Serm. LXVI. and hu Religion confider'd. or new Birth, by theOperation of the Spirit of God ; and upon account of their RefurreEtion to Eternal Life, by the Power of the fame Spirit. Upon account of our Regenerationand becoming Chriftians by the Power and Operation ofthe Holy Spirit of God upon our Minds, we are Paid to be the Chit- drenof God, as being regenerated and born again by the HolySpirit of God, And this is our fiat Adoption. And for this Reafon the Spirit of God conferred upon Chriftians at their Baptifm, and dwelling and refiding in them afterwards, is call'd the Spirit of Adoption; Rom. 8. a q. re have received theSpirit of Adop- tion, whereby you cry, AbbaFather ; And Gal. 4. 5, 6. Believers are laid to re- ceive the Adoption of Sons; God having fent forth the Spirit of his San into their Hearts, crying Abba Father ; That is, all Chriftians, for as much as they are rege- nerated by the Holy Spirit of God, and having the Spirit of God dwelling in them, maywithConfidence call God Father, and look upon theta-delves as his Children. So the Apofile tells us, Rom. 8. 14. That as many as are led (or ailed) by the Spirit ofGod, are the fops of God. But though we are Paid to be Children of God upon account of our Regenera- tion, and the Holy Spirit of God dwelling and refiding in Chriftians; yet we are eminently fo, upon account cif our Refurredion to Eternal Life, by the mighty Power of God'sSpirit. This is our final Adoption and the Confumation of it; and therefore Rom. 8. te. this is called the glorious Liberty of the Sons of God, becaufe by this we are for ever deliver'd from the Bondage of Corruption; and by way of Eminency, the Adoption, via. the Redemption of our Bodies. We are indeed the Sons of God before, upon account of the regenerating and fan&ifying Virtue of the Holy Ghoft5 but finally and chiefly upon account of our Refurreûion by the power of the Divine Spirit. So St. John tells us, that then we !hall be declared to be the Sons of God, after another manner than we are now: t yo. 3. i. Behold what manner of Love the Father bath beltowed upon us, that we fhould be called the Sons of God. Now we are the Sons of God, (that is, Our Adoption is begun in our Regeneration and Sanllificarion) but it doth not yet appear what we fhall be we thall be much more eminently fo at the Refurre&ion. We know, that when he /hall appear, we (hall be like him. But the molt exprefs and remarkable Text to this purpofe, is, Luke 20. 36. where good Men, after the RefurreEtion, are for this Reafon Paid to be the Chil- dren of God, becaufe they are the Children of the Refurreelion. But they who fhall be accounted worthy to obtain that World, and the Refurrellion from the Dead, neither marry, nor are given in Marriage, neither can they die any more; for theyare equal to the Angels, and are the Children of God, being the Children of theRefurrellion. For this Reafon they are [aid to be the Children of God, becaufe they are railed by him to a new Life; and to be made Partakers of that which is promifed to them, and referved for them. For all that are railed by the Power of God, out of the Dolt of the Earth, are not therefore the Children of God ; but only they that have part in the bleffed Refurreftion to Eternal Life, '' and do inherit the Kingdom pre- pared for them. Not thofe who are tailed to a perpetual Death, and the Refur- rellion of Condemnation. Thefe are not the Children of God; but the Children of Wrath, and the Children of Perdition. But the Refurreftion of the Jult, is the full and final Declaration, that we are the Children of Gad; not only becaufe we are reltored to a newLife, but becaufe at the Refurreótion, we are admitted to the full Poffeffion of that bleffed Inheri- tance which is purchafed for us, and promifed to us. And the Spirit of God which is conferred upon Believers in their Regene- ration, and afterwards dwells and refides in them, is the Pledge and earneft of our final Adoption, by our Refurreftion to Eternal Life ; and upon this account, and no other, is Paid to be the Earnefl of our future Inheritance, and the Seal and Confirmation of it. Eph. 1. 13. In whom alfo, after that ye believed, ye were fealed by the Holy Spirit of Promife, which is the earneft of our Inheritance, until the redemption of the purchafed Poon ; that is the Holy Spi- rit of God which Chriftians were made Partakers of, upon their fincere Belief of the Chriftian Religion, is the Seal and Earneft of our Refurreïtion to E. ternal 479
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