An Expofition of the Epifole ~ And then another fcope the Apoftle hath, (as appeareth by the 1) and 16th Sermon Verfes) is to provoke them to Thankf~lnefs. He fatth, that he thanked God XXIII. for the worl< of Grace in them, whereby they had obtained an lnberitauce, ~ verfe 1 3. Now, to the end that they may be thankful, and thankful to purpofe, be prayeth that they might kno1f this great Power that thus wrought Faith in them, whereby they. were interefied in that Inheritance, th~t thus they might be thankful alfo. Dtd you but know (fatth he) what Power lt was that works in you that believe, you would be afionilhed with the Love of God toward you, you would be overcome with it, how thankful would you be! It is Auj/i,'s Obfervation upon this Epbtf1, 16. he argueth from it becaufe Paul gave thanks, If God's Power, faith he, were not in it, in turning a man to God; and were it not the cafi of his own Will, and yet the Will o! man W<!rk freely too, how could a man heartily give thanks unto God? There is one abfurdity put upon his Opinion. Say they, If you do not hold that the Will of man cafieth it freely, to what end are all Exhortations made by God to man? But on the other fide, If the Power of God do not cafi it, and yet the Will work freely too, why are thanks given to God, as the Author of all, more than to man's own Will? And the truth is, there would lefs abfurdity fall upon the other, than upon this. So now you have two for,ts of Arguments difpatched; Firfi, from the Letter of the words. Secondly, that this agreeth with the (cope of the Apofile here in the words before. I will name one more, and that is a great one, and it is the Coherence of thefe words with thofe that follow after, that the Apofile doth here evidently mean the exceedinggreatt:efs of' bi; power in convening a man at firfi, that he takes this in eminently in his aim. To make this plain unto you. After that the Apofile had difcourfed of the Power of God in raiji11g up Cbrijl from the dead, from the 2oth verfe to the 23. Having faid likewife, that the fame Power works in us, that wrought in Chrifi when l1e was thu• raifed. Mark what he faith in the fecond Chapter, verfe r. and verf. 6. Atzdyou who were dead i11 fitzs mzd trtjpaffrs, where itz time pajlye walked, bath be quick11ed: Even wbm we were dead i11jins, bath be quiclmed us (fo verfe,·.) together with Cbrijl, and hatbraifed tu up together, and madetzs fit together itz heavmly places i11 Chri[t .7efm. Here the Apofile plainly declares, that his fcope and meaning is, fpeak– ing of the exceeding greatmjs of power that "orks in thofe that believe, the fame that wrought in Chrifi m railing him from the dead , and fet him at his own rigb_t hand in the Heavenly places; the fame Power, faith he, bath quick– ned ) 'Oil, when you were dead in fins and trejpaf[ts, the fame Power, faith he, bath raifed you up, and fet you with Chrifi, your Head, in Heavenly places. When he faith, Te bath be q11ick11ed (as he doth atthe firfi and fifth Verfes of the fecond Chapter) his meaning is, he bath put life into you, put a principle of godlinefs into you. 2 Pet.I.J· Accordiug as his 'Divitte Power batbgive~~zmto 11s all things thatpertaitz tmto l~fe alldgodtitzefs. Now, to fhut up this Difcourfe, the Apofile from the 19th Verfe of this Cha· pter to the 6thVerfe of the fecond Chapter, he faith thefe two things, and all is fummed up in them (to give you the Coherence, and mark ir,) Firfi, he layerh down a general Propofttion in the 19th Verfe, That they may know what is the exceedillg greattu[s of hzs power ill them that believe, accordillg totbe work– ing of his mighty power, which he wrought in Cbrijl, wbm bt razfed him from death to Glory. Here is the general Propofition, that God lheweth the fame power in them that believe, tha~ he !hewed in Chrlfi in raifing him. Well, there are two enlargements of tbts; F1rfl, he telleth and explaineth what a great Power was !hewed in Chrifi, and that he doth from the 21 Verfe to the end of the Chapter, how he was rmfed11p, a11d Jet far above nltPri11cipalitin andPowers, and above every Name that isttamed ill Heavm and i11 Earth. Then Secondly, he explaineth how it was, and when this fame Power wrought in them that believe; Atzdye (faith he) bath be rp~ick11ed, wbm;•ewere dead i11 fins mtd tre(paUrs, together with him, rmd bath rmfed;·otl up, (not onlywill, but bathdone it.) Therefore evidently the Apofile fpeaks of the Converfionof Believers,
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