to the E P H E S I A N S. therefore in that refpeCl: there was forne kind of fellowfl1ip, they partaking of~ the fame things that we did, though not we, that they dtd. Serrn. Xh And then again if there were not a Fellowfutp, nor ever fl10uld have been~ (and we have n~ ground at all to think fo that I know of;) yet this is certain, there wa! a peace arnongfl them, in thefe two Kingdoms of G?d, of which he \vas Monarch and Lord, though they rername'd dtlhnCl: and dlVIded; yet not– withflanding they were at peace, they were not at hoflility, they were gathered in peace under one Lord tl1en, both Men and Angels, and fo united unto God; and they did glory m the good of Man certamly, as they fung at the Birth of Chrifl, Peace 011 Earth, andgood wit~ towards mm i they fuouted when Man was made, if they fl10utcd when the roundanons ot the Earth were latd. So that you fee there was a common Umon, both to God, and fome way among themfelves there w>s a Peace· at leaf\, But you'will fay unto me, This firfl Union, was this in Chrifl? The wo~d [agai 11) you wtll urge wtll•rnply fo much, they are gathered agam to~ Head m one in Chrifl; was he the Head th<il l::oth of Angels and Men 10 Creation1 . For that I anfwer Firfl, It was not abfolutely necelfary (though the force of the word will hold.) They were gathered unto one Head, God; for in the 1 Cor. 1 '·l• you !hall find that God is called the Head of Chrifl, and fo ofall thingselfe, of all Men and Angels; he is the Supream Head of all, above the reO:. They were gathered uoto one Head, God, that is certain then. But that they fl10uld be gathered firfl: unto Jefus Chrifi, ~~a He~d, _as God-A1au, that is not necelfa-. ry, ·rt is true that the fceond gathenng ts 10 httn, as a Head. . . . Yet in the Second place, there ts much tn the current of the Scnpture ( whtch I fl1all have, fornctime or other, opportunity to allcdge) that even Jefus ChriO: was the Cor~ur-{fo11e of the Creauon, both to Men and Angels. If he would not have been aCreature, God would not have made a Creature clfe: the mean– ing of it is not as if that he flwuld have been incarnate, if Man had never fain ; but that neither Men nor Angels fuould have beeri made, if Chrifl had not been to have been incarnate, which was at once ordained together with him. I could name many places for it. Rev.:;.r4- !peaking of Chrifi, Thefe thi11gs faith the Amm, the fatthfut and true Wtt1ujS, the begi1mi11g of the Creatioil of God. You have the like, Colo{. t. He reckoneth up all the u(esof God-M,m, and he faith, ven6. That by hi"'. ali thi11gs were created, viji61e and i11viji6te, (there is the firfl gathenng unto !urn,) and then, ver. 18, '9· he fpeaks of reconciling all things in Heaven and on Earth, which is the fecond gathering, and the fame with that in the Text. But then another Qyeflion will be this. Was Jefus Chrifl the Head of the Creation ! What Sriprure is there for that? • For that I will give you but this place, 1 Cor.1 r·l· ~c. Saith he I would have you know (for perhaps it was a thing they did not fo muchconftder) That the He,td of every"'"" u Chrifl, the Head o( tbe wornall u the ma11, and the Head of Chrifl u God. He fpeaks of Chrifl: as God-Man; for fo only God is faid to be h•.s head. He cloth not only fay, he IS the head of the eleCl: Angels and Men, but of every man,and rh~t by the Law of CreatiOn: for as the Man by Creation is the head of the Woman, fo is Jefus Chrifl the head of the Man; therefore ver.8,g. faith he, The ma" :za> 1101 created for the woma11, but the womaufor the ma11. He fpeaks of Creat1on exprelly: So we elfewh~re rcad,AI/ thi11gs <:;ere created 6)' Chrt{f, a11dfor Chnf/, thatts, by vertue of h1m.For as he was the Lamb (lai11 from tht 6egimJi11g of tbe World, that he might redeem it, (as he did thofe that were before he was mcarnate;) fo vertually he might have an influence into the Creation a!fo, he being to be incarnat~. So now (my Brethren) you fee the firfl gathering how it was; But then you w.Il fay, 1f he WO! thw head 10 Creation (there is this difficulty yet,) wiLy did they not then fland ? Why did not he preferve the101 being their head, by virtue of being the head of the Creation alfo ? '
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