerusalem filled with such people (Luke 19:41-42): 'When He approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes.' And Luke 13:34: 'O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, just as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not have it!' We read of Christ's earnest desire (Luke 22:15): 'I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.' We often read of the affection of compassion in Christ (Matthew 15:32 and 18:34; Luke 7:13), and of His being moved with compassion (Matthew 9:36 and 14:14; Mark 6:34). How tender His heart was is seen in His response to Mary and Martha as they mourned for their brother and came to Him with their complaints and tears. Their tears quickly drew tears from His own eyes. He was moved by their grief and wept with them — even though He knew their sorrow would so soon be turned to joy when their brother was raised from the dead (see John 11). And how indescribably affectionate was that final conversation Jesus had with His eleven disciples on the evening before His crucifixion — when He told them He was going away, foretold the great difficulties and sufferings they would face in the world after He was gone, comforted and instructed them as His dear children, and bequeathed to them His Holy Spirit, and with it His peace, comfort, and joy, as it were in His last will and testament — in John 13, 14, 15, and 16 — concluding it all with that affectionate intercessory prayer for them and His whole church in chapter 17. Of all the conversations ever spoken or recorded by any human being, this seems to be the most filled with affection — and the most deeply moving.

Eighth, the religion of heaven consists very much in affection.

There is undoubtedly true religion in heaven, and true religion in its greatest purity and perfection. But according to Scripture's depiction of heaven, the religion there consists chiefly in holy and mighty love and joy, and in expressing those affections in the most fervent and exalted praise. So the religion of the saints in heaven consists in the same things as the religion of the saints on earth described in our text — namely love, and joy inexpressible and full of glory. It would be foolish to argue that because the saints in heaven are not joined to flesh and blood, and have no bodily fluids to be stirred by the great emotions of their souls, their surpassing love and joy are therefore not affections. We are not speaking of the affections of the body but of the affections of the soul, the chief of which are love and joy. When these are present in the soul — whether in the body or out of it — the soul is affected and moved. And when they are present in the soul at the intensity they are in the saints in heaven, the soul is mightily affected and moved — which is the same thing as saying it has great affections. It is true that we do not know from experience what love and joy are like in a soul apart from a body, or in a glorified body. But the saints on earth do know what divine love and joy in the soul are, and they know what love and joy of the same kind as the love and joy in heaven are like. The love and joy of believers on earth are the beginning and dawning of the light, life, and blessedness of heaven — like the love and joy there, or rather the same in nature, though not the same in degree and circumstances. This is evident from many scriptures: Proverbs 4:18; John 4:14; John 6:40, 47, 50, 51, 54, 58; 1 John 3:15; 1 Corinthians 13:8-12. It is unreasonable to suppose that the love and joy of the saints in heaven differ from the holy love and joy of believers on earth not merely in degree and circumstances but so completely in nature that they are not affections at all — simply because the saints in heaven have no blood and vital spirits to be set in motion by them. That motion of the blood and vital spirits is not of the essence of these affections in people on earth but only their effect — and even then, by a kind of feedback effect, it may produce some circumstantial difference in the mind's sensation. There is a sensation of the mind that loves and rejoices which is prior to any effects on the body's fluids, and this sensation of the mind therefore does not depend on those physical motions and can exist in the soul without the body. Wherever love and joy are being exercised, this sensation of the mind is present — whether in the body or out of it. And this inward sensation, or kind of spiritual sense or feeling and movement of the soul, is what is called affection. The soul, when it thus feels and is thus moved, is said to be affected — especially when this inward sensation and movement are at a very high degree, as they are in the saints in heaven. If we can learn anything about heaven from Scripture, the love and joy the saints have there are exceedingly great and vigorous — impressing the heart with the strongest and most vivid sense of inexpressible sweetness, powerfully moving, animating, and engaging them, making them like a flame of fire. If such love and joy are not affections, then the word affection has no use in the language. Would anyone say that the saints in heaven, as they behold the face of their Father, the glory of their Redeemer, and contemplate His wonderful works — and especially His laying down His life for them — have their hearts entirely unmoved and unaffected by all they behold and consider?

Since the religion of heaven consists chiefly in holy love and joy, it consists very much in affection. And therefore, undoubtedly, true religion consists very much in affection. The way to learn the true nature of anything is to go where that thing is found in its purity and perfection. If we want to know the nature of true gold, we must view it not in the ore but when it has been refined. If we want to learn what true religion is, we must go where there is true religion and nothing but true religion — in its highest perfection, without any defect or mixture. All who are truly religious are not of this world; they are strangers here and belong to heaven. They are born from above; heaven is their native country, and the nature they receive through this heavenly birth is a heavenly nature — they receive an anointing from above. The principle of true religion in them is a communication of the religion of heaven. Their grace is the dawn of glory, and God fits them for that world by conforming them to it.

Ninth, this is further shown by the nature and design of the practices and duties that God has appointed as the means and expressions of true religion.

Take prayer as an example. It is evident that we are not appointed in this duty to declare God's perfections — His majesty, holiness, goodness, and all-sufficiency — or our own smallness, emptiness, dependence, and unworthiness, and our needs and desires, in order to inform God of these things or to move His heart to be willing to show us mercy. Rather, the purpose is to affect our own hearts with the things we express, and so to prepare us to receive the blessings we ask for. Similarly, the postures and outward behaviors in the worship of God that by custom signify humility and reverence are of no use beyond what tendency they have to affect our own hearts or the hearts of others.

The duty of singing praises to God seems to be appointed entirely to stir up and express religious affections. There is no other reason why we should express ourselves to God in verse rather than prose, and do it with music, except that our nature is such that these things have a tendency to move our affections.

The same is evident from the nature and design of the sacraments that God has appointed. God, taking into account our nature, has not only appointed that we should be told about the great things of the Gospel and of Christ's redemption, and instructed in them through His Word, but also that these things should be, in a sense, placed before our eyes in tangible representations through the sacraments — in order to affect us with them more powerfully.

One of the great and primary purposes for which God has ordained that His Word in the holy Scriptures should be opened, applied, and pressed home upon people through preaching, is clearly the impressing of divine things upon the hearts and affections of people. This is why having good Bible commentaries, expositions, and theological books — though they may serve just as well as preaching to give people a sound doctrinal and intellectual understanding of God's work — is not enough on its own. They do not have an equal tendency to impress those truths upon people's hearts and affections. God has appointed the specific, personal application of His Word to people in preaching as a fitting means to affect sinners with the importance of the things of religion, their own misery, their need for rescue, and the glory and sufficiency of the rescue provided. It is also appointed to stir up the minds of believers and quicken their affections by regularly bringing the great things of religion before their attention and setting them out in their proper light — even to those who already know them and have been fully instructed in them (2 Peter 1:12-13). In particular, preaching is appointed to promote those two affections spoken of in our text — love and joy: 'And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers... for the building up of the body of Christ... in love' (Ephesians 4:11-12, 16). The apostle, in instructing and guiding Timothy concerning the ministry, informs him that the great goal of the Word a minister is to preach is love (1 Timothy 1:3-5). And another affection that God has appointed preaching to promote in believers is joy — which is why ministers are called 'helpers of your joy' (2 Corinthians 1:24).

Tenth, the fact that true religion — holiness of heart — consists very much in the affections of the heart is also shown by the fact that Scripture locates the sin of the heart very much in hardness of heart. Scripture does this throughout. It was hardness of heart that stirred grief and displeasure in Christ toward the Jews (Mark 3:5): 'He looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart.' It is from having such a heart that people store up wrath for themselves. Romans 2:5: 'Because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God.' The reason given why the house of Israel would not obey God was that they were hard-hearted (Ezekiel 3:7): 'But the house of Israel will not be willing to listen to you, since they are not willing to listen to Me. Surely the whole house of Israel is stubborn and obstinate.' The wickedness of that rebellious generation in the wilderness is attributed to the hardness of their hearts (Psalm 95:7-10): 'Today, if you would hear His voice, do not harden your heart, as in the provocation, as in the day of temptation in the wilderness; when your fathers tested Me, they tried Me, though they had seen My work. For forty years I loathed that generation, and said they are a people who err in their heart...' This is named as what prevented Zedekiah from turning to the Lord (2 Chronicles 36:13): 'He stiffened his neck and hardened his heart from returning to the Lord God of Israel.' This principle is spoken of as the reason people have no fear of God and stray from His ways. Isaiah 63:17: 'Why, O Lord, do You cause us to stray from Your ways and harden our heart from fearing You?' People's rejecting Christ and opposing Christianity is also traced to this principle (Acts 19:9): 'But when some were becoming hardened and disobedient, speaking evil of the Way before the people...' God's abandoning people to the power of sin and corruption in their hearts is often expressed as God hardening their hearts. Romans 9:18: 'So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.' John 12:40: 'He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart.' The apostle seems to treat an evil heart that departs from the living God and a hard heart as the same thing. Hebrews 3:8: 'Do not harden your hearts, as when they provoked Me...' Verses 12-13: 'Take care, brothers, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called Today, so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.' And that great work of God in conversion — which consists in delivering a person from the power of sin and mortifying corruption — is described more than once as God's taking away the heart of stone and giving a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 11:19 and 36:26).

A hard heart plainly means an unaffected heart — a heart not easily moved by virtuous affections, like stone: insensible, unresponsive, unmoved, and resistant to impression. This is why the hard heart is called a stony heart and is contrasted with a heart of flesh that has feeling, is sensitive, and is moved. Scripture speaks of both a hard heart and a tender heart — and these are clearly meant as opposites. But what is a tender heart other than a heart that is easily impressed by what ought to affect it? God commends Josiah because his heart was tender, and the things mentioned as evidence of that tenderness make clear that it means his heart was easily moved by religious and godly affection (2 Kings 22:19): 'Because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before the Lord when you heard what I spoke against this place and against its inhabitants that they should become a desolation and a curse, and you tore your clothes and wept before Me, I truly have heard you, declares the Lord.' This is also one of the ways in which we must become like little children in order to enter the kingdom of God — we must have hearts that are tender and easily affected and moved in spiritual and divine matters, just as little children are easily moved in other things.

In some scriptural passages the very words themselves make clear that a hard heart means a heart empty of affection. To indicate that the ostrich has no natural affection for her young, it is said (Job 39:16): 'She treats her young harshly, as if they were not hers.' Similarly, a person whose heart is unaffected in times of danger is described as hardening his heart (Proverbs 28:14): 'How blessed is the man who fears always, but he who hardens his heart will fall into calamity.'

Since it is so clear that a hard heart in Scripture means a heart lacking godly affections, and since Scripture so frequently locates the sin and corruption of the heart in hardness of heart, it follows plainly that grace and holiness of heart must consist, in great part, in the opposite — in having godly affections and being open and responsive to them. Theologians generally agree that sin is fundamentally and at its root negative or privative — that is, sin has its foundation in the absence or lack of holiness. Therefore, if sin very much consists in hardness of heart — and thus in the absence of godly affections — holiness must very much consist in those godly affections.

I am far from suggesting that all affections indicate a tender heart. Hatred, anger, pride, and other selfish and self-exalting affections may greatly prevail in the hardest heart. But it is evident that hardness of heart and tenderness of heart are expressions that relate to the affections of the heart — they describe a heart that is either open and responsive to, or closed and resistant to, certain affections — about which I will have occasion to say more later.

Taken altogether, I think it is clearly and abundantly evident that true religion lies very much in the affections. I do not mean by this that religion in the hearts of true believers is always exactly proportional to the degree of affection or present emotional intensity. True believers undoubtedly have much affection that is not spiritual — their religious affections are often mixed, with much coming from nature rather than grace. And although the affections do not have their seat in the body, the physical constitution of a person may greatly contribute to the present emotional intensity of the mind. The degree of true religion is better judged by the firmness and strength of the settled habit of holy affection — the degree to which it is a constant and established disposition — than by the intensity of any particular moment. And the strength of that habit is not always proportional to its outward expressions or inward effects in terms of mental agitation, vehemence, or sudden changes in the train of thought. Yet it is evident that religion consists so much in affection that without holy affection there is no true religion. No light in the understanding is genuinely good unless it produces holy affection in the heart. No principle or habit in the heart is genuinely good unless it exercises itself in holy affection. And no outward fruit is genuinely good unless it proceeds from such exercise.

Having considered the evidence for the proposition I laid down, I proceed now to some conclusions.

First, we can see from this how great an error it is for people to dismiss all religious affections as having nothing solid or substantial in them.

There seems to be too strong a tendency toward this kind of dismissal prevailing in this land at present. During the recent extraordinary season of revival, many who appeared to have strong religious affections did not display a right spirit and fell into many errors in the midst of their affection and the heat of their zeal. The intense affections of many also seemed to fade so quickly, and some who seemed to be powerfully lifted up and consumed with joy and zeal for a time appear to have returned like a dog to its vomit. As a result, religious affections in general have lost credibility with many people, as though true religion did not consist in them at all. This is how naturally and easily we run from one extreme to the other. Not long ago we were at the opposite extreme — there was a widespread tendency to regard all high religious affections as outstanding exercises of true grace, without much inquiry into the nature and source of those affections or the manner in which they arose. If a person appeared to be genuinely moved and elevated — full of religious talk, expressing himself with great warmth and earnestness, and described as 'filled' or 'very full,' as the common phrases went — it was too often the habit to conclude, without further examination, that such a person was filled with the Spirit of God and had outstanding experience of His gracious influences. That was the extreme that was prevalent three or four years ago. But more recently, instead of esteeming and admiring all religious affections without distinction, the far more common tendency is to reject and discard all of them without distinction. Here we see the craftiness of Satan. When he saw that affections were highly valued, knowing that most people in the land were inexperienced in such things and lacked the spiritual experience of strong religious affections that would enable them to judge and distinguish between true and false, he knew he could play his game best by sowing weeds among the wheat — mixing false affections with the genuine works of God's Spirit. He knew this was a likely way to deceive and eternally ruin many souls, to deeply wound religion in true believers and entangle them in a terrible wilderness, and eventually to bring all religion into disrepute. But now that the damaging consequences of these false affections have appeared — and it has become very obvious that some of those emotional displays that made such a striking impression and were so greatly admired by many were in reality nothing — the devil sees it is in his interest to work a different way. He now strives with all his might to spread and establish the conviction that all affections and stirrings of the mind in religious matters are worthless, to be avoided and carefully guarded against as things that lead to harm. He knows this is the way to reduce all religion to a mere lifeless formality, to effectively shut out the power of godliness and everything that is genuinely spiritual, and to drive true Christianity entirely away. For although true religion does indeed require something more than affection alone, true religion consists so much in the affections that there can be no true religion without them. The person who has no religious affection is in a state of spiritual death, entirely without the powerful, life-giving, saving work of the Spirit of God in his heart. Just as there is no true religion where there is nothing but affection, there is no true religion where there is no religious affection. On one hand, understanding is necessary alongside an affected and fervent heart — where there is heat without light, there can be nothing divine or heavenly in that heart. On the other hand, where there is a kind of light without warmth — a head full of ideas and theories with a cold and unaffected heart — there can be nothing divine in that light. Such knowledge is not true spiritual knowledge of divine things. If the great things of religion are genuinely understood, they will affect the heart. The reason people are not affected by such infinitely great, important, glorious, and wonderful things as they regularly hear and read of in God's Word is, without question, that they are spiritually blind. If they were not blind, it would be impossible — utterly contrary to human nature — for their hearts not to be powerfully impressed and deeply moved by such things.

This habit of dismissing all religious affections is a sure way to harden people's hearts further, to encourage them in their spiritual dullness and insensitivity, to keep them in a state of spiritual death throughout their lives, and to bring them at last to eternal death. The widespread prejudice against religious affections presently in this land is plainly having terrible effects: hardening the hearts of sinners, dampening the graces of many believers, stunting the life and power of religion, undermining the effect of the means of grace, holding people down in dullness and apathy, and undoubtedly causing many to greatly offend God by holding low and contemptuous views of the extraordinary work He has recently done in this land.

For people to despise and speak against all religious affections is the way to shut religion entirely out of their own hearts and to accomplish the complete ruin of their souls.

Those who condemn high affections in others are certainly unlikely to have high affections themselves. And let it be noted: those who have little religious affection have certainly little religion. And those who condemn others for their religious affections and have none themselves have no religion.

There are false affections and there are true ones. A person's having much affection does not prove he has genuine religion, but a person's having no affection proves he has no genuine religion. The right approach is not to reject all affections and not to approve all, but to distinguish among affections — approving some and rejecting others, separating the wheat from the chaff, the gold from the dross, the precious from the worthless.

Second, if true religion lies very much in the affections, we may conclude from this that means are to be valued that tend powerfully to move the affections. Books that do this, a style of preaching and administering the ordinances that does this, and a manner of worshipping God in prayer and singing praises that does this — all of these are greatly to be desired, as having a strong tendency to affect deeply the hearts of those who use them.

This kind of approach would formerly have been highly valued and praised by people generally throughout the land, as the most excellent and profitable — as having the greatest tendency to advance the purposes of the means of grace. But the prevailing taste seems recently to have changed in a strange way. The kind of earnest, heartfelt praying and preaching that would formerly have been admired and valued — and admired for exactly this reason, that it tended to move the affections — now immediately provokes disgust in large numbers of people, and stirs no affections in them other than displeasure and contempt.

Perhaps formerly the general tendency of the people — at least common people — was to place too much value on emotionally moving delivery in public worship. But now a very large portion of the people seem to have swung far into the opposite extreme. There certainly can be means that have a strong tendency to stir the feelings of weak and uninformed persons, and yet have little tendency to genuinely benefit their souls. Though such means may tend to excite emotions, they may have little or no tendency to excite godly affections or any affections that lead toward grace. But undoubtedly, when the things of religion in the means used are handled according to their true nature and presented accurately — so as to convey correct understanding and right judgment of them — the more tendency those means have to move the affections, the better.

Third, if true religion lies very much in the affections, we can see from this how much cause we have to be ashamed and humbled before God that we are not more affected by the great things of religion. As the foregoing discussion makes clear, this lack of affection arises from our having so little true religion.

God gave human beings affections for the same purpose He gave all the other faculties and principles of the human soul — to serve as instruments in humanity's chief end and the great business for which God created us, namely religion. And yet how common it is for people to have their affections far more engaged and exercised by other things than by religion! In matters that concern worldly interest, outward pleasures, honor and reputation, and natural relationships, people have eager desires, intense appetites, warm and affectionate love, and fervent zeal. In these things their hearts are tender and sensitive — easily moved, deeply impressed, greatly concerned, strongly affected, and powerfully engaged. They are deeply grieved at worldly losses and greatly elated by worldly success and prosperity. But how insensible and unmoved most people are about the great things of another world! How dull their affections are! How heavy and hard their hearts in these matters! Their love is cold, their desires languid, their zeal low, their gratitude small. They can sit and hear of the infinite height and depth and length and breadth of God's love in Christ Jesus — of His giving His infinitely dear Son to be offered as a sacrifice for human sin, and of the unparalleled love of the innocent, holy, and tender Lamb of God shown in His dying agonies, His bloody sweat, His loud and bitter cries, and His bleeding heart — all of this for His enemies, to redeem them from deserved, eternal punishment and to bring them to unspeakable and everlasting joy and glory — and yet remain cold, heavy, unmoved, and indifferent! Where, if not here, are our affections called for? What demands them more than this? And what occasion, if not this, is fit for their lively and vigorous exercise? Can anything greater or more important be placed before us? Anything more wonderful and astonishing? Anything that more nearly concerns our own interest? Can we suppose that the wise Creator planted such principles in human nature as the affections to be useful to us — to be exercised on certain appropriate occasions — but to remain inactive on an occasion such as this? Can any Christian who believes the truth of these things hold such a view?

If our affections ought ever to be exercised at all, and if the Creator did not unwisely design human nature in making these principles part of it — when otherwise they would be vain and useless — then they ought to be exercised about the objects most worthy of them. But is there anything Christians can find in heaven or on earth as worthy to be the object of their wonder and love, their earnest and longing desires, their hope and rejoicing and fervent zeal, as the things set before us in the Gospel of Jesus Christ? In the Gospel, not only are the most affection-worthy things declared, but they are presented in the most moving manner possible. The glory and beauty of the blessed God — most worthy in itself to be the object of our wonder and love — is displayed there in the most moving manner that can be imagined, shining in full brilliance in the face of an incarnate, infinitely loving, gentle, compassionate, dying Redeemer. All the virtues of the Lamb of God — His humility, patience, gentleness, submission, obedience, love, and compassion — are set before us in the manner best calculated to move our affections. They all found their greatest test and highest expression, and thus their clearest display, when He was in the most affecting of circumstances — under His last sufferings, those unutterable and unequaled sufferings He endured out of His tender love and pity for us. There too the hateful nature of our sins is shown in the most affecting way possible, as we see their dreadful effects in what our Redeemer — who undertook to answer for us — suffered on their account. And there we have the most affecting revelation of God's hatred of sin and His wrath and justice in punishing it — His justice in its strictness and inflexibility, and His wrath in its terribleness, in punishing our sins so severely in One who was infinitely dear to Him and infinitely loving toward us. God has arranged everything in the work of our redemption and in the glorious purposes revealed to us in the Gospel as though every detail were deliberately designed to reach our hearts at their most tender point and to move our affections as powerfully and deeply as possible. How much cause we have, therefore, to be humbled to the dust that we are not more affected!