Lifè.'s Qriirzal. t am the life,faith Chrift for whofoever belicveth in me,and fo isreaored to fpiritual life,he (hall neverdie ; he thall never die, tofpeakproperly;fothe (hall never perifh, he (hallnever die,this life shall never be taken from him,ueither here nor hereafter; not here, for he shall continue to live the life of;grac.e: not hereafter, for though the body (hall die, yet this feparation of the body from:the foul, it is not foproperly a death, as a paflàge to, life; a paffage from the life of grace, to the life of glory. And this body all). that is feparated from the foul, it Shall be quicknedagain, and (hall be railedup to live for ever; thereforehe that believeth in me, fha11 never die. Thus you fee the words expounded. , Now from the firf}member of this Propofition, Iam the Refurretlion ; and the Exposition, and confirmationofitin thefe words, a that believeth inme, though he were dead, lit füall be live. Hence the pointofDoftrine I will obferve is this ; that, refus Chrift is the Fountain, and Author of all lrfe. He is ableto give and reftore life to thofe thatare dead; He isthe Refurreftion. Now, whereas there is a double death, anda double Life, andconfequently a double Refurre&ion ; we muff underftand that Chrift i.sthe Author of both : in thisplace we are not to exclude either. Therefore we will endeavour to expound this ge- neral do&rine in thefe three particulars. Firft, Chrift bath fach a quickning power in him,thaf he is able to raife up thofe dead bodies ofhis,thatnow lie in the Grave. Seconly, Chrift hath fuch a quickning power in him, that he is able to raife up the foul that is dead in fins, to a fpiritual life. Thirdly, we will thewyou why Chrift,asin thisplace,fo elfewhere,doth cxprefs both the fiate of the faithful here , and their &(ate after, under the faine phrafe of fpeech, he comprehends bothunder this term, Iam the Refurreftion. For the firft of thefe,Chrift is the Author of life,he bath fuchaquickening power in him, that heis ableto raife up the dead bodiesofhusout oftheir graves. Wewill (peak firft ofthis Refurre&ion that is of the body, though it be later in time ; -Be. esufe that naturally we are more apt to conceiveof the death, and live of the body, thanof the deathand lifeofthe foul. And fecondly;becaufe that the nnderftanding ofthis Refurre&ion of the body,will givelight to the underflandingofthe other,of the foul And here firft we will (hew briefly what this Refurreftion of the body is. And then provethat Chrift is the Author, and the fountainof it. Firlt the Refurreftionof the body is this, whenthe foul that was aftuallyfeparate from the dead body, returns again to its proper body,and beingunited to it,theman rifethupout of the Grave, with an immortal, incorruptible body,to lead a glorified life. This is theRefurreftion of the body. Now that Chrilt isthe Author of thisKe(iirretion of the body it isevident: For as Chrift himfelfby his own power,raifed himfelf being dead-in the Grave, 7ohn a. 19. faith Chrift, defiroy this Temple, andin threedayesIwill raife it again, fpeaking -ofthe Temple ofhis body. And fo again, ,yob. to.i8. Ihave power, faith Chrift, to lay dórin my life,. and to tall it up again : fo likewife Chrift by his quickning fpiric he will raife up the 'bodies of thofe that are now dead in thegrave,as we may fee, yob. 5. z8,29. Marvel not at this, faith Chrift, for the botar is coming inwhich tillthat are in the grave,' [ballhearthsvoice of the Son ofman, and /hall comeforth, they thathave done good to the refurreclion of life, &c. In this regard Chrift is called the firfifruits of them thatpeep. For as the firft fruits beingoffered to God, did fanftifie thewhole crop ; and theowner hereby was alluredof theMellingof God upon all the refs: fo Chrift isthe fieft fruits of the dead, and his Refurreftion it is anaffdrauce to the faithful of their Refurreftion, and the caufe of it; both an aflu- rance.s pledgeof it,and likewife a caufeof it. Therefore herein Chrift the fecund Adam;is oppofed to the firft Adam: As the frrit fldamwho was the rootof ally ian-kind did communicate death, and mortality Fff,a, to 401 Dea. Jetas Chritt the Fountain and Authoto all life. I. Ofthe body. Refutreetion of the body. what. 1 Cor. I$. 20.
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