266 of the New Creature. Therefore there is a fecond way of thefouls tendency to God, and that is, At he II. h revealedin his Word, andmade known in Chrifl, beingdrawn unto him by his In hisWord. Spirit, and fo lifted upabove all his naturall abilities, and this is the expreffion of of a new Creature ; So that what Lutherprayed for Melan(Ehan, Rapiat toDe_ ua,exhtemanis indivina, i tars in fna, is to be powredout in the behalf ofevery na- tural! man. If you fee a Paulcrucified to theworld, having his Converfation in heaven, knowing how to abound , and how to want , inabled todoe all things through Chrift thatftrengthens him ; that his former(iones he once lived in, doe not [till (lick dole to him, anddamn him ; you may as muchwonder as they did, when they law the Viper upon his hand did not kill him and when they laid, The gods are come down tous in the likeneffe of men ; and Paul would return the fame anfwer as then was, Why doeyou look upon us, as if we had done there things by our own power? but in the nameof thrift are they wrought. IF you fee a manwalking holily, humbly;reformed from finte, fay,This is the great pow- er of God to falvation. ;. In that she Thirdly, this fupernaturality is feen, In thatit isawayof fuck perfeaiion andex. ycrfraion it dinette, that it XneWayes agreeable to our nature ; We havenot fo muchas an in- hove to nit clination to it ; and fo fupernaturall is as much as connaturall ; for thus holineffe b i inclination. was not fupernaturall too/Idam, but it was a fit and Cuitable qualification , even as rationality and rifibility wasconnaturall tohis foul : fo God creating Adam for fuch a glorious end as toenjoyhim, holineífe was a connaturall perfeftion due to him ; but now fine our lapfed and polluted condition, all holineffe is fo far fuper- naturall, that it is 3gainft our natures, we have no inclination to that which is ho- ly ; yea, the Apoftle faith, We haveenmity againff thewayof Gad , and roe neither are,or canbe fnbjeltto it, Rom. 8. God linelleisa kindof violence toout corrupt natures; and therefore we arePaid CO crucifie, and mortifie fin , yea todeny oue felves ; all which argueth the repugnancy that is in us to that which is holy; won- der not then, if men be fo unwilling, fo untoward to be brought to this work' of grace : There is a Caretenmity, and antipathy in usto it ; we love it no more than thethief cloththe light ; and upon this is grounded all that rage, hatred and oppo- fition they have againfl godly wayes : They cannot give you a good reafon why? onely their hearts are full of venome againft ir. 4. In its ana- Laflly, this fupmantra lity may be teen, in that proportion andanalogie it hart logywith God. with God, though with a vafkdifference. We call Gods Wifdome, power, ho- line ffe fupernaturall, becaufe ie tranfcends the fphere of the Creature , though to God it be natural ; fo Chrifts power to work miracles was natural to him, though fupernaturall to us : Now in this new Creature there is a rude draught, and tome imperfefl lineaments of this; Beyee holy sea lam holy; and he purificar lfimJelf, evenas God is pare. As God loveth allthings, anddot all things co the glory of God, fo loth this Creature refer all tohim, it loveth wholly co him ; and as all the fireams empty themfelves into the fra, fo doe they all their glory, welfare and ad- vantage into the honour of God. As all comes horn him, fo they return all to him : Thus they alto learn of Chrifl,who is the creature of all fupenratural perfe- &ions, not onely hismiracles, but his graces were above our humane ftrength; His Patience, his meekneffe, his humility, his zeal, his obedience to the death: all thefe demonlrated him to !be the Sonof God ; and therefore in this we are to thew his image and hkenefle. The Qualities In tire rext place let ns confider the qualitiesandpropertiesof this ne* Creature; and properties and fide the excellency andperfeftion of it rs very obfervable, it beinga participation of the New- ofthe divine Natnre,as Peter Riles u, a Ter.l,4. and herebywe are like not Angels Creature. but God hlmfelf. The Schoolmen do ordinarily determine, that grace is more f. A pofthi noble and rfta than anyCreature : neither the Sun, or the Heavens, or anyCrea- divine oftur divine nature. cure in the World is comparable toits for they have onely a natural) pecFe@íon, this a moral! : Yea grace in the foul, they fay, is more excellent andnoble than the foulit felt; and if the foulof a man be moreworth than a thoufànd worlds, what is
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