4?4 1.Impufctt. Simife. ,; Flewnefs of life expreffed by life in three refpefis. t. The princi- pleof life. TheVeathofSin, and Î`tIatural death imperfe'c,and but begun is this, as V% hen there is a great blow gi_ venwith an axe to therootof a tree, whereupon certainly it will wirher,and die, and be ruade altogether unfruitful for the time to come: though for the prefent it have ieavcs upon it, and though for the prefent all the fruit that is on it benot ,an ite (hookoff, yet now the tree is Paid to be dead, becaufc there is ablow given at the root, whereupon it will wither and certainly die. Soa man is laid to be dead, when 1 he bath a deadly wound given him, though he benot now dead ; though he may ihr, and live after, and perhaps do fomehurt to hiin that woundedhim > yetl're is dead,becaufe he is irrecoverably wounded, every one that looks on hiin will fay hers dead. So asfoon asa man is in Chrift, by vertue of his union with Chrift, there is fuch a blow given to the root of(in ; not in the judgment only,but in the affeftions alfo; fo as it never recovers its ftrength again, to bringforth fruit in that abundance i as before ; and it alway withers, and decays more and more, till it be quite re. . moved. Now, as it is in thiscafe with a tree ; will you knowwhen it is dead ? take it in the Spring. All the trees in Winter feem to be dead, but corne in the Spring, and in Summer, and,then ifa man fee there arc noleaves, ifhe fee nofruit uponthe tree,1 now he concludesit is dead indeed :- becaufe itbrings not forth fruit in the feafonof fruit.- So, take a man, when there is an occafion, an opportunity,to turn to folly ; ; when upondeliberation and jtrdgem.ent,he may confider of that opportunity toman- nage it for the fervice of fin, it will appear now if he bedead, he will not in fuchan occafion yield, butat Inch a time efpecially refift fin, at fuch atime hewill not bring forth the fruit of fn. Lookwhat theSpring is to the tree, thatis occafiontothe fnrfulnefs ofmans heart. Indeed when fin takes a man upon difadvantage, upon unequal terms, that.hc deliberates not,and confiders not what he isdoing t as David faith,/faidin myhaft I thenmany times fm prevails, and bindshim, as a thief doth thematter ofthe honfe, I hand and foot: yet neverthelefswhen he well weighs, and confiders things, at fuch a time it will appear that fin is dead. Thisyou fee 'sow fitly the termshold to ex- prefs the changeof a Chriftian, his judgment is right,hecondemns finas death,in the purpofeand covenant ofhis heart whereby he is bound toGod,he difpofetb it faons its dominion andrule, that what it doth now is as a thiefbyhealth, that furprizetha man in his fleep ; And it hath its deadly.wound, whereupon it withers,anddeeayes, and at laft in the fight ofall men, and at fuch a time, when if there were any life it would appear, at fuch a time it fhall appear that fin is dead. Thus you fee the firth expreifion opened,the change from fin by death ; you are dead to fin. Now take the fecond expreffion, youare alive to god, that expreffcth the fccond part offanEtification, that is, thequickningofa man to newnefs oflife. l t is with thee now,as with one that was dead,and is alive,thete is fuch a change in thee. And how is this expreffed by life ? Thus ; in three refpeftsthis change is fitly expreffed by life. The fief is this,you know life it confifts in the union ()fa man,with the principle of life? when there is a union between the body, and the foul, here is life. Now though therearebodies, and fpirits, yet the bodies livenot by thofe fpirits, except they beunited with them : therefore when the foul is feparated from the body, the bodydies,and the manis laid eso more tobe alive : fo herein this fence,when there is a union between the foul of aman, and the principle offpiritual life,then there is that changewrought, whencehe is raid to be alive. Now the principle of fpiritual life is only Chrift ; fo you fee here in the Text, you are alive to God through our Lardy-elmChriJ, when there is a union between Chriftandyou. Andhow is that? his by an influence from Chrift into the foul,and that isthe mightyworkof the Spi_ rit ofGod, as you fed lob. 6.6;. It is the Spirit that quickneth, faith our Saviour. Thegreat work that is wrought by the Spiritin quickning aman,is thework ofFaith., 2Kow ¡live, faith the Apoftle, byfaith in the Son ofGod,tbaedicdfor me, Gal z so. Now when therein facha union between Chrift and aman, thenhe lives ; there is fuch a change in him,as there in in life. Therefore belovedrthis change is notin any that profefs the knowledge of Chcift,and havenot yet union with Chrift. It is not enough + x
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=