?33 ---.-. ofRegeneration. S a c r. III I z Likenefs to a, But then the other confiderable property in our Sonfbip is , whereby we are God,with its made inwardly holy , and upon theirprinciples aft holily : this floweth from our ground. Regeneration; and fobecaufe dournew birth we are made fonsof God, and are begotten anew by hie word ,"becaufe hereby we refemble God ourFather : For as on the contrary, wicked men are Paid tobe oftheir Father the Divel, becaufe they do hie Works ; Sorbe Godly areof God their Father, becaufe they refemblehim : He porifierh him(lf,.evenae God iepore, 17ahn 3, 3. So that thefe two carefully diflinguithed, will keep us from proud prelimptionon the one hand , andyet be a great incentive co God lint ffe on theother hand. z. The dill Secondly , Car, fder that Chrifi ie theonlyand truebegotten of god by an eternal rence between an.{ natural generation ; we are the Son, of God bya temporal, and freegratiouege- Chrülsionthip taeration : So that it is a rule of Divines, o uod Chri(i,u nata,rá, norgratit, That and ours. which Chri fi' kathb' Nature , we baveby Grace. ' (,brd is the Son of God, not in that frnfe as the Sociniane, and fuch blafphemous Hereticks fay, Non fat-ha filiru Dei, but Nattte , Not the made Son of God, but the bornfen of God, and there- forehomoeufialof the fame nature with God ; and in this fenfe the Pharifecs and Jewsunderftood him when they charged him withblafphemy ; r trakinghimfilf, as they laid,, equal with Clod. le is true that place of the Pfalmift, Thou art my fon, thie day ¡have begotten th:e, Afts. 13. g;. is applyed to his refurrefti on , and the manifeRation,or declarationof his Sonfhip; but thofe places which fpeak of Chrifts fu fiftency, before he was incarnated , doe evidently argue him fo to beGod ,, as that he was the fame with God from all eternity.: and the firft Chap. of 'ohmsGofpel makes it irrefragablytrue,notwithftanding all theHereticks endeavour to eludeit. Well ,' as Chrift is thus naturally , fo thofe that are regene- rated are thus gracioufly, and foarePaid tobe coheirs with Chrift: though there- fare we are begotten ofGod, yet Chrift is the firft-born,and bath thepreheminen- cy in all things. ;.We are Sons Thirdly, Confider that we may be fold to be the Sons of God in three re- of God. ,tfella, r.Ashis crea- T. As weare ereatteres, havingour being from him: In which fenfe Paul fan- Wes. ftifieth that verfe of the Poet, vb yàp ,ÿ e- á:µÿt, 59e are hie of:ffiring, 27. 28. What the Poet faidof fuptter,Paralapplyeth to the true God. ThusGod is a Father by Creation ; and all men , even wicked men are hischildren in this fenfe ; but this is no advantage, for thougha man be bornof God in this refpeft, yet ifhe be no more, he (hall neverfee theKingdomofheaven. He that made them, mill notlave them, faith theProphet, Efai 27. u. Though ye arehis creatures, yet having fallen from him to take the Divelscharafter, hewilldeal no morewith yotti as with his own. elks in an est-' 2, There are SoluteGaddy an externall Covenant, or adminiffration of grace. ternat Cove- Thus men receivingthe outward feal of theCovenant ofGrace, and fubmitting Want externally tó thofe LawsGod prefcribes, are called Sons. Thus the people of 'fu- el are oftencalled the foes ofGod, becaufe of that external adoption , (of whom isthe Adoption,faithPaul:)Even as in the new Teftament believers are calledSaints, becaufe of their external profeflìon, though they were not inwardly holy : Out of Egypt have Icalledmy Son , whichthough princjpallyapplyed to Chrift,yet Typi- cally, as learned men think, it was trueof the ffraelites calledby God out of E- gypt. Now this Sonfhip is alto but Nominal and Titular: To have no more of tons then theft outward badges,is but an aggravationof hell,andeternal torments, Thus Cbrift faith , The childrenofhe Kingdom fhallbecaß forth, Mat. 8. rz. Oh the terror ofthis: Many that are now called, and reputed lò , the ions of God, and the children ofthe Kingdomof grace,fhall be thrown out from allthofe hopes and expeflationsthey had. Evenas among the Ifraclices, though there came fo many thoufand ofthem outof Egypt, and you would have thought that all thofe whoenjoyed luthmiraculous merciesfrom heaven, fheuld have beenmade happy : yet twoonly of all that number enteed into Canaan: So of chofe many that are called,
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