rv1 SERMON on this of Male and Female when he faid it) he intended it ofCbriftand his Chur h whom then he had in his Eye, and had fet up as the Pattern ofall. So as ind~ J our Lord and Saviour Jefus Chnfi, was the great Pattern which God had fet e and Man made at firfi, was but as a little Pil.l:ure taken thereby. Therefore y~~ !hall find, in Heb. 1. that as Adam was the Image ofGod, fo our Lord and Saviour Chrifi, is fatd to be the exprefs Image ofh1s Perfon (ver. 3·) and the brightneiS of his Glory. So that fook now how the Image ofa King in his Son, or how the, Image ofa Man m a Statue ofBratS, fvom Head to Foot, doth dilfer from his I– mage in a little Tablet which you carry upon your Breafr; fo do1h the Image of God in Chrifi, differ from that Image which he !tamped upon the Heart of11dam even m Innocency. There was a threefold Image of God in the Perfon of Jefus Chrift, which ex– ceeded that Image of God in the Heart of .Ada»•. There was lid\:, that elfential Image. as he is the fecond Perfon in the Trinity; which is as invilible as God h1mfelf. ' But then, fecondly, in Chrill:, ••he is God-Man, in whom the FulneiS of the Godhead dwells, there is an Image of God exceeds all the Image of God in the Angels, or in Man at firfi ; and why cloth it exceed it? Do but you conlider with your [elves, if you were to draw the Pil.l:ure, the Image of a Man is there not more in the Face, in the Head, than there is in all the Body? So' there is more in our Head, Chrifr, than there is in all Saints and Angels, than there is in the Church it [elf, much more than was in .Adam,. If Jefus Chrift (as I then f.1id ) had but only been fet up m Heaven, for us to gaze upon his Perfon, and upon all the Excellencies of God that do lhine in him, there is yet fuch a Bright· netS of Glory fhines therein, as doth not in all the Creatures, nor could do, tho God had made never {o many. You !hall fee what David faith, in Pfal. 17.tdt. foretelling of his [eeing Chrft after the R.efurrel.l:ion : As for me, (faith he) I !vi/I behold thy Face in Righteoufnefs, I jha/1 be fatisjied, wben I awakt, with thine Image. His meaning is this, I comfort my felf, that when I !hall awake, that is, when I fhall rile again, ( for you know that Death is compared to a Sleep, and therefore he expreiTeth riling agairi by being awakened ) Ifba/1 be fatisjied with lhine Image, that is, with thy Son Chrifr. Thirdly ; Befides the Image of God which lhines in the Perfon of Cbrifr, which we (hall fee in Heaven when we awake, as D.ivid fhall do, there is an Image of God which fhines-in the Works of Jefus Chrifi, which he did here be– low ; there is an Image of a\1 the Attributes of God, which breaks forth in the Works of Chrifl's Mediation, and in all his Offices. As there is the Glory ofthe Sun, and the Glory of the Beams of the Sun: fo there is the Glory that is in the Perfon of Chrifi, and the Image'of God lnat is there; and there is the Image of God that ihines in his Beams, in the Works of Mediation which he bath done, and the Fruits and Benefits of it, in the Truths that have been told of him in the Gofpel. And as Jefus Chrift is a middle Perfon between God and us, fo theStGry of his Works of Mediation put together, prefents us wuh a middle Image of God, between that in his Perfon, and what is in the Creatures belides. So as indeed God did [et him up as an Image by which he made the little Pi&ure of .A– dam. Let 111 makt Man (faith he) accordi11g to our Image, and fo .Adamwas bot a Shadow and Type of what was in Chrifr. Thert is a new Edition ofall the At– tributes of God, which arifeth out ofthe Story ofChrifr: And though as God's Perfon is more excelleht than his Works, fo the Image ofGod in Chrifi's Perfon, is more excellent than thatImage ofGod which fhines in his Works ; yet even in the Works ofChrifl there is fuch an Image ofGod, as excells the Image ofGod in Angels, or in all the Creatures belides. Go take an Holy Man, there is the Image ofGod in his Heart, and there is the Image ofGod in his Works ofRighteoufnefs, which he cloth according to the Principles in his Heart, and ofGod'sLaw w.ritten there. Therefore the newMan wh1ch 1s created after the Image ,ofGod., IS not only f.1id to confifl in an inward renewing of the Spirit, but in putting on Works of Holinefs, and putring away Lying and the like Sins. For the lml!ge 10f <God lies in Works, ., well a~ in a Man's Heart. Anfwerably oow, thcreiHire. Image · of
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=