46 GOD'S ELECTION. are appointedto be conformable to his image, to be heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ, and possessors of the inheritance; Rom. viii. 17-29. Is there a book of life written ? It is the Lamb's book of life : The names of all the chosen sons and daughters of God were written down in this book, but his name stands first there in divine characters, as the first chosen, and the head of all the rest ; for before the foundation of the world, God gave the care of all these persons to his best beloved Son. Hence it is you find our Saviour so often speaking of those who were given him by the Father, out of this world ; John xvii. 2. " Thou hast given thy Son power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him ;" which the twentieth verse of this chapter teaches us to apply to all who should believe on him, through the wordof the apostles, as well as to theapostles themselves. And in verse 24. "All that the Fatherhath givenme, mustbewith me whereI am."And John vi. 37. " All that the Father bath givenme, shall come unto me, that they may have life." Hence alsoarise those glorious expres- sions of St. Paul ; 2 Tim. i. 9. " God bath saved us, andcalled us with a holy calling; not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus, before the world began ;" Tit. i. 1, 2. St. Paul speak- ing of the faith of God's elect, he adds, " in hope of eternal life, which God that cannot lie, hath promised before the world began :" Here is grace given to men, before thebeginning of the world ; but it is given more immediately to Christ their head, in trust for them : Here is a promise of eternal life made beforethe creation ; but it was made to Christ, for them, before they had a being. Examples of this kind are common among men, when one person is made trustee of an estate for many children, or heirs that are yet unborn, and he stands engaged to make them possessors of it in successive seasons. I have put all these texts together, that we may observe the whole current of scripture running this way, and leading our thoughts to this great doctrine, viz. that as God has chosen his people before the foundation of the world to holiness and salva- tion, so he has given them for this purpose into the hands of his Son. Nor did the Son of God refusethis glorious trust, butchear- fully undertookthe work : So he isrepresented in the Old Testa- ment ;' Ps. xl. 7. " Lo, I come in the volume; or rather in the beginning of thebook it is written of me; I delight to do thywill, Omy God. Whether this book be the secret book of life, or the public book of scripture, I will not here determine ; bothare true. And so it is written also, in the history of the life of Christ; for he speaks oftenwith sacred pleasure, that hecame to do his Fa-
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