The Bowels of Tender Mercy Sealed in the Everlasting Covenant

SECT. II.

2. Quest. WHether Faith only be the Condition of the Covenant? Is not Holiness required? Is not Repentance? Is not new obedience?

Sol. For answer unto this, we must distinguish

1. Between the Covenant, and persons in the Covenant: If you speak of persons in the Covenant, certainly holiness is required of them (ye shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy; and be ye holy, for I am holy) and holiness is promised to all the people in Covenant: And holiness is wrought in all the people of the Covenant: All the people of God are a holy people; but though holiness be in the Covenanted, yet it is not in the condition of the Covenant: God doth not say, If you be holy, then I will be your God and accept of you, but if you believe; when you are brought into the Covenant, then you are made holy; but that which brings you into the Covenant, that which God insists with you for so as to be your God, is faith. Receive my Christ, believe on him, and I will be your God.

2. Though Faith be the only condition as to entrance in the Cvenant, yet this faith will bring you to holiness as a fruit of the Covenant. For this faith brings you to Christ, to union with him, and communion with him in holiness: As soon as faith brings you into union with Christ, Christ makes you partakers of that unction of holiness wherewith he himself is anointed.

3. There is a difference 'twixt the persons to whom promises are made, and the condition upon which those promises are performed. Indeed you read of many promises made to broken-hearted and penitent persons, but the application of them all is only by Faith: The forgiveness of sin cannot be applied by any hand but that of faith which seed the promise of it, and seeks the performance of it by and for Christ.

4. For newness of obedience, this is a consequent effect, and not an Autecedent condition; for it is impossible to see fruits till you find life: And besides this, that faith which lets you into Covenant, is a very fruitful Faith, it graffs you into such a root which can enable you (and will do so) for fruits of life, as the first Adam doth his Branches for fruits of death: So then it is faith, and faith only which is the condition of the Covenant, yet it is such a faith, which though it takes no graces or works with it as competitors in the nature of a condition with it, yet it doth infer and draw after it all these Graces, and all good works, as Austin said, Bona opera sequuntur justificatum, licet non praecedunt justificandum, &c.

SECT. III.

3. Quest. WHy is Faith singled out to be the condition of the Covenant of Grace?

[Sol.] 1. There is nothing whatsoever which doth so fit and answer a Covenant of Grace as Faith doth; for in this Covenant God deals in promises, and by a Mediator: And the promises are objects proper to faith: As precepts are to obedience, and threatenings to fear, so are promises to faith: And for Jesus Christ the Mediator, deal with him you cannot but by faith.

Object. Indeed love deals with Christ as well as faith (Christ is the object of our love, and of our faith) But then here

• 1. That love deals with Christ in the strength of faith; first faith deals, and then love deals with Christ.
• 2. Though love deals with Christ, yet it is another way than faith: Love is bringing into Christ, but Faiths work is receiving all from Christ, and resting on Christ, &c.

2. There is nothing but Faith which will, or can acknowledge a free Covenant: And all as freely given unto us: Set up anything but faith, and that will set up us, and pull down grace: Any thing but faith must be something in ourselves; and something in ourselves will deprive grace of the glory, yea it will deny grace; but faith will do none of this, because faith is a mere gift of grace, and faith receives all as free gift, finds nothing in us at all, but rece • ves all, and lives wholly on the grace of God in Christ.

3. It is of faith, that the promises might be sure; so the Apostle, Rom. 4. 16. Adam had a Covenant as well as we (and therefore some observe that he had one sacrament of death, & another of life, to assure him of death in case he sinned, as well as to assure him of life in case he obeyed) because it was made upon condition of works: And truly if Adam who was so every w • y furnished, could not hold up a Covenant upon a Condition of works, much less should we do it, being now utterly broken by him: But now the promise of • ife being made to us upon condition of faith, it is therefore made sure; for • aith builds upon a sure foundation, and faith hath a sure word of promise.

4. The Covenant of grace excludes all boastings in ourselves, Rom. 3. 27. and therefore faith is necessary for us; for boasting is excluded, not by the Law of works, but by the Law of Faith, Ibid. If you should put in works for the condition, then the sinner would be ready to boast, All this I have kept from my youth. This have I done, and that have I done, and I never offended thy will; the wages is due debt to me: O but this must never be, &c.

5. There are such things undertaken in the Covenant, as nothing but faith can tell what to make of them. I will forgive your iniquities, and will give you a new heart, and I will heal your backslidings, and I will love them freely, and I will forgive your sins for mine own sake. These are absolute Mysteries without faith.

Before I proceed any further in this Point, I would make some useful Application of what I have delivered already. Is Faith the condition of the Conant?

SECT. IV.

1. Use THen how are men mistaken! How have they deluded themselves! how must they return ashamed, who have nursed up their fancies and presumptions about the mercy of God, and the many promises of God about salvation, and other blessings, yea and about God himself, what a good, and gracious, and merciful God he is, and so will be to them?

O but sirs! There is a condition in the Bond. God makes many sweet and comfortable promises, O but there is a condition; And God saith he will be such a gracious and merciful God, &c. O but there is a condition; and he saith that he will save, and give eternal life; O but there is a condition, a condition that you think not of, a condition that you never attained unto: Faith is the condition of the Covenant: You must be believers in Christ, and then and so you must claim the promises, you must have an interest in Christ, or else you can never have an interest in the privileges of the Covenant: you have owned the promised mercy, and the promised salvation in the Covenant; O but you have not all this while owned Christ by saith, and therefore you have all this while deluded your souls.

The Apostle faith all men have not faith; and the Prophet saith, Who hath believed our report? and Christ himself saith, He that believeth shall be saved; and he that believes not shall be damned. Why brethren! If Faith be the condition of the Covenant, If faith be necessary to bring us into the Covenant; Then no unbeliever is yet in the Covenat, for no unbeliever hath faith: No, no, God is not the God of the dead, but of the living; and mercy is not the portion of unbelievers, but of believers, and salvation by Christ is interested only on them who believe on Christ: And thou art (to this day) an unbeliever, thou art utterly destitu • e of faith. And there are six things which show that thoū art so.

• 1. One is the unsensiblenesse of thy sinful and wretched condition, and of thy need which thy soul hath of Christ▪
• 2. A second is, the exceeding ignorance in thy heart of Christ, as the Mediator of the Covenant.
• 3. A third is, the exceeding pride, and confidence on thi •• own righteousness, and on thine own works.
• 4. A fourth is, the continual neglects and disesteem of the Gospel of Christ.
• 5. A fifth is, the fruitless reception of the many offers of Christ.
• 6. A sixth is, the incomplyance of thy heart with the Lord Jesus, and averseness, and refusing of subjection unto Christ. Thou wilt not have him to reign over thee. Ah poor creature! How hast thou befooled thyself! and deluded thy soul with a vain presumption of interest in the Covenant, whilst as yet thou hast not faith to interest thy soul in Christ.

2. Use. Is saith of union the condition of the Covenant! Then as you have reason to look to yourselves, because all men have not • aith; so you have reason to look to your faith, for you may have a faith, which yet is not a faith of union: That is a considerable passage of Christ in Joh. 15. 2. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh away. verse 6. If a man abideth not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered, and men gather them and cast them into the fire and they are burned: A branch may be in a tree two ways: One is by a mere corporeal adherence by cleaving and sticking to the body of the tree: and so every dead branch is in the tree, as well as those that live; such branches have no union, they are dead and cut off, and cast away into the fire. Another is by a real participation of the life, sap, and influence of the root: That which makes us to be in Christ any kind of way, is Faith: and according to the differences of faith are those differences of being in Christ. You may read in Scripture of a dead faith, James 2. 26. This dead faith takes in an external profession of Christ, and a self aiming dependence on Christ to keep us from Hell, and get us to Heaven. But for all this there is no real union with Christ. And we read too of a lively and unfeigned faith, of a faith which joins us and Christ in one Spirit, which graffs us indeed into Christ and makes us partakers of the life and grace of Christ. O where is this faith? this living faith? this engraffing faith? this uniting faith is the only precious faith, and the only faith which brings us into the Covenant, and the only faith which can look on God as our God, and promising mercy and salvation unto us? If you have not this faith, you have no interest in Christ; and if you have no interest in Christ, you have no interest in God, nor in the Covenant of God: You cannot own God for yours, nor can you own the promises of God as yours, as made unto you.

But here now occur two serious questions.

• 1. One is, How we may know whether our faith be a faith of union which unites us to Christ.
• 2. The second is, How we may attain unto the faith of union, which only brings us into the Covenant.

SECT. V.

1. Quest. HOw we may know whether our Faith be a Faith of real union with Christ? a faith which unites us to Christ indeed?

Sol. This is a most pertinent question, because our real interest in the Covenant of grace depends upon it, all depends upon it; out of Christ, and out of Covenant; in Christ, and in Covenant. And if your faith be an uniting faith, then Christ is yours, and God is yours, and all the good of the Covenant is yours.

Now there are five things which are to be considered about the faith of union, (or the faith which indeed unites us to Christ.)

• 1. The manner 〈◊〉 it is wrought in the heart.
• 2. The peculiar operations of it upon the soul in relation to this union.
• 3. The very act, or acts by which, and upon which the soul is indeed brought into union.
• 4. The qualities of this union by faith.
• 5. The choice influences or effects which do always attend that union with Christ by faith.

1. If your faith be a faith which unites you to Christ, Then it is the work and fruit of the spirit, and it is wrought by the Spirit in an uniting way.

1. It is the work of the Spirit of Christ: None doth or can raise and produce this faith, but the very Spirit of God, Col. 2. 12. Ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God who hath raised him from the dead: His mighty power is put forth to produce it, Ephes. 1. 19. 1 Cor. 2. 5. Your faith stands not in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. 2 Cor. 4. 13. We having the same Spirit of Faith. In all these places the Apostle speaks of that faith which interests your persons in Christ: This faith he calls the Demonstration of the Spirit, and of power, 1 Cor. 2. 4. and the power of God, and the operation of God, and the Spirit of Faith; and in Isa. 53. 1. The revealing of the Arm of God.

Consider this Faith in all the parts and degrees of it, you shall find that everyone of them comes from the Spirit of God.

Faith is sometimes styled knowledge, and believing knowing; why! the right knowledge of Christ is a fruit or work of the Spirit of God, Matth. 11. 25. Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto Babes.

Faith is sometimes styled acknowledgment, (Col. 2. 2. The acknowledgement of the Mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ.) And no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the holy Ghost, 1 Cor. 12. 3.

Faith, or believing is sometimes styled a coming unto Christ; and saith Christ himself, No man can come to me except the Father draw him, Joh. 6. 44. It is called a receiving of Christ, Joh. 1. 12. which ability to receive Christ depends only on the will of God, verse 13. Well then, uniting faith is the sole work of the Spirit of God, if any man be brought into Christ, and joined unto Christ, this work is wrought by the Spirit of Christ.

2. The spirit works this uniting Faith in an uniting way or manner; how is that will you say? Thus it is, when the Spirit doth work this faith in us, he doth it in a Gospel manner, the Gospel way is the uniting way, accompanying it all along, 1. By Evangelical light. 2. By Evangelical offers. 3. By Evangelical promises. 4. By Evangelical efficacy.

1. He lets in such a Gospel-light into the soul of a broken and troubled sinner, that be is now able to see, and to discern the wonderful grace of God in Christ; even the glories of Christ, the sealing, and anointing o • him to be the Mediator, and Redeemer, and Savior of sinners, and the life of the world, the Prince of peace, the only help and hope of them that are lost, Joh. 3. 16. The Gospel saith so, and the Spirit makes him to see it so. The people that walked in darkness have seen great l • ght, Isa. 9 2. Beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, 2 Cor. 3. 18.

2. When he hath let in such a light that the sinner is convinced of the infinite mercy and grace of God in Christ; Then he further enables the sinner to apprehend the singular kindn • ss of God in the offers of this Christ unto him (unto you is the word of this salvation sent, Acts 13. 26. and verse 38. Be it known unto you, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins) And the • pirit accompanies the Gospel in this offer. As the Gospel outwardly offers Christ to sinners, so doth the Spirit inwardly offer Christ to the heart, and secretl • • alls there, Come unto Christ, you are poor, and you are thirsty, and you are br ••• h, and bruised in heart. And such sinners as these doth Christ call to come unto him and live forever. He was anointed for you, and is sent to you.

3. The Spirit backs these offers and calls with express promises: for though the sinner be exceeding glad to find out Christ the Savior: yet he is exceeding doubtful whether he may close with Christ thus offering himself unto him: therefore herein (likewise) doth the Spirit appear towards the working of faith, viz. he doth clear up the promises of the Gospel, so that the poor sinner may be convinced and satisfied that Jesus Christ is contented and willing to be his, and that he may come, and be kindly and graciously accepted of Christ: Those passages, Him that comes to me I will in no wise reject, Joh. 6. 27. And let him that is athirst come, and whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely, Rev. 22 17. And a bruised reed will he not break, Matth. 12. 20. Come unto me all ye that are heavy laden, and I will give you rest, Matth. 11 28. All these and other promises and encouragements. are set home by the Spirit upon the heart of the poor sinner, so that he deemes that he hears Jesus Christ himself speaking alluring comforts unto his soul.

4. The Spirit rests not here, but proceeds further: For notwithstanding all this, yet the poor sinner finds himself without all strength, and saith he▪ I am not able to believe though I see this Christ, and his goodness, and his love, and his kindness, and his graciousness, yet I cannot believe, yet I cannot come to him, &c.

Now upon this there are two things more wrought by the Spirit in the heart of the poor sinner 1. One is Earn • st desires for faith. O Lord give me faith, persuade my heart bring in my heart, draw it to Christ, for Christ his sake. 2. The other is, The very gift or work of faith: The Spirit by his mighty power gives an ability unto the heart of the sinner to come to him to receive him and thu • uniting fa • th is wr • ught, namely by the Spirit of Christ accompanying and blessing the Gospel (as you have heard) unto the soul of a sinner: Therefore look well to yourselves in this; If your faith be not a faith which the Spirit of God works by the Gospel, it is a false faith; it is a faith of delusion, and not of union; it is a presumption of your own making, a mere imagination of your own: No faith will bring you to Christ, but that faith which comes from the Spirit of Christ.

2. That Faith which unites to Christ, hath always some particular operations upon the soul in relation to that union with Christ: For the faith (which is wrought by the Spirit of Christ) is no base quality, nor is it any dead quality; but it is Noble, High, and Active: Now there are three things which this faith doth work in everyone that hath it. 1. An exceeding appreciation or esteem of Christ. 2. A fervent desire to enjoy Christ. 3. A separation of the heart from everything that would hinder it from union with Christ.

1. If your faith be this saith of union, then it hath raised your hearts to exceeding high estimation of Christ; other people have no high, nor great thoughts of Christ. What is thy beloved more than another beloved, said they to the Church, Cant. 5. 9. There is no beauty in him that we should desire him, said they, Isa. 57. 2. Not this man, but Barabbas, said the Jews, Joh. 18. 40. The Farm and the Oxen are preferred before him, Luke 14. 18, 19. But unto you who believe he is precious, saith the Apostle, 1 Pet. 2. 7. Pretious faith makes us to look on Christ as precious. How did the Church look on Christ in that Cant. 5? why, As the chiefest of ten thousand. verse 10. As altogether lovely, verse 16. How did those Believers look on Christ in Joh. 1. 14? We beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten Son of the Father, full of Grace and Truth: How did Paul look on Christ? Phil. 3. 8. I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: Beloved! Never was there unbeliever •• o had high thoughts of Christ; and never was there sound believer but he h •• precious thoughts of Christ; the Apostle tells us as much, 1 Cor. 1. 23. We preach Christ crucified unto the Jews a stumbling-block, and unto the Greeks foolishness. verse 24. But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God: O sirs! The excellencies of Christ are hidden excellencies from the men of the world, and no eye can see them but the eye of faith; there must be a light shining in the heart to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ, 2 Cor. 4. 6. When faith is wrought, then a light is wrought to see the beauties of Christ, the beauty of his Person, the beauty of his Offices, the beauty of his Love, of his Death, of his Righteousness, of his Holiness, of his Peace, &c. the veil is removed, and we do with open face as in a glass behold the glory of the Lord, 2 Cor. 3. &c. So that none like Christ, he is the Pearl of great price; and nothing like Christ, no love like his, no enjoyment like the enjoyment of him, &c.

2. If your faith be this Faith of union, Then it hath raised in your hearts exceeding desires to enjoy Christ: I must have this Christ, I cannot live without this Christ: O Lord give me Christ, I have nothing if I have not Christ. There is nothing in heaven or earth that I desire in comparison of Christ. I desire to be found in him, saith Paul: He is the desire of all Nations, Hag. 2 7. You never had such desires towards Christ, until faith was wrought in you; such high desires, such longings, such hungerings, such thirstings; nor such busy and stirring desires; saw you him whom my soul loveth! and I sought him whom my soul loveth, and I will seek him whom my soul loveth: Nor such unsatisfied desires. Nothing satisfies you, or puts an end to your desires, but Christ desired by you.

3. If your faith be this faith of union: Then it did work in your hearts a separation from all things which otherwise would have hindered y • u from union with Christ. You know that whatsoever keeps things at a distance (so that they cannot close) that same hinders union. Now there are four things which keep the soul and Christ at a distance, Christ and we cannot close whiles they continue, and faith breaks them all down.

1. A proud conceit of our own fullness, Righteousness, sufficiency: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance, said Christ And the wh • le need no phycisian, but the sick. And the Son of man is c • me to seek and to save that which was lost. Now faith that unites to Christ, breaks this partition wall, and levels this mountain: it empties the sinner of himself, it takes away all confidence in himself, and will (by no means) suffer him to rest upon, or to be found in his own righteousness, Phil. 3. 3. We rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. verse 9. And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness which is of the Law, but that which is through the faith of Christ.

2. A love of sin: This is likewise an absolute hindrance of union with Christ: That heart cannot close with Christ which closeth with sin; and Christ will not close with that heart which is joined to sin. Ephraim is joined to Idols, let him alone, Hosea 4. 17. (as if he should say) his heart loves Idols, and therefore I will have nothing to do with him: So Joh. 3. 19. This is the condemnation that light is come into the world, and men love darkness rather than light. Christ is that light, and he presented and offered himself to sinners, but they loved their sins, and would not part with them to join with Christ. Now faith which brings a soul to Christ, hath parted that soul and sin; it hath given a bill of divorce unto sin; it takes off the heart from sin; what, shall I prefer hell before heaven? shall I prefer damnation before salvation? shall I for this sinful lusts-sake deny Christ? my heart refuse to marry him who is the Son of God, the Lord of glory, the Prince of Peace, the Savior of sinners? What have I to do anymore with Idols! said Ephraim, Hosea 14. 8. Get thee hence, said they in Isa. 30. 22. How shall we that are dead to sin, live any longer therein, Rom. 6. 2.

3. A love of the world: He that loveth Father or Mother more than me, is not worthy of me? and he that loveth son or daughter more than me, is not worthy of me, Matth 10. 37. If a man saith I will have my ease, and I will have my liberty, and I will have my pleasures, and I will have my profits, and I will have my friends, and I will have my honors, and I will not have Christ with any loss or cross; this man loves the world, and this hinders union with Christ: The young man lost Christ upon this very account, Luke 18. 22, 23. But if Faith indeed be wrought in the heart, all this language is removed out of the way: Faith overcomes the world, 1 Joh. 5. 4. The Merchants sold all for to buy the pearl of great price; and Moses in Heb. 11. 24, 25, 26. We have forsaken all and followed thee, said the Disciples. When a man hath faith, he can be content to be Fatherless and Motherlesse, to be friendless and landlesse, to part with all rather than he will be Christless; Faith sees enough in Christ, though he should enjoy no more but Christ. Faith will enable us to trample upon the world, so that we may enjoy Christ, it will enable us to break off with all, and to break down all to possess him who is better than all.

4. Unbelief. This locks and shuts up the heart that it cannot move at all to Christ, cannot see Christ, nor hear Christ, nor desire Christ, nor give consent to Christ: But faith breaks down unbelief, breaks open the prison, and breaks asunder all the shackles and fetters of unbelief; answers all exceptions, reasonings, cavils, delays, fears, doubts, and sets the soul at liberty, and works in the whole soul to Christ.

O beloved, try your hearts by what I have spoken in this particular; you think that you have this uniting faith: But what hath that faith wrought upon you, and within you, to bring you and Christ together? It is not so easy a work to match Christ and the soul together; nothing can do that but faith, and no faith can do that, but such a faith which presents Christ in that height of goodness, and beauty, and excellency, that the soul is drawn out with that strength and vehemency of desire after Christ, as to part with all to enjoy Christ, &c. And who hath found it thus? Is there not yet something or other which stand between Christ and our hearts? &c.

3. Thirdly, you may know whether your faith be indeed a faith of union, by those acts or workings in the soul immediately and necessarily to make up an union between a soul and Christ; unto which when the soul attains, then Christ is ours, and we are Christ's: For as there are some acts which are immediate to constitute a conjugal union twixt person and person, without which there is no conjugal relation between them, and upon which the relation is immediately made; so there are some acts of the soul immediate to the being of the Spiritual union twixt a person and Christ, without which there is no relation, and upon which there is an immediate relation twixt him and Christ.

There are two acts upon the soul when the union is made between Christ and us.

1. One is, an act or work of the Spirit on the behalf of Christ, testifying unto our hearts, and persuading our hearts that Jesus Christ is contented, is very willing to become ours; to be an Husband to us, to be our Head, to be our Savior. Jesus Christ doth outwardly express his consent in the Gospel, but he inwardly delivers it unto us by his Spirit. As by the spirit he becomes ours (If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his, Rom. 8. 9.) So by the Spirit he testifies his willingness and consent to be ours, yea and that he is ours: Hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us, 1 Joh. 3. 24.

2. The other is, the act or effect of faith on our behalf: For the Spirit in testifying unto us the willingness and consent of Christ to be ours, doth at the same time work faith in our hearts, which draws out a reciprocal consent from us to Ch • ist. And therefore as Christ is said to abide in us by his Spirit, so he is said to dwell in us by faith. These two acts make up our union: I take you, saith Christ; and I take, you saith the Believer; I consent saith Christ, and I consent saith the Believer: This mutual consent makes the match or union.

Ob. But will some say, Is this all? and is there no more (on our part) to be put forth to declare that our Faith is a Faith of union?

Sol. I answer, If you speak as to the very uniting work, this is all that faith is to do, to enable our wills or hearts to give a right consent to Christ, to accept of him, to receive him.

Ob. And who then hath not this faith? for every sinner will give his consent to take Christ, and receive Christ, and to be his.

Sol. 1. That is not so; for many sinners refuse Christ, and reject Christ, and will not consent unto him, as you may read in Luke 14. 18. They all with one consent began to make excuse; and in Matth. 22. 5. They made light of it and went their way, &c.

2. Every consent (even) towards Christ, to have him to be ours, and for us to be his, is not the consent of faith: There is a fourfold consent towards Christ which is not a consent flowing from Faith, and therefore never unites to Christ.

1. Consensus de futuro, as this, I do con • ent hereafter to yield up my heart to Christ that he shall be mine, and I will be his; but for the present. I cannot, or I do not close with him: This kind of consent is no other but a present dissent, in which no conjugal union doth consist; for it is only the present consent and acceptance of the person which makes up that union, and which gives propriety and interest. And thus is it in the matter twixt us and Christ; not a future purpose to have Christ, but a present acceptance of Christ makes the match between us and him: When I come to be old, and to be sick, and to die, then I will be Christ's, and then I will own and embrace him! well, but whose are you for the present? your union is where your present choice is, and where your present acceptance is.

2. Consensus involuntarius, an involuntary consent: Properly every consent is voluntary, but I call it involuntary, because if the will might use its own liberty with our safety, it would not consent though at present it doth. An involuntary consent I call that which a person would not yield, were he in an estate of liberty and safety; but being in a distress out of which he cannot be helped, unless he now yields, therefore he doth consent or yield: Such a consent doth many a sinner give to take Christ, and to become his, namely in some grievous strait of conscience and fear of the wrath of God, and he knows that there is no easing of the one, nor escaping of the other but by Christ; and therefore he doth (de praesenti) come in to Christ and professeth that he is content to close with him, only out of a self respect, as one in a storm comes under a tree. It is true indeed, that the consent of Faith is a present consent, but withal it is a very free and voluntary consent; the heart is never forced, but persuaded and graciously allured and inclined to Christ (not out of mere exigency, but pure excellency, and that from the beauty and goodness in Christ) when faith makes it to consent unto Christ.

3. Consensus distinguens: There is you know the Person of Christ, and there are the Benefits or Portion by Christ. Though a man hath not that Faith (of which we are discoursing) yet he may voluntarily consent to take Christ with a respect to his Portion (that is) to the Benefits by Christ; with all his heart he may be willing to have the Righteousness of Christ to justify him, and the Blood of Christ to get him the pardon of all his sins, and the Merits of Christ to procure salvation for him; and yet this person cannot, and will not consent to take the Person of Christ, and to take Christ as his Head, and to be his Lord, nor to become a member of Christ, and a servant unto Christ, and Spouse to Christ: This is a consenting unto the things of Christ, but not unto Christ himself. As if one should think to marry himself unto an estate only: But the consent arising from faith is otherwise, for this consent is immediately given to the Person of Christ, and therefore it is called a receiving of Christ, Joh. 1. 12. And a marrying to himself, Hosea 2. 19. Indeed when you have consented to take Christ, then doth Christ (according to his promises) settle upon you all his saving benefits; but that which faith immediately looks on is the very Person of Christ, to unite our persons to his own Person: To take him as our Head, and as our Husband, &c.

4. Consensus-exceptionis: I call that a consent of exception wherein a person yelds to another, yet with a reservation, and with a provision upon such and such conditions, and not otherwise; as thus, I am content and do yield to take Christ to be mine, and myself to be his, even in respect of his Person, but yet so, that with him I may enjoy my sins, or so, that I may not hazard my estate by the match and so that I may not suffer with him. O no! Christ will never be yours, and you can never be his with those reserves and provisions: If any man will be my Disciple, let him deny himself, and take up his Cross and follow me: As if a woman should think any man would marry her upon this condition As long as you are rich, and at liberty, and in health you shall be my husband, and so that I may be an adultress: The consent which indeed ariseth from faith (which makes union 'twixt us and Christ) is a consent freely taking Christ, and fully taking Christ, and immediately taking Christ, and sincerely taking Christ; Christ and none but Christ, Christ and all Christ, Christ and all that may befall us with Christ; Christ at his best, and Christ at his worst, Christ in Heaven as triumphing, and Christ on earth as suffering: A consent to live with Christ and to die for Christ, a Christ upon any condition that Christ will make: And a Christ upon no condition that my vain heart would make.

4. You may know whether you have this faith of union, by the qualities of the union made between us and Christ. The opening of this union is (I do ingeniously confess) one of the difficultest works that ever I have perused; Not without cause doth the Apostle call it a Mystery, and a great mystery, Ephes. 5. 32. There are three unions which are high, and not easy to be opened. 1. The union of the three Persons in one Nature. 2. The union of the two Natures in one Person. 3. The union of the Church with Christ, or of every Believing person with the person of Christ. But (with God's assistance) I shall endeavor to say something towards it.

The union which is made with us and Christ by faith hath these seven properties or qualities.

1. It is real, and not imaginary: There is a work which is only in the imagination and apprehension of the mind, wherein though the species and forms and Idea's of objects are in our minds, yet the objects themselves are not with us, but are far enough from us; such union as this faith doth not work. But the union which Faith makes is a real union, even such a union wherein we are indeed rooted or joined unto Christ: Therefore the Apostle speaking of this union twixt us and Christ, he expesseth it by that union which is between a man and his wife, saying, They two shall be one flesh, Ephes. 5. 31. (The man shall be joined to his Wife, and they two shall be one flesh:) And Christ himself expresseth this union twixt himself and us, by the union of the Branches with the Vine, Joh. 15. 5. I am the Vine, and ye are the Branches: The Branches are really united to the Vine, and so are we to Christ; our union with Christ is so real, that our bodies are called the Members of Christ, 1 Cor. 6. 15. and we are said to be one Spirit with him, verse 17.

2. It is substantial, and not virtual only; it doth not consist only in the reception or participation of the graces and gifts of Christ; as if all our union with Christ were like our participation with fire: only in the heat of it, and not in the substance of it. No! But our union with Christ is substantial, our substance is united to the substance of Christ, Ephes. 5. 30. We are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bone. And Joh. 6. 56. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. Upon which words Cyril saith, that Christ by the communication of his flesh dwells in us, and we are his members, even by a natural participation: which expression must be understood de re quae participatur, for we are united to the very flesh and substance of Christ; but not de modo participandi, for that is only by faith, and not per contactum; we are united to Christ not as wax to wax by a corporal contact, but by saith: His substance and our substance, yet by faith.

3. It is total, and not partial. Not the soul only of a Believer is united to the soul of Christ; nor the flesh only of a Believer is united to the flesh of Christ; but the whole believing person is united by faith with the whole person of Christ: as in the conjugal union twixt Adam and Eve, that union was twixt person and person, so is the spiritual union twixt Christ and us, of which that was a Type and Mystery: Jesus Christ is (in Scripture) styled our Head, and our Savior, not of one part of us only, but of the whole he is the Savior; not of our bodies only, or of our souls only, but of soul and body, of our whole man; but then of salvation by him we partake not without union; and therefore our whole man partakes of salvation by him; then of necessity our whole man must have union with him: Moreover as our whole man is united to Christ, so our whole man is united to whole Christ considered as Head and Savior of his Church, not to his Divine Nature only, nor to his human Natture only, but unto the person of Christ consisting both of the Divine and of the Human Nature: and the reason of this is, because we are united to Christ as our Head, and as our Savior, which Jesus Christ is not according to his human Nature only as man, nor according to his Divine Nature only as God, but according to both as God and man: Hence is it that Christ and we are called one flesh, • ph. 5. 31. so are we called also one spirit, 1 Cor. 6. 17. One flesh in respect of union with his human Nature, and one Spirit in respect of union with his Divine Nature; And as he is said to be partaker of our flesh and blood, Hebr. 2. 14. so are we said to be pa • takers of his Divine Nature, 2 Pet. 1. 4. And truly such a union as this with the Person of Christ in respect of his Human and of his Divine Nature, must necessarily be acknowledged, unless we will deny a union with Christ as our Mediator and Savior. But now here are three Questions which may be moved.

1. Quest. One is whether this total union of our persons with the person of Christ be not the same with the Hypostatical union of the two Natures in Christ.

[Answered.] Answ. I answer, it is not. For it is one thing for the Divine and human Nature to be united to the person of Christ; and it is another thing for us to be united unto those natures in Christ: Again, the Hypostatical union, is in the union of those Natures in the second person of the Trinity, who is the Son of God by eternal generation. But our union is not so; we are not such sons of God by eternal generation as Christ was, but by grace, which he was not. Moreover our union with those natures, is by faith on our part; but the Hypostatical union of those two Natures in Christ, is not an union by faith, but by assumption of the human Nature into an unity with the Divine Nature in his Person.

2. Quest. Whether, if we be united thus to the person of Christ in both his Natures, we do not hereupon become so many Mediators, and Savior's, and Heads of the Church, because in respect of the union of both these Natures Jesus Christ is Head and Mediator.

[Answered.] Sol. I answer, this will by no means follow. For

1. As the personal union of the Wife with the person of her Husband, doth not at all make herto be an husband; so our personal union with Christ, doth not at all make us to be Christ, or to be Savior's, or Heads of the Church: we are indeed united unto his Person, but not placed into his Office: And not so as to be that Person.

2. There is a great difference twixt union of reception and participation, and a union of denomination. We are united to Christ so that thereby we have interest in, and benefit by Christ as a Mediator and Head; but not so as to be denominated Mediators: only the union of the Divine and human Natures in Christ, denominates him to be Head and Mediator: For to make Christ to be a Mediator, it was not only necessary that there should be such a union, but also that the person in whom that union is to be found should be God; he that is a Mediator betwixt God and Man, as he must be man, so also he must be God; but though we be united to the Divine Nature in Christ, as well as to his Human Nature, yet we are not God.

3. Quest. Whether by faith we be first united unto, and joined with the Divine Nature, or human Nature of Christ with himself (first) considered as man, or with him first considered as God?

[Answered.] Sol. This Question although I find it argued in the writings of very godly and learned men, yet truly (unto me) it doth seem to savor of too much curiosity, and for mine own part (so far as I do yet apprehend) I do think it but a Scholastical nicity; for although you do find Jesus Christ revealed and manifested in the Gospel, sometimes as man, and many acts ascribed unto his Human Nature in reference to our redemption; and somemes as God, and several acts of his Divine Nature; yet (with submission to better Judgments) I do conceive that our union doth not begin first with one nature, and after that with the other nature of Christ; but our union is with the Person of Christ (as consisting of both Natures) at once. And my reason is this, because our union is with Christ as Mediator (with whole Christ) at once: I beseech you consider.

When the Gospel offers Christ to a poor and distressed sinner, it doth not offer Christ in one Nature first, and in his other Nature next; but the Gospel offers whole Christ at once; it offers (at once) Christ the Savior, and Christ the Head, Christ the Redeemer (that is) the Person of Christ consisting of both Natures: And when the Spirit of Christ comes into the heart to join Christ to us, and when faith is formed in the heart to join us to Christ; why! the Spirit at once applies the whole Christ unto you; and faith at once looks on Christ as Head and Mediator, and (as so) unites you unto Christ: Faith looks on Christ not in one Nature only, or in the other Nature only; but as a Mediator, as a Head, as a Savior, and under that notion unites you to Christ: It is true that the great works of Redemption, and satisfaction, and reconciliation appeared in the human Nature of Christ, and are frequently ascribed to his blood; and it is as true, that the Divine Nature of Christ enabled the human Nature of Christ unto those works, and gave (as it were) life, and vigor, and efficacy unto them, without which they could never have been done, nor have been such effectual works: And it is as true that not any of those works were done in respect of any of the Natures alone which did redeem and satisfy, &c. But it was the person of Christ (consisting of them both) who did redeem, and satisfy, and reconcile, and save, and under this notion Christ offers himself; and we by faith do receive him.

4. The union between us and Christ by faith is a near union. And if I may so express myself, an immediate union: It is (in Scripture) set forth by the nearest of all unions here below. There are three unions here below, which are most remakable for their nearness.

1. One is Artificial, as is that of a Building with the foundation: Our union with Christ is expressed by this, in 1 Pet. 2. where Christ is called a lively stone, verse 4. and a chief corner-stone, verse 6. (and our foundation, 1 Cor. 3. 11. and we are called a spiritual house built upon him, verse 5.

2. A second is Political, as is that of the Wife with the Husband by marriage: And our union with Christ is often expressed by this also: In the Canticles, and in Hosea 2. 19. and in Ephes. 5. 31, 32.

3. A third is Physical, or Natural, as is that of the Head with the Body, and of the Vine with the Branches; under these expressions also is our union with Christ expressed, Ephes. 5. 23. Christ is the Head of the Church, Joh. 15. 5. I am the Vine, ye are the Branches: The union is so near 'twixt the Church and Christ, that Christ compares it with the union of himself with the Father, Joh. 17. 21. That they all may be one, as thou Father art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one with us. verse 22. That they may be one, even as we are one. Not that there is absolutely and in all respects that very self same union of us with Christ, as of Christ with the Father; but that there is such a union according to proportion, and to note also the marvelous nearness of our union with Christ: Which in this differs even from the natural union, where every part of the body hath not an immediate contiguity with the Head. And yet there is not the meanest member of Christ, nor yet the choicest, but they do all of them stand in the same equal nearness of union with Christ: Now that which I aim at in the nearness of our union with Christ by faith is this; That where faith makes the union, the heart of a person doth so immediately an entirely close with Christ, that there is nothing whatsoever which stands between it and Christ; no love of sin, no love of the world, &c.

5. The union 'twixt us and Christ which is made by faith, it is a full and complete union. The whole man is joined to Christ, and so joined to Christ, that it is joined to no other but Christ: Faith doth so unite us to Christ, that henceforth we are no more our own, but his; all that Christ hath is ours, and all that we have is his; our souls are his, and our bodies are his: Faith brings in our whole man to Christ▪ when it unites us to Christ: It doth not keep back any part of us from Christ: It doth not bestow one part of us upon Christ, and another part of us upon the world, and another part of us upon sin; no, Christ hath all when faith unites us to Christ: he hath all our minds, and all our affections, he is our desire, and our love, and he is our delight, and he is our hope.

6. The union 'twixt us and Christ which is made by faith, it is a satisfying union: When a poor soul comes by faith to be one with Christ, so that it can say, Christ is mine, and I am Christ's, now it is satisfied, it hath enough, it is replenished: As this union in the kind of it is most excellent, so in the sense of it, it is most sweet: Faith uniting us to Christ finds all suitabe good in Christ, and all happiness, life, love, mercy, grace, joy, peace, salvation in him.

7. This union 'twixt us and Christ by faith, it is a firm and inseparable union: An union that can never be b • oken asunder: and herein it goes beyond all other unions which are used to illustrate this union; everyone of them is soluble, it may be broken off; the Head and the body may be severed; the Foundation and the House may be separated: The Branches may be cut off • rom the Vine: The Husband may be taken away from the Wife, and the Wife from the Husband; Yea the soul and body may be disunited by death: But the union 'twixt us and Christ remains forever. There is not only a continuation of it all our life, but also in death itself; your very bodies sleeping in the the dust are (even then) in union with Christ.

I grant that the sense and apprehension of this union may (in this life) be much interrupted, and many times be wholly darkened; but the substance of the union still remains: and I grant that the substance or nature of this union may be exceedingly assaulted by Satan, yet nevertheless it continues and abides forever: For Christ will never part with the believer, and the believer will never part with Christ: And moreover as no power in the world is sufficient to over-power the Spirit of Christ, which on Christ's part makes union, so no power whatsoever shall be able to conquer faith, which on our part also makes the union. This faith of union as it is produced by no less power than that of God, so it is preserved and upheld by the same power to the end. Neither God, nor Christ, nor the Holy Ghost, nor the heart of a believer will break this union; and neither Satan, nor the world, nor sin can do it.

5. If your faith be indeed the faith of union, this will appear by these influences, and effects which do always attend that union which faith works between us and Christ.

When we are by faith united to Christ, then upon this union there follows a communion betwixt Christ and us, in which Christ communicates or imparts some things of his unto us: And we likewise do communicate and impart something in us unto him.

Upon this union there follows such a communion twixt Christ and us, as that we do partake of, and have fellowship in the most excellent things of Christ.

We have fellowship with him

1. In the same Spirit, Rom. 8. 9, 11. and 1 Cor. 6. 17. And by the same Spirit are we reconciled and sanctified (though not in the fullness and measure as Christ himself was) and changed by him into the same image of Christ, 2 Cor. 3. 18.

2. In the same life: As he that hath the Son hath life, 1 Joh. 5. 10. so he that hath the Son hath the same life which the Son hath: I live, yet not • , but Christ liveth in me, Gal. 2. 20. The Head and the body, the Tree and the branches partake of the same life.

3. In the same Righteousness. His Righteousness is our righteousness; He is the Lord our righteousness, Jer. 23. 6. and we are made the righteousness of God in him, 2 Cor. 5. 21.

4. In the same Relation: So that as he was the Son of God by eternal Generation, in like manner are we the sons of God by adoption; so that he is not ashamed to call us brethren, Heb. 2. 11, 12.

5 In his victories: In all these things we are more than conquerors through Christ that loved us, Rom. 8. 37.

6. In his glory: The glory which thou gavest me I have given them, that they may be one even as we are one.

All these things are most certainly imparted unto every believer upon his union with Christ Jesus; Christ communicates unto him his own Spirit, his own Holiness, his own Righteousness, &c. And hence it is apparent, that they never were united by faith unto Christ, in whom nothing of communion with Christ can be found, Rom. 8. 9. If any man have not the Spirit of Christ he is none of his, 2 Cor. 5. 17. If any man be in Christ he is a new creature, &c.

2. Upon this union with Christ there is yet another part of communion in respect of us, and there are two things especially which we do impart to Christ; one is love, the other is subjection: for by • aith we are united to Christ, as the Wife to the Husband, which is an union of love; and also to Christ as members of the body to the head, which takes in an union of subjection.

1. If saith hath united us to Christ, then do we love Christ; every Believer loves Christ: Saw ye him whom my soul l • veth? so the Church, Cant. 3. 1. 2, 3. Lord, Thou knowest all things, Thou knowest that I love thee. So Peter, Joh. 21. 17. Whom having not seen, ye love; so the Apostle, 1 Pet. 1. 8.

And how doth the true believer (who is united to Christ) love Christ?

• 1. He loves his Christ with the Love of friendship, he loves Christ for Christ himself.
• 2. He loves his Christ with a love of complacency, O how sweet and lovely is this Christ?
• 3. He loves his Christ with a love of satisfaction, Christ is enough, he is my center in whom I rest.
• 4. He loves his Christ with a love of sincerity, Christ and nothing that is contrary to Christ.
• 5. He loves his Christ with a love of excellency, nothing so much, nothing so well as Christ.
• 6. He loves Christ with a love of extremity, he is sick of love for Christ; he so loves Christ, that he thinks he never loves Christ as Christ deserves to be loved.
• 7. He loves Christ with a love of fidelity, so as nothing can quench that love, nor break off that love.
• 8. He loves his Christ with a love of benevolence, O how much prosperity doth he wish to Christ!
• 9. He loves his Christ with a love of beneficency, what would not he do for Christ? what would he not suffer for Christ?
• 10. He loves his Christ with a love of sympathy, what Christ doth love, he doth love; and what doth please Christ, that doth please him; and what doth grieve and trouble Christ, that doth grieve and trouble him.

O Sirs! uniting faith sees so much in Christ, and finds so much from Christ, it makes us partakers of such a Christ, and of such a love from Christ, that it is impossible but that soul must love Christ, which by Faith is united to Christ.

2. If your faith be the faith of union with Christ, then it will certainly cause in you a subjection unto Christ (as the Wife is subject unto the Husband) and an obedience unto Christ (as the members are obedient to the Head.)

Quest. And what subjection and obedience is that?

Sol. You know that it is voluntary, and it is full, and it is cheerful, and it is ingenuous, and it is accurate, and it is durable, as long as the union and relation doth last: The Wife willingly obeys, and obeys every lawful and good command, and doth it with all her heart, and is very well pleased if her husband be pleased, &c. Why! after this manner will faith fashion your hearts to Christ, if it hath united you to Christ, or rather thus will Christ (upon your union with him) fashion and enable your hearts: Your hearts will look on Christ as one that hath authority and right to command them, and give laws to them: And your hearts will look on all his commands as good, and holy, and just, and they will not be grievous unto you, but you will be a willing people in the day of his power. And thus by these chracters you may know whether you have this faith of union which indeed joins you to Christ, and is the condition of this Covenant.

SECT. VI.

2. Quest. NOw I proceed unto the second Question; what is to be done to obtain this faith (this faith of union) which only brings us into the Covenant.

Sol. To help you in this (seeing all our souls hopes and enjoyments depend upon it) I would commend this course or practice unto you.

• 1. Consider the Author of this faith, to whom it doth really appertain to give this faith which unites to Christ.
• 2. Consider what means he doth use for the giving and working of it in the hearts of sinners.
• 3. Consider what concerns yourselves in reference unto God, and those means by which he doth work the faith which doth unite to Christ.

1. Consider the Author of this faith, who it is that can give this faith which unites us to Christ: very much lies in this, for if we mistake the cause, it is very probable we shall miss of the effect; if we go with our vessels to Cisterns that hold no water, we shall return empty and ashamed; therefore remember

1. That no man whosoever is, or can be the author of this faith unto himself; by his natural power he cannot. 1. Come to Historical Faith, Matth. 16. 17. Flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee. 2ly See his need of Christ: the Spirit is sent to convince of sin. 3ly Omnipotency is necessary. Ephes. 1. 19, 20. 1 Cor. 1. 21. The World by wisdom knew not God; and verse 23. Christ to the Jews a stumbling block, foolishness to the Greeks. If any man had such a power to believe in Christ, surely it would appear either in the gifted sinner who hath great parts of knowledge, and understanding, and wisdom; or in the troubled and distressed sinner who longs for ease and rest to his poor soul, and would put out all the power he hath to enjoy it: But no such power is to be found in them (as from themselves) to enable their hearts to believe in Christ: The knowing and understanding sinners in other matters, may yet be grossly ignorant of Christ, and averse to Christ, and the things of Christ. And the more spiritual knowledge any man hath of Christ, or of himself, the more inability shall he discern in himself to believe on Christ: And the troubled and distressed sinner cannot of himself believe, or lay hold on Christ, though Christ be revealed to him, and offered to him, and all arguments used to persuade him, yet he is concluded under unbelief, except the Lord himself persuades and draws his heart. No persons can, though they have Eloquence, Piety, Pity, Art, Diligence, Wishing, and Desires.

2. That no Ordinances and means whatsoevever can (of themselves) be the author of this uniting faith. If the Apostles of Christ did live amongst you, and did preach every day of the week unto you the Gospel of Christ; neither they, nor yet the Gospel which they preached could (by their own power) make any one sinner to believe on Christ, Matth. 11. 17. We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned unto you, and ye have not lamented. 'It is true, that these are means and instruments of faith (as you shall presently hear) but the Axe (which is an instrument) cuts not of itself; and the • ord (which is a means) draws not of itself. Neither the convincing Paul, nor eloquent Apollos, nor the affectionate John can prevail.

3. That no duties whatsoever are the authors of the faith which unites to Christ: You may pray, and should pray; but Prayer (as a work done by you) is not the cause of faith; and you may hear, and read, and meditate, but none of these (as your works) can be the author of this faith: All these may be done, and yet your hearts remain still faithless. Rom. 10. 18. Have they not heard? verse 16 But they have not all obeyed.

4. God, and God only is the Author of the faith which unites us to Christ. No man (saith Christ himself, Joh. 6. 44.) can come to me, except the Father draw him. and verse 45. They shall be all taught of God; every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me. God himself must teach the heart: And therefore Christ saith in verse 29. This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. Ephes. 2. 8. By grace ye are saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Untill the Lord himself gives you faith you cannot believe: until the Lord say, Come, you cannot come; until the Almighty God say to your hearts, Be willing, and be able to take Christ, to receive him, to give consent to be his, you will never be able, and never be willing to close with him, &c. Therefore remember this, everyone of you who desire this faith of union, I say, remember. That it is God only, none but God who can give you Christ, and none but God can give you faith which unites you to Christ, it is his work, and his alone: Never look for it from any power in yourselves, or in any other creature, but look only to God for it.

2. Consider what means God doth use for the giving and working of faith: Though the means of themselves give not faith, yet God doth give faith by the means; although the Conduit (of itself) gives not water, yet the fountain sends it unto your houses by the Conduit.

Now that means is the Gospel; this is clear in Ephes. 1. 13. In whom you also trusted after, that ye heard the word of truth, the Gospel of your salvation. So Rom. 10. 17. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. The Gospel is therefore called the door of Faith, Acts 14. 27. and the word of faith, Rom. 10. 8. and the power of God, Rom. 1. 16. and the word of Reconciliation, 2 Cor. 5. 19.

The Gospel is the means of faith in three respects.

1. In that it is set apart and ordained by God himself for that end and purpose, to call sinners to Christ.

2. In that it is blessed of God with the presence of his Spirit to work and implant faith: There God reveals his arm and puts forth his power: Some men do fancy ways of their own to get faith; And why not another way, as well as by the Gospel? I will tell you why? Because God hath not ordained and sanctified any other way but this: When the Lord commanded the brazen Serpent to be set up for the healing of the people, and that they should look on it and be healed, they might as well demand, and why a Brasen Serpent? and why not another brazen Serpent, as well as this to heal us? No, none but this, for this only was ordained of God, and sanctified for that purpose: So the Gospel, that, and that only is the means ordained and sanctified by God, and which hath his promise of presence and blessing to go along with it, to beget faith in our hearts.

3. In that it is the most apt of all ministrations whatsoever, to raise and persuade the heart to believe. For there only is the relation of the grace of God, and love of God, and kindness of God, and of the mercy of God in Christ: and therein is Christ made known, and the righteousness of Christ, and a sinners salvation in and by Christ: and therein are held forth all the encouragements to win the heart to Christ; and all the answers and resolves to whatsoever may breed fears, and doubts, and discouragements in the heart from coming to Christ, and all promises by which this faith is raised.

3. Consider what concerns yourselves in reference unto God who only gives faith, and in reference to the Gospel which is the only means by which this faith is wrought: Supposing only three things (already) formed in you. viz. 1. An apprehension that you are lost, and separated from God by sin. 2. A conviction that you stand in extreme need of Christ. 3. An earnest desire at least to enjoy Christ; I would propound four things for you to do, that so at length you may attain unto this uniting faith.

1. Diligent application of yourselves to the hearing of the Gospel; joining thereunto a serious and reverent attention; come and hear, and come and hear for this very end, if peradventure God will give you this faith, if peradventure his Spirit will accompany the Gospel with power unto your hearts, that so you may be able to believe. Come as the impotent man came to the pool to be healed: Lydia took this course, and her heart was opened to believe, Acts 16. 14. So did they in Acts 2. 37. 41. Act. 13. 48. When the Gentiles heard this, they glorified the word of the Lord: And as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.

2. Serious meditation upon, first the relation of the Gospel. 2ly. The offers of the Gospel. 3ly. The terms of the Gospel. 4ly. The promises of the Gospel. 5ly. The instances or examples in the Gospel.

1. The Gospel Revelations of Jesus Christ; given, sent, sealed, set forth by God to be a Redeemer, a Savior, a Mediator, a Peace, a Propitiation, a Reconciliation, a life for sinners: Now seriously meditate on all this you whose hearts are broken with the sense of your sins: The Gospel in the Word of truth, what it reveals and declares unto us, that same is certain and infallib • e and the Gospel is the Word of Salvation; whatsoever concerns our salvation, that same is manifested unto us by the Gospel; And this Gospel doth reveal and declare unto us the exceeding love of God the Father, in that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes on him, should not perish but have everlasting life: It doth also declare unto us hi • Son Jesus Christ who was God, and in time was made man, that so he might reconcile and unite man to God. And it doth declare him in the union of his Natures, and excellencies of his Person, and in the glories of his Offices, and in the accomplishment of all the work of Redemption and salvation for sinners, and willingness to save them: So that from the very Gospel-revelation of Jesus Christ, a distressed sinner may gain thus much. 1. As not to despair. 2. As to have some hope. 3. As to have some desires: O here is a Christ for sinners! A Christ given by God the Father to save sin • s! why should I then despair? and here is a Christ, such a Christ, of such infinite worth and merit, given to make satisfaction, and peace, and why should not I hope? Am I excluded? At least his Person, and Offices, and Works may serve thus far to beget hope, and to work a desire that I may enjoy him, in whom alone salvation is to be found, and who came into the world to save sinners.

2. The Gospel offers this Christ to distressed and poor sinners, Acts 13. 26. Unto you is the Word of this Salvation sent. verse 38. Through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of your sins.

This Evangelical offer of Christ, it is

1. A good Offer: It is an offer of a Savior, of Mercy, Peace, Life, and of Salvation itself: This day is Salvation come to thy house.

2. It is a serious Offer, Heb 12. 25. See that ye refuse not him that speak th. 2 3. How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation! Hearken unto me, and your souls shall live, Isa. 55. 3. Believe and thou shalt be saved, Acts 16. 31. These are serious offers and commands.

3. It is a personal Offer; the Lord Jesus means you in particular: You I say who are heavy-laden, you who are poor, you who hunger and thirst, unto you is the word of this salvation offered and sent.

4. It is a very tender Offer. 2 Cor. 5. 20. As though God did beseech you by us: We pray you in Christ's stead be ye reconciled to God: why? If a sinner did seriously meditate on this offer of Christ by the Gospel, me thinks it might much conduce towards a bringing in of his heart to Christ by faith.

5. It is an Offer worthy of all acceptation, 1 Tim. 1. 15. As to the making of a match, when you report unto the party, there is such a person every way desirable and lovely, there is no exceptions to be taken: He is perfectly beautiful, singularly wise, affectionately loving, exceedingly rich, every way suitable, and you cannot live unless you have him. And besides all this, he d • res and offers himself to match with you! Surely all this conduceth much to the making of a match! So when a poor sinner hears of Christ, and of so much good in and by Christ, and withal finds Christ offering himself unto him; I am willing to be yours, I am content to take you as I find you; I know your sins, and wants, and unworthiness; I know what it must cost me to adorn you, &c. yet I offer myself to be yours, and I charge you that you do not neglect and refuse my offer! Truly this conduceth very much to persuade the heart, and to draw the heart to close by faith with Christ, &c.

3. The Gospel offers Jesus Christ upon very gracious and reasonable terms: In the Gospel you shall find Jesus Christ propounded unto sinners under several notions and expressions, and in all of them you may discern the admirable condescensions of Christ; he cannot fall in with you upon lower and easier terms, so as to become yours, than he doth propound: Sometimes he is propounded as a Gift, and all the terms that he stands for that you may be possessed of him as a Gift, is that you receive him; giving and receiving are correlatives: Sometimes he is propounded as a Match, as a Husband, and all that he stands for to make him yours, is only that you be willing, that you give your consent to be his. Sometimes he is propounded as a Bargain to be bought, and all that he imposeth on you is this, that you buy without money and without price. Sometimes he is propounded as a Guest, and a friend who would come into your house and sup with you, and all that he insists with you for, is only this, that you open the door and let him in.

4. As the Gospel reveals Christ unto you, and offers Christ unto you, and offers him unto you upon most gracious terms; so likewise it holds out unto you abundance of promises which are as so many Adamants to draw your hearts to Christ's, and are as so many cords of Love: There are promises which respect you and Christ: If you will come and be his, he will certainly be yours, he will not reject you. And there are promises which respect you and your good estate by Christ: As that he will marry you to himself in righteousness, and in judgment, and in lovingkindness, and in mercies, Hosea 2. 19. And that he will be Wisdom, and Righteousness, and Sanctification, and Redemption unto you, 1 Cor. 1. 30. And that there shall be no condemnation to you, Rom. 8. • . And that whosoever believes shall not perish, but have everlasting life, Joh. 3. 16. And that whosoever believes in him, shall receive remission of sins, Acts 10. 43.

5. Besides all this the Gospel gives you instances of the performance of all these promises, and likewise of the gracious reception of as great and unworthy sinners as yourself, 1 Tim. 1. 13, 14, 15, 16. 1 Cor. 6. 9, 10, 11. It shows how that when sinners have by faith come to Christ, he hath accepted of them, hath rece • ved them graciously, hath bestowed himself upon them, hath given righteousness, and remission of sins: and his Spirit, and his Peace, and everlasting life unto them: Every true believer who came to Christ did enjoy Christ, and all saving good with and by Christ: Mary Magdalene, Paul, the Corinthians, Ephesians, and all others are witnesses of it &c. they became Christ's, and Christ became theirs, and he was their Atonement, Redemption, Reconciliation, Righteousness, Life, &c. why? A serious and solid consideration of all these Evangelical passages, they cannot but work on the hearts of broken sinners to look towards this Christ, at least to pant in humble and earnest desires of him, and for faith that they may be united unto him.

3. The third means which I would present unto you for the obtaining of this uniting faith, is earnest supplication or prayer: As Christ spake unto the woman of Samaria, if thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith unto thee, give me drink, thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water, Joh. 4. 10. So say • , if you did but know the excellency of this faith of union with Christ, and what Christ is, and what union with Christ is, and how far it interests you in the Covenant of grace; surely you would earnestly be enlarged in your supplications and requests unto God for it, and you would not be denied this request, Ephes. 3. 14. For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, verse 17. That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; draw me, and I will run after thee. Well, pray the Lord to give this faith unto you which will unite you to Christ, I say, pray the Lord to give it you; For▪

1. You cannot give it to your own hearts, it is not in your power to make your hearts to believe.

2. None can give it but God, no created power is sufficient for this work.

3. God is able to make your hearts to believe: to break all the chains of unbelief: To set out Christ as most desirable, and to work faith, that so you shall come to Christ; He is able to enlighten your minds, and to convince your judgments, and to overcome your wills, and to persuade your hearts.

4. He hath promised to give this faith: He hath promised that the dead shall hear the voice of his Son, Joh. 5. 25. He hath promised that they shall be all taught of God, and he that heareth, and learneth of the Father, shall come to Christ, Joh. 6. 45. He hath promised to allure us unto Christ, Hosea 2. 14. And to persuade Japheth, Gen. 9. 27. and to make us a willing people in the day of his power, Psal. 110. 2. and to send the rod of his strength out of Zion, verse 3.

Object. We do hear, and we do pray, and yet we are not able to believe?

Sol. 1. O but pray that God would make the Gospel which you do hear, to be the savor of life unto you, and that his Spirit may accompany the Gospel which you do hear. To open the Gospel. 2. Thy ear. 3. Thy heart; for it is by his Spirit that the Gospel proves to be unto you the word of Faith: Our Gospel came in power, and in the Holy Ghost, 1 Thes. 1. 5. If the Spirit of God did but reveal his Arm, if he would but breath through the Gospel, it would certainly be the power of God for faith in you.

2. Again, you must pray with all importunity, and diligence, and watchfulness, and observation what God answers, and spiritual violence, and resolution, and never cease wrestling with God. I tell you it is one of the greatest requests that you can make to God; O Lord unite me to Christ; give me that faith by which I may be Christ's, and Christ may be mine And take this for thine encouragement, That if the Lord hath given such a spiritual and steadfast frame of spirit as to pray, he will at length give thee this faith.

4. Patiently wait upon God in the use of Evangelical means, until he doth come in with his Spirit upon your Spirits to enable you by faith to close with Christ, lie at the Pool, do not limit God to this Sermon, or to that Prayer; and do not wrangle and murmur against God; regard what concerns yourself to do, and trust God with his work, and with his time; never did any soul seek him or wait on him in vain, nor return ashamed; there is not one Prayer that you make, nor any one Evangelical Sermon that ye hear, but it is making way in your hearts for this uniting faith: Some more light gets in to discover Christ's fullness, and our want: Some more hope is raised of a possibility at length to enjoy Christ: Some more power is given against the powers, and workings, and reasonings, and fears, and doubts of unbelief; they have not that despairing dominion: Some more bewailings of thy Christless condition and strong unbelief with a resistance of it: Sometimes more renewed resolutions and courage; well, whatsoever comes of it, I will not yet give over my suite, I will venture a few prayers more; something more is getting in, and winning upon the heart towards Christ; But

Why may I not believe on Christ? what if I should venture on him upon his offers, upon his entreaties, upon his commands, upon his promises? do I not sin against Christ, and offend him, thus to fear, thus to dispute, thus to question, thus to stand off? well! I will come and believe on him. O I cannot! Lord help me: Lord work in me both to will and to do: when Lord? how long? yet will I wait on thee till thou showest this mercy to me.

SECT. VII.

3. Use IS faith the condition of the Covenant of grace? And is that faith an uniting Faith? a faith which unities us unto Christ. The next Use then shall be for Comfort and Encouragement; 1. To sinners in general. 2ly. To believers in particular; to such as yet find themselves out of Covenant, and to such as find themselves partakers of this uniting faith.

1. That faith is the condition of the Covenant of Grace, this is a comfort and encouragement to poor sinners, who as yet find themselves out of Covenant. If God had put any other condition upon that Covenant, every sinner had been utterly hopeless; suppose he had annexed and imposed the condition of actual, and perfect, and personal righteousness (bring that, and perform that, and then I will be your God, I will accept of you, I will own you, I will love you, I will pardon you, I will save you) why! no sinner could (upon this terms) have found an entrance or admission into the Covenant, because the performance of this Covenant is impossible to a sinner; as such a condition is inconsistent with the grace of God, so such a condition is impossible with the state of sin, which is a state of impotency and of death: But now faith being the condition of the Covenant, as there is a door open for grace to manifest itself, so there is hope for a sinner to partake of that grace; for if God will capitulate with us upon believing in Christ, Then

1. Our former sinnings do not absolutely exclude us. One sin did break the Covenant of works; but our many sins hinder not our reception into the Covenant of grace, if yet we believe on Christ.

2. A want of personal and perfect righteousness doth not exclude us; for faith is not to look at our own righteous • ess, but at the righteousness of Christ.

3. Our self-unworthiness is no prejudice; Faith looks for love, and mercy, and glory through Christ for the sinner who is (in himself) unworthy of love, and mercy, and glory.

4. Our union with God is possible; for though an immediate union there cannot be between God and a sinner, yet a mediate union there may be, viz. A union by Christ the Mediator, unto whom faith brings and unites the soul; so that there is yet hope for the sinner to be brought into Covenant with God, though not upon his own account, yet upon the account of Christ, unto whom faith joins the sinner.

Object. But it may be objected, 'tis true that faith is the condition of the Covenant And that faith is that condition, it is therefore hopeful for sinners. But yet this faith is as impossible to the sinner, as the condition of perfect obedience; for the sinner is no more able to make his heart to believe on Christ, than he is perfectly to obey the will of God; And then where is the comfort and hope that you speak of? In the notion it is true, that faith is a condition which advantageth a sinner: But in practice it is such a condition unto which it is impossible for any sinner by his own strength to attain.

[Answered.] Sol. 1. I grant, that as to the • eer consideration of the sinners self natural power, the condition of Faith 〈…〉 • mpossible as the condition of perfect obedience is; he hath no more power • or propensity to believe in Christ, than he hath to obey and fulfill the Law, and his heart is as full of unbelief as it is of disobedience.

2. Nevertheless though there be a self impossibility, yet there is not an absolute impossibility; nay faith is such a condition, as is not only possible for a sinner, but very probable for him to attain it.

1. Though it be the Condition of the Covenant, yet it is not such a condition which God doth impose upon the sinner (by his own strength or power) to form it in himself: Indeed God doth require faith in Christ; but God doth not require of the sinner to create this faith in his own heart.

2. Though faith be the condition of the Covenant, yet it is such a condition which God himself doth promise to give unto the sinner: As it is a condition on our part so it is a gift on God's part: we are to have it, but God is to give it according to his promise: and undertakes to work it in us according to his power.

3. Though faith be the condition, yet it is such a condition that God affords all the means for t • e working and deriving of it unto the sinner; There is no sinner in all the world upon whom God calls for faith in Christ, but unto that sinner God affords the Gospel, which is the means (as you have heard) designed by God to work faith.

4. As God affords the means unto sinners by which faith is wrought, so his Spirit (upon whose operation faith depends) doth ordinarily accompany, and assist, and bless those means, to make them to be the power of God to the production of faith in the hearts of sinners; so that the Gospel is never sent unto any people, but there are some of them effectually called, so as to believe through grace.

5. And fifthly, as there is no sinner unto whom the Gospel of Faith is sent, who can properly conclude, that God never intends to give him this faith; so every sinner may and doth (some time or other) find that the Spirit doth by the Gospel earnestly deal with his heart to believe and receive Christ. The Spirit by the Gospel doth let in so much light of conviction, and doth so far act upon his heart by motions and arguments, and persuasions to receive Christ, that if yet he continue unbelieving, this fault cannot be charged on God (who doth work so wonderfully with him to believe) but only on himself who slights those means, and quenches those motions of the Spirit, and willfully opposeth and resisteth the Spirit in this working.

Hence it is that you never read of an impossibility on God's part (for with him all things are possible) nor yet of an impotency on the sinners part why he believes not (though that be true that the sinner in himself considered is insufficient) but still the charge lies against the sinner for his willfulness and unwillingness; ye would not, and ye will not come unto me that ye might have life; and we will not have this man to reign over us; Because God puts forth so much of power by his Spirit in the Gospel as may satisfy us that believing is a p • ssible work, and that our unbelief sticks unto us not only from a want of power, but only from the presence and redundancy of perverseness in our wills.

6. Let me add one conclusion more, That this faith which is the condition admitting into the Covenant, is such a condition as God never did, nor will deny t • any sinner seriously and cordially asking it of him: even in this it holds true also, ask and it shall be given unto you. If God sometimes gives this faith to them that do not ask, will he deny it unto them to whom he gives an heart to ask? Especially seeing that he therefore gives us an heart to ask, because it is his purpose to give us this faith which we do ask: See now you have the comfort in the general from this, that faith is the condition of the Covenant of grace, namely that then a sinner is capable and hopeful of being brought into the Covenant, notwithstanding all his former sinfulness, and present unrigh • eousnesse, and unworthiness, none of which do hinder faith from inte • esting of us in Christ: And this Faith also is such a condition as God himself doth promise to give, and set apart peculiar means to work it in us, a • • pon our serious asking of him will give unto us.

2. I shall now speak of the particular comforts which do belong unto Believers who stand possessed of this faith which unites to Christ, and is the condition of the Covenant of Grace.

I grant that distinction of weak believers and of strong believers, and that by reason of this gradual diversity there is therefore a different apprehension and perception of your comforts: But if your faith be such as indeed brings you into union with Christ (be that faith weak or strong) then I confidently assure you, that your condition is very comfortable and blessed.

Quest. But what are those comforts? and what is that blessedness for all who are by faith united with Christ?

Sol. I will mention some of them unto you: If you be by faith united to Christ, so that he is yours, and you are his, Then

1. Unquestionably God is your God; for union with Christ infallibly takes in union with God; if Christ be yours, then God is yours: Ye are Christ's, and Christ is God's, 1 Cor. 3. 23. Our fellowship is with the Father, and with his S • nne Jesus Christ, 1 Joh. 1. 3.

Beloved, this is a truth, that you can never have union with one Person of the Trinity alone: as the union of those persons is common and mutual between themselves (the Father hath union with the Son, and the Holy Ghost; and the Son hath union with the Father and the Holy Ghost; and the Holy Ghost hath union with them both) so is our union with them; If we be united to Christ, we are united to God the Father of Christ, and to the Holy Ghost the Spirit of Christ: If Christ be yours, then God the Father is yours, and if Christ be yours, then God the Holy Ghost is yours: As Christ is in you of a truth, so God is in you of a truth, and the Spirit of Christ is in you also: And as you are in the Son, so are you in the Father, and so are you in the Spirit: And as the Son is in you so the Father is in you, and the Holy Ghost is in you: And because this one thing is the Caput, the sum, and heighth, and depth of all our comfort and blessedness, I shall therefore crave the favor to speak some few words unto it.

1. First then, our union with Christ draws in with it our union with God, so that we and God himself are no longer enemies by way of difference, nor strangers by way of distance, but we are made nigh b • Christ, not only nigh in a way of pacification, by removal of enmity (God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself) But which is more, we are by Christ made nigh to God in a way of relation, so that he is now become our God: As by reason of this union Christ is not ashamed to call us brethren, Heb. 2. 11. So God is not ashamed to be called our God, Heb. 11. 16. Yea and as the Apostle tells us, that Christ is ours, Ephes. 1. 3. Our Lord Jesus Christ, so Christ himself tells us that God is ours, I ascend to my God and to your God: And (by the way) observe it, that Christ doth not say only or first I ascend to your God (yet this had been a special comfort to the Disciples that God was their God) but he saith, I ascend to my God, and to your God; and why to my God, and next to your God? But to inform us that God becomes our God by virtue of our union with Christ? what Christ calls mine, that you may call yours; My God, and your God, and because my God, therefore your God: So then our union with Christ infers with it our union with God; our relation to Christ infers with it our relation to God; and our propriety in Christ, our propriety also in God; and our fruition of Christ to be ours, a fruition of God himself to be ours; than which a more high and blessed fruition no creature is capable of.

2. Secondly our union with Christ takes in with it our union with the Father (the first Person in the Trinity) that as God is the Father of Christ, and Christ is the Son of God; so now in Christ God is also our Father, and we are his children, Joh. 20. 17. My Father, and your Father; Ephes. 1. 3. God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2. Thes. 2. 16. and God even our Father? Here you see that God is Father to Christ, and he is also a Father to all them that are Christ's: And as Christ is the Son of God, so are we the sons of God; and how come we to be the sons of God? see Gal. 3. 26. Ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus: and Joh. 1. 12. As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe in his Name; why! As this is an unspeakable dignity for us to be raised unto (1 Joh. 3. 1. Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God?) So it is a most comfortable relation, none the like: It concludes within it all the love of God, and goodness, and mercy, and care, and help, and compassion, and tenderness, and blessings of God as a Father.

3. Thirdly our union with Christ takes in with it also our union with the Holy Ghost, in which respect, he that is joined to the Lord, is said to be one Spirit, 1 Cor. 6. 17. and the Spirit of Christ is said to be given us, 1. Joh. 3. 24. and he is in us, and dwells in us, Rom. 8. 9. and hath communion with us, (2 Cor. 13. 14. The communion of the Holy Ghost be with you all) and we have fellowship with the Spirit, Phil. 2. 1. in the participation of his 1. Graces. 2. Help. 3. Comforts.

O Christians! These are glorious things indeed: who would not strive after union with Christ, which brings such an union with it? and who cannot but rejoice and triumph in Christ by union with whom he is thus united to the whole Trinity▪

2. If you be by faith united unto Christ, here is yet another comfort for you: That as this union infers with it a relation to every Person in the Trinity, so it doth assuredly confer upon you an interest in every good of the Covenant: for by virtue of this union we are made both Sons and Heirs. Sons, Gal. 3. 26. Ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus: Heirs, Gal. 3. 29. And if ye be Christ's, then are you Abraham's Seed and Heirs according to the promise. Some read it, if ye be one with Christ, Si unus estis in Christo, vid. Beza. Here you do expressly find our Heirship to flow from our union with Christ: for certainly our heirship thence ariseth from whence our sonship doth arise, and that is from union, with Christ: Well then! Believers are Christ's, and being Christ's they are Children; and if Children, then Heirs, and Heirs according to promise.

Quest. Heirs? whose Heirs? and of what estate?

Sol. An Heir (strictly) is the child (either Natural or adopted) who upon the death of the Father succeeds into his possessions: In this strict acceptation, neither Christ (who is the Natural Son and Heir) nor Believers (who are sons and heirs by grace) are God's Heirs; for God never dies, and we do not take any possession of his estate upon such a vacancy and cessation.

But Theologically he is an heir who is accepted and admitted into the possession promised and set forth, and given by God, who yet lives forever to be our God and Father; and indeed our inheritance and inheriting is nevertheless because our Father lives; but it is therefore our settled and blessed inheritance, because our God and Father lives forever.

Now that of which we are Heirs (by virtue of union with Christ) is,

1. God himself, Rom. 8. 17. If children, then heirs, heirs of God: As your children are your heirs, so God's chidren are his heirs; he hath never a child but he is an heir, and an heir of God. There is an estate of inheritance set out for him: what God possesseth, of that (according to his capacity and proportion) shall he be possessed of holiness, glory, happiness.

2. All the inheritance which Christ hath purchased, and God hath entailed, or settled, or passed over unto you in his Covenant, of no less then all this are believers heirs: This is the inheritance, and the estate of which you are heirs; namely all the good set out for you in the Covenant by God the Father, and confirmed and sealed unto you by the blood of Christ the Mediator of that Covenant: Therefore Believers are (in Scripture) styled Heirs of the promise, Heb. 6. 12. of the grace of life, 1 Pet. 3. 7. of the righteousness which is by faith, Heb. 11. 7. of salvation, Heb. 1. 14. of the kingdom promised to them that love him, Jam. 2. 5. All the good in it for them, of all things, Revel. 21. 7. He that overcometh shall inherit all things.

There is Haereditas gratiae, which contains all the blessings designed for enjoyment in this life.

And there is Haereditas gloriae, which contains all the blessedness reserved for enjoyment in that other life: Of all in the one, and in the other, are believers heirs; you are heirs to mercy, and grace, and righteousness, and comforts, and salvation. I think therefore that the belivers condition (by virtue of his union with Christ) is very comfortable and blessed.

3. If you be by faith united unto Christ, there remains one comfort more for you which is this, That as you are thereby heirs of all the good mentioned, and promised in the Covenant, so, all that good will Christ see accomplished and performed unto you; for all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, 2 Cor. 1. 20. They are sure and certain, are surely, and certainly made good: As God spake unto Jacob, Gen. 28. 15. I will not leave thee until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of: So Jesus Christ (unto whom you are united) he will not cease until you be actually possessed of all that good which his father promised unto him from all eternity, and hath promised also unto you in time (in his Covenant) to bestow upon you.

And there are four things which may assure you of this, viz.

1. The suretyship of Christ, which implies not only his undertaking for us to God, but likewise the same for God to us, that God shall really make good to us, all which he hath promised unto us.

2. The Intercession of Christ, which is his everlasting work of applying all the good which he hath purchased.

3. The Donation of his Spirit upon us for the communicating of all good unto us.

4. The intention of his Merit and Purchase which he laid out in our names, and for our good: He merited no less for us than all that good in the Covenant: No less than all outward benediction, than all heavenly blessings, than Justification, Reconciliation, Sanctification, Consolation, Perseverance, and eternal Glory.

His Merit and purchase amounted to all this, and not to less than this; and as God is bound to give him what he hath purchased, so he hath bound himself to bestow all this upon believers, who are united to him. Whosoever believes shall not perish, but have everlasting life, Joh. 3. 13.

5. The habitude 'twixt Christ as Head, and believers as his Body and Members; he is not perfect until they be perfected.

And now I pray you that are believers, be you yourselves judges, whether your union with Christ puts you not into a most comfortable and blessed condition, seeing it brings you into union with God, and every Person of the Trinity, and makes you heirs of all the good in the Covenant, all which God and Jesus Christ will see actually bestowed upon you.

Object. True, will some say; here is comfort enough; for here is all that souls can wish or enjoy. But truly the more you speak of this comfort from union with Christ, the more sad and uncomfortable is my heart! Because at least I fear that I never yet in truth attained unto this union of Faith: why so?

• 1. I was driven to look after Christ out of fear, and out of the sense of wrath.
• 2. Union with Christ supposeth separation from all that is contrary unto Christ: Alas I find the contrary, a body of sin still present with me!
• 3. Union with Christ depends upon some mighty and powerful workings of the Spirit, which I never observed, nor discerned in my soul.
• 4. Union with Christ certainly includes the presence of the Spirit, and the communion of the Spirit; whether I have that, I know not.
• 5. I still live under weaknesses, and wants; but union with Christ would have let in more supply, &c.

Sol. I will briefly speak unto these fears, if possibly they may be removed. For as it is my desire that you may by faith be brought to Christ, so it shall be my endeavor, that every soul united unto Christ may taste of those comforts which do belong to him in Christ.

1. Object. You fear that you are not rightly united to Christ, because you were driven to look after Christ out of fear, and sense of wrath; whereas the union by faith is free and voluntary.

[Answered.] Sol. Though this be true, yet is it possible that your union with Christ may be right: They in Acts 2. 37. were indeed by Faith united to Christ, although the first work appearing in them was the sense of their sins, and of God's wrath for that sin; and so was the Jailor in Act 16. 30. effectually brought in to Christ, although trembling of heart first seized on him; and so was Paul in Act. 9. 6. Therefore distinguish thus of this matter.

1. There is a difference 'twixt an occasion of looking after Christ, and 'twixt a principle which unites to Christ. The sense of sin, and the fear of the wrath of God, these are the occasion of your looking after Christ; and had you not met with these, it is most probable that you never had minded Christ: And yet it was not this fear, but faith (which followed upon it) that did unite you to Christ; I say faith which saw the exceeding goodness, and kindness, and graciousness in Christ represented, and offered, and promised in the Gospel, and thereupon drew your hearts to the prizing, and desiring, and receiving Christ, with a most cheerful and ready consent and will: So that though at the first, and occasionally some legal operations and impressions awakened your hearts to look after a Christ for deliverance, yet it was the Gospel by the Spirit working faith in your troubled hearts, which brought and joined you to Christ.

2. Again, you must distinguish 'twixt the sense of sin and wrath considered alone, and considered concomitantly: If the sense of sin and wrath alone did put you upon Christ, and never anything else, this indeed were sad: For when these alone put us upon Christ, then we desire Christ no farther than a present help, and ease against those evils which do distress us; but thus it is not with you, though perhaps (at the first) your thoughts were fixed upon Christ only, to deliver you from the wrathful impressions in conscience; yet upon the farther light and working of God's Spirit, your hearts are carried beyond these; for you must now have a fruition of Christ; you have now coveted an union with Christ, and satisfied you cannot be without that near union; and truly this is the effect of faith graciously given unto you from God.

2. Object. But union with Christ supposeth a separation from all that is contrary to Christ: Is not sin contrary to Christ, and this I find still: Ergo,

Sol. I answer.

[Answered.] 1. It is one thing for sin to be separated from me, and it is another thing for me to be separated from sin.

For sin to be separated from me, is wholly to be rid of it; so that sin no more remains in me: For me to be separated from sin, is not to love and serve it, but cordially to hate it, and oppose it; he is separated from sin, who hates sin.

Now it is not the presence of sin simply and absolutely, which is effectually contrary to union with Christ (for then no sinner should ever be in Christ) but it is the love and service of sin which is contrary to a union with Christ; a man cannot love sin, and yet love Christ; neither can he serve sin and serve Christ.

But thus it is not with you; for though sin be in you, yet you love it not; and though sin assaults, and tempts, and perhaps sometimes prevails, yet you serve it not: And remember as long as sin is your burden, your grief, your enemy which you resist which you would destroy, with which you will not make peace, certainly you love it not, nor are you the servant of it. Paul (who was in Christ) found the presence of sin, but yet he hated it, and the powerful working of sin, but yet he refused it; and sometimes the captivity of sin, but yet he bewailed it, and sought to Christ for more deliverance and victory.

2. There is a twofold separation from sin.

One is Radical, when by the infusion of grace, the heart is changed and alienated from sin.

The other is Gradual, when by the further influence of the Spirit of Christ, the powerful presence of sin is more and more mortified and subdued. This latter you shall attain unto by virtue of your union with Christ: But if you find the former, certainly you are united to Christ: If there be but so much grace infused into the heart to alienate it from sin, to change the bent and frame of the soul; why! this cannot be without a union with Christ; for this is a new spiritual change wrought in you by the Spirit of Christ; and the newness of our hearts depends upon that union with Christ, which is made by faith, and is the lively testimony of it: If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature, 2 Cor. 5, 17.

Object. O but union with Christ depends upon some mighty and powerful workings of the Spirit upon the soul, which I never observed, nor discerned in my soul!

[Answered.] Sol. It is a truth that it doth so: The Gospel comes not in word only, but in power, and in the Holy Ghost, when it enables a soul to believe in Christ; and without the mighty working of the Spirit it is impossible to make the heart to believe: And although in the present darkness of the Spirit you discern not, nor remember such a mighty working, yet perhaps by the effects which may be found in you, you shall acknowledge the same: for the time was

1. When blackness of darkness covered your minds, so that you were ignorant of God and Christ, and your own condition, and of the way of salvation. But now there is a light set up in your mind, by which you know the true God, and him whom he hath sent, even Jesus Christ, and the salvation by him purchased for sinners who believe in him.

2. When carnal security possessed your heart, so that you could rest quiet in your natural condition; but now that spirit of slumber and security is shaken off, and your soul is become anxious and solicitous, What shall I do to be saved?

3. When your heart was full of your own righteousness, you were rich and increased, you were whole and needed not the Physician; but now you see yourself p • ore, and wretched, and naked, and miserable, and utterly undone, unless you may have Christ and be found in him.

4. When you were confident and presumptuous of your own power, and self-sufficiency; O it was easy to repent, and no great matter to believe on Christ; but now you find yourself without all strength; and unless you be enabled by the strength and grace of Christ, it is not only difficult, but also impossible for your heart to close with him by faith.

5. When you found your proud spirit slighting the offers of Christ, and opposing the word of Christ, and resisting, and quenching the motions of the Spirit of Christ; but now your hearts tremble at these abominations, and you lie down at the feet of Christ, and your heart is set on Christ, O Lord give me Christ; O Lord give me an heart to embrace this precious Christ, and never to slight thy great love in Christ, nor that great salvation anymore.

6. When you felt the power of unbelief in your hearts working up daily exceptions, and hourly fears, and strong despairs forever enjoying Christ for your Christ! O now! this sin, and that sin, this slighting, and that neglecting! and your unworthiness, and Christ's unwillingness; and your inability, and Christ's command; and your dullness and Christ's silence; and your desires, and Christ's delays! so that no hopes many times lodged within you, your hearts were sinking, and failing, and giving up all: But now your hearts are answered and set at liberty, and power is found within you to break down this mighty partition wall of unbelief; and against all the oppositions which unbelief and Satan can make, yet to venture upon Christ, and to justify the invitations and promises of Christ, and wholly to come up to all the terms and articles of Christ, upon which he is contented to be yours.

O Christian! call'st thou these no workings of the Spirit? Or no mighty workings of the Spirit? I tell thee that to work and effect these things, no less power is put forth than the Almighty power of God upon thy soul! A greater power than to bring Israel out of Egypt; as great a power is put forth as to raise the dead: I grant, that when the Spirit works with the Law to convince and distress the conscience, there his workings are more vehement and strong to our apprehensions: And when the same Spirit works through the Gospel, his workings (many times) are not discerned in their time of working, in that sensible and remarkable efficacy; but yet when you review the whole work, and working of the Spirit (as to the production of faith) why! you will fall down and admire how ever your poor souls could (against so many oppositions, insufficiencies, reasonings, conclusions, fears, doubts, despairs) be prevailed upon, and enabled to come to Christ.

Ob. O but union with Christ indeed by faith ever takes along with it the presence and communion of the Spirit: He that is joined to the Lord is one Spirit; and he hath received the Spirit, the Spirit of Christ who is in Christ: But I have not that Spirit, I find him not, I feel him not.

[Answered.] S • l. This also is a truth, that the communion of the Spirit is inseparably, annexed to union with Christ: And if any man have not the Spirit of Christ. he is none of Christ's.

But then know,

1. You must consider in what posture a Christian must be who may judge of the presence or absence of the Spirit of Christ in him. 1. He must be out of melancholy. 2. Out of violent temptation. 3. Out of Desertion: He must be himself, see himself that he is able and fit to judge Spiritual works, and to compare things together, and to weigh all that may be said in the balance of the Sanctuary. If thou be in this free posture, and upon diligent search, and serious consideration canst find not any one effect of communion with Christ, the case is very heavy: But I believe the contrary touching thee, O weak Christian! when those above mentioned impediments are off, so that thou art able to use the light of grace, and of a renewed conscience, much of Christ and from Christ will be found in thee, a love of thy Christ, a delight in thy Christ, a heart ready and willing to hear, and to obey thy Christ.

2. Distinguish of vital acts, and of vivifical acts, (that is) effects of a real union, and effects of a comfortable union: The estate of a comfortable union and communion, thou dost not (perhaps) espy at present, viz. Not actual joy, not actual cheerfulness, not actual assurances: O but though you do not find the child smiling, yet if you find it living, there is union: There are yet the effects and characters of life, and of vital union and communion with Christ, though not of a comfortable communion; there is yet a breathing after Christ, a hunting after Christ, an heart renewed and changed, an image of Christ unto which thou art changed and conformed, a will agreeing with the will of Christ, an end agreeing with the end of Christ, &c. And yet thou canst serve thy Christ in tears, though thou canst not serve him in joys; and though the Spirit of Christ be not seen so as to comfort thee, yet he is found so as to lead and uphold thee.

3. There is a communion by way of influence, and a communion by way of eminency, and a communion by way of evidence, and all these depend upon union with Christ.

1. Communion by way of influence, when we partake of the Nature and Life of Christ; ye are made partakers of the Divine Nature, saith Peter: Christ liveth in me, saith Paul.

2. A communion by way of eminency, when Christ appears mighty in the soul, in the large, and high, and strong degrees of acting of particular graces, of faith, of love, of patience, of self-denial, of zeal, of wisdom, of humility.

3. A communion by way of evidence, as when Christ kisseth the soul with the kisses of his lips. That is, when he sheds abroad his love into our hearts by the Spirit which he hath given us, and makes us to know that he loves us▪ and saith by his Spirit unto our hearts, I am my beloveds, and my beloved is mine: Perhaps you have not attained to this last communion with Christ, to this Osculumoris: and perhaps you have not attained to the second of these, which (as Bernard speaks) is Osculum manus: well! But yet you have attained to the first of these, which is Osculum pedis: perhaps you have not the sensible manifestations, and impressions, and seals of his favor by his spirit; but yet you are young men in Christ, and strong in the might of his Spirit: perhaps you are not come to the strength of the Spirit; but yet you are babes in Christ, yet the li • e of Christ is in you; you have that Spirit of Christ (in way of influence) which brings you into fellowship with Christ in his death, and in his resurrection; ye are dead to sin, and you are alive unto righteousness, and Christ is setting up himself in your hearts more and more; Be not discouraged; this shows true union with Christ forever. This is the communion of the Spirit of Christ, when our hears are fashioning and conforming to Christ, and have any part of his image stamped upon us: If you can find any one grace depending upon, and flowing from union with Christ, that is enough to satisfy you about the communion of the Spirit, and that you have the faith which hath indeed united you unto Christ.

Ob. But if I had indeed this faith which unites to Christ, I should not all this while have lived with so much weakness of grace, and under so many spiritual wants; certainly I should have found more of the strength, and of the fullness of Christ, who filleth all in all:

[Answered.] Sol. I grant it for a truth, that the right union is an imparting, and strengthening, and supplying union: Whosoever is united to Christ indeed by faith, to him is Christ a supplying Fountain, a feeding Root, and an helping Head, and he will never leave the communicating of his Spirit unto him, until he hath filled him with all that fullness whereof a lively member of Christ is capable: but then remember,

1. Comparatively the original and first receptions from Christ are weak and little, as the seed that is cast into the earth, or as the light which breaks forth in the morning: compare the first works of grace, with the flowing growth of grace, it is but as the babe to the strong man, but as the Lamb to the sheep; I believe, Lord, help my unbelief, this is that most of Faith at first: Thou knowest that I love thee, this is the highest of your love at first: whom I serve with, or in my spirit, this is the greatest of our obedience at the first.

2. The Communications of Christ unto the soul united by faith unto him, are partly for justification, and partly in Sanctification.

His communications in Justification are at once and full, and perfect: as soon as you are by faith united unto Christ, you are perfectly reconciled to God, you are perfectly clothed with the righeousness of Christ, you are perfectly pardoned all your sins; your peace is so perfectly made with God, that you cannot be more fully reconciled: you have the righteousness of Christ so perfectly imputed to you, that you cannot be more righteous; you have your sins so perfectly forgiven, that they cannot (as to God's work of absolution) be more exactly forgiven; they are so forgiven that none can lay anything to your charge; so forgiven that there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus.

His communications in Sanctification are not thus perfect, and at once; but they are successive and by degrees, and by measures: as the members of the body united to the Head, or as the branches united to the Root, have their strength and enlargements derived unto them in a succession of time, and in a proportion; so the Members of Christ and the Branches in him (true Believers) they do receive from him grace upon grace, one degree and measure after another, like a vessel in the Sea which is not filled according to the present fullness of the Sea, but according to the present capacity of the vessel, drop after drop, it is filled by continued way of filling: or like a Child that is nourished by a daily addition and reception of food, and so creeps up into more strength in time: Beloved, you must not expect (though you be united to Christ) such an immediate and complete supply of the Spirit of grace from Christ as at once to make you strong Christians, and full Christians without any weaknesses, and without any wants: Indeed Christ hath promised to perfect his work which he hath begun, and to strengthen what he hath wrought; and he will do so, but then it is in his own way, and in his own time, by degrees he will so follow the work of grace, that you shall grow and increase more and more with the increasings of God: he will water the Plants, and bless the Buds; and at length will bring forth Judgment into victory; he will not communicate his Spirit unto any of us in this life so perfectly as to be be without combat in ourselves, nor without dependence upon himself.

3. But lastly, do you indeed find weaknesses and wants still abiding with you? And why then did you complain and sit still? why do you not rather look out to Christ's fullness, than thus discourage your hears at your own emptiness? Indeed it is the first work of faith to unite you to Christ, to make you and Christ one, to give you an interest in himself; but then it is the next work of faith to live upon your Christ, to depend upon Christ, to draw out of his fullness, to go to him, and to trust on him for all the good which yet your souls do want, to get further fellowship with him; will he deny you help who hath not denied you himself? And is not he therefore your Christ, that he may be your head and help, and supply? &c.

SECT. VIII.

4. Use IS uniting Faith the condition of the Covenant of Grace, so that all Believers in Christ are really in Covenant with God, and God with them? Then you who are believers (who are by faith united unto Christ) learn from hence the duties which do especially concern you as Believers interested in Christ, and in the Covenant: The duties which do much concern you are these. 1. Improve your faith to a dependence on your God. 2. Improve your faith to an observance or keeping Covenant with your God. 3. Remember that it is Jesus Christ upon whose account you and God are in Covenant.

1. Being united by faith unto Christ, and so brought into Covenant, now improve your faith to a dependence upon your God, who is your God in Covenant: Come unto him in the name of Christ as unto your God, and rely on him, and expect to receive from him, all the good for which he hath engaged himself unto you in Covenant: For the better managing of this instruction, I will briefly show unto you

1. That it is an express and peremptory duty incumbent on you (who are by Faith brought into Covenant) to depend by faith on your God in Covenant.

2. How far you may by virtue of your union with Christ by faith depend upon your God.

3. What encouragements there are for all who are by Faith united unto Christ to depend and rely on their God for whatsoever good themselves do need, and God in his Covenant hath promised unto them: I beseech you who are Believers, diligently to regard and remember these things.

1. It is an express and peremptory duty incumbent on you being brought (by faith on Christ) into the Covenant, to depend by Faith on God, who is your God in Covenant, Isa. 8. 19. Should not a people seek unto their God? Psal. 20. 7. Some trust in Chariots, and some in Horses, but we will remember the Name of the Lord our God. Psal. 115. 9. O Israel! trust thou in the Lord, Psal. 91. 2. I will say of the Lord, He is my Refuge and my Fortress, my God, in him will I trust, Isa. 50. 10. Who is he that sits in darkness and sees no light? Let him trust in the Name of the Lord, and stay upon his God. Isa. 26. 4. Trust ye in the Lord forever, for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength. See Psal. 62. 8. Zeph. 3. 12. Isa. 12. 2. Isa. 14. 32. 2 Cor. 1. 9, 10. 1 Pet. 3 5.

Beloved! This is the end of your union with Christ, that you might have communion with God, that you might have access unto him, Ephes. 2. 18. and that you might come boldly to the throne of Grace, that you may obtain mercy and grace to help in time of need, Heb. 4. 16. And this is the end for which this faith is given unto you, not only for admission into the Covenant, but for participation of all the good of the Covenant: It is given unto you to make you children, and it is given to you to make you heirs; it is given unto you in a passive sense that you might be received into the Covenant; and it is given unto you in an active sense, that you may receive the good out of the Covenant; It is given unto you to take off your hearts from all confidence, but upon your God alone, and to set all your hopes on him, and expectations from him; and it is given unto you that you might give glory to all the truths of God; and what glory do you give to his p • omises, if you think him a God not to be trusted? &c.

2. How far (by virtue of union with Christ) Believers may depend upon their God in Covenant. I will describe those Bounds unto you in six Propositions.

1. So far as Jesus Christ is made over unto you by God, your dependence on God, may, and should extend. Isa. 9. 6. Unto us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulders; his Name shall be called wonderful, Counsel • r, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace; He is by God set forth to be a propitiation, Rom. 3. • 5. And he is made of God unto us Wisdom, and Righteousness, and Sanctification, and Redemption, 1 Cor. 1. • 0 And God hath made him to be sin for us, that we may be made the Righteousness of God in him, 2 Cor. 5. 21. And he is given to be a Redeemer, a Savior, a Light, a Salvation: As to all these respects you may confidently depend upon your God, that Jesus Christ shall be unto you a Redeemer.

2. So far as Christ hath purchased for his Members, as far as his purchase extends, so far your dependence on your God may extend; whatsoever good or blessing he hath laid down a price for, and bought by his blood and death for all that believe on h • m, for all that may you by faith depend upon your God (in time) to settle upon you; whether it be remission of sin, or reconciliation with God, or grace, or peace in conscience, or acceptance, or assistance, or joys of the Holy Ghost, or perseverance, or eternal glory, for all of it are you to depend upon your God, to settle upon you in their order and measure.

3. So far as the promises of God do extend, so far may, and should your dependence on your God extend: whatsoever he undertakes to give you in his Covenant, for all that may, and should you depend upon him for according to his Covenant: His Covenant is full of promises, and those promises are full of good for soul, for body, for both, for this life, for the next life, for grace, for glory; why! All these promises are the children's bread, and the believers portion: and as where God hath a mouth to speak to us in the way of Precepts, there we should have an ear to hear him in the way of obedience; so where God is pleased to abound in promises unto us, we are bound to enlarge our Faith in a dependence upon him for all that promised good: unbelief displeaseth and dishonoreth God in his promise • s, as disobedience doth dishonor and displease him in respect of his commands.

4. So far as the real exigencies of our souls and bodies do extend, so far may, and should our faith of dependence extend upon our God: Though the child hath no reason to depend upon his father to supply him of his vanities; yet he hath warrant enough to rely upon him to relieve all his necessities. If the child wants bread, and raiment, or Physic, the child may come, and the Father will help: and this holds 'twixt God our Father, and his children. How much more shall your heavenly Father give good things to them that ask him? Matth. 7. 11. If it be a want indeed, an exigence indeed, a strait indeed, you may go to your God and trust on him, and he will not fail you. Psal 84. 11. No good thing will he with-hold. Psal. 34. 10. They that seek the Lord, shall not want any good thing. Isai. 41. 17. When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the Lord will hear, I the God of Israel will will not forsake them.

Let your want or exigence be temporal, or spiritual, if it be indeed an exigence by reason of temptation from Satan, or from the insolent op • rations of sinful corruptions, or from the greatness of afflictions, or heav • nesse of misery, or distress of poverty, or any other pressure, I say, if it be a real exigence that you know not what to do, in every such case your eyes should be upon your God, you should trust on him, and stay upon his Name.

5. So far as your prayers may extend for yourselves, so far may, and should your dependence on your God extend: I do not say every man's asking and faith of dependence are co-extensive: Nor do I say that every good man's asking and faith of dependence are to be paralleled: But this I say, that so far as you may pray, so far you may and ought to believe, to depend on your God, 1 Joh. 5. 14. This is the confidence that we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us. Joh. 14. 13. Whatsoever ye shall ask in my Name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son: you may pray for whatsoever God hath commanded you to pray, and you may pray for whatsoever God hath encouraged his people to pray; you may pray for whatsoever God hath promised to hear and and answer Prayer; and for whatsoever Christ may be looked upon as an Intercessor: And for all these may you depend upon your God. Nay you should do so; for as your God would have you thus to pray unto him, so he would have you to pray in faith, to ask in Faith, believing that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

6. Lastly, Match but conditions and circumstances, whatsoever good, and in whatsoever like case any Child of God, or servant of Christ hath extended his faith of dependence upon his God, for all that good may you (being now in the same relation and condition) exercise your faith of dependence upon your God: If you be in the same strait that Jehoshaphat was, or in the same distress that Hezekiah was, or in the same calamity that Job was, or in the same dejection & desertion that David was, or in the same spiritual conflicts, and temptation that Paul was, or in the same trouble and terror of conscience that Heman was, &c. whatsoever mercy, or grace, help, or comfort, or goodness, they might look up unto God for as their God in Covenant, for the very same may you look up to God, and depend upon God for as your God. Whatsoever any one hath pleaded for with God, and trusted upon God for, because he was their God, upon the same account, in the same condition may every Child of God plead with him, and depend upon him for, because God is also his God: Parallel but conditions and circumstances, and then the same Covenant will unquestionably afford unto you the same ground for confidence and dependence.

3. These things being so, let us advance now into the third place, viz. What encouragements there are for all who are by faith united unto Christ, cheerfully and confidently to depend upon their God for whatsoever good he hath stated out for them in his Coenvant.

Sol. If any people in the world have grounds of encouragement to depend on God for the good of his Covenant, then certainly you have who are by faith united unto Christ; and you have these three choice encouragements; viz. 1. Relation. 2. Promises. 3. The Name and Office of Christ.

1. There is a very near relation between God and you; so near that there is a mutual propriety between you, Zech. 1 • . 9. I will say It is my people, and they shall say The Lord is my God, 2 Cor. 6. 18. I will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my Sons and Daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. Isa. 54. 5. Thy Maker is thy Husband (the Lord of Hosts is his Name) and thy Redeemer, &c. Can there be any Relation greater or nearer than these Relations? My God, and my people; our Father, and my Sons and Daughters; my Husband, and my Wife. Surely these are the nearest Relations for union, and they are the tenderest Relations for affection, and they are the strongest Relations for obligation: The Father himself loves you, said Christ to his Disciples; I will marry thee to myself in loving kindness, said God to his Church. Love will do much, especially love set in a near relation. Why are our hands so open to our Wives, and Children, and Friends, but because our hearts are enlarged in love towards them? And why do any of these repair unto us (and not to others) for help, but because of their near relation unto us? they are our Children, and we are their Fathers, they are our Wives, and we are their Husbands? There is near relation, and there is love, and there is readiness, and there is special obligation, and therefore they come to us, and depend upon us, and we do help them. Do you find encouragement to depend upon your friend, because he is your friend and loves you? and have you not a greater encouragement to depend upon your God, because he is your God and loves you? Can the Child find encouragements enough (by virtue of his relation) to go to his Father and rely on him? and cannot you (who are by faith the children of God) discern greater encouragements to go to your Father, and depend on him? your Relation is higher, and your love is infinitely purer and stronger!

2. If the nearness of Relation be not satisfactory, then remember there is also the bound of promises: To you are the promises made and given, which are the very bonds of God, and your names are in those bonds; God will not be at liberty, he knows how incredulous we are, we must have his Word to tell us how he stands affected towards us; nay, and we must have his word of promise, binding and engaging his honor (as God) to do us good, and not to fail us: Nay, perhaps his word of promise will not suffice us, but besides that we must have his Oath (which yet we never put any man on earth unto, and unto whom we come for help) but God comes off with all this to encourage us to come unto him, and to depend on him. He is ours in Affection, he becomes ours in Relation, and he tells us how good a God he intends to be unto us, and then engageth himself in promises for all that good; and moreover he takes his Oath, swears by himself that he will not fail us nor forsake us, and that in blessing he will bless us. Beloved! what would you have more to encourage, to assure you, to give you confidence that you may draw near to your God, and depend, and trust upon him; saith God, you have my Word, and you have my Oath, and I am yours, I have no greater security to make unto you.

3. Well, and besides this you have another encouragement to come and depend upon your God, and that is the Name of Christ, and the Office of Christ.

Object. True, will you say, we can desire no more on God's part; but something makes us to fear, and doubt on our part; He is good, but we are unworthy; and he is willing to do us good: but how shall we plead with him?

Sol. I answer, Jesus Christ is yours, and in his name you may go to the Father, and as you may plead with the Father in his Name, so doth he plead for you with the Father in his own Name: Joh 16. 23. Verily, verily, I say unto you, whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my Name he will give it you. As if he should say, I grant that you (of yourselves) are unworthy, and you cannot prevail upon your own account of worthiness; this will not carry it with the Father; therefore when you come unto him use my Name, plead my worthinss, entreat him to do you good for my sake, and I assure you that will prevail with him, Heb. 9. 24. Christ is entered into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us. Heb. 7. 25. He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him: Seeing he ever liveth to make intercession. You see in these places that Jesus Christ appears in the presence of God for you; when you appear before God in prayer, Christ also appears in the presence of God for you, and makes intercession for you; he owns your persons, and he owns your petititions, you plead and Christ pleads, you make requests, and Christ makes intercession. Father! These are they whom thou hast given to me; Thine they were, and they are mine; for them I died, and for them I purchas • d all the good which thou didst promise unto me, that they should have, if I would lay down my life for them: Now therefore let them enjoy what thou hast promised, and what I have purchased for them. Thus have you the first duty belonging unto them who are by faith united to Christ, and brought thereby into Covenant with God: Now follows the second.

2. Being united by Faith unto Christ, and so let into the Covenant, Improve your Faith to an observance or keeping Covenant with your God: And indeed Faith is given unto you also for this end, that you may be able to keep and hold fast the Covenant made between you and your God, that you may obey his will, walk in his Statutes and ways, be sincere and upright, and remain faithful and steadfast with him to the end.

Quest. But can faith do this? Is it in the power of our faith thus to enable us? How can, or doth faith enable us to keep Covenant with our God?

Sol. This is an excellent question, and I would resolve it thus: Faith doth enable us to keep our Covenant with God six ways.

1. By pleading the Covenant; by enabling us to go unto, and rest upon our God in Covenant, to let out that strength and sufficiency of that grace which he hath promised unto all his people in Covenant with him; the strength to keep the Covenant lies in the Covenant, and by faith you get it.

Thou said'st that thou wouldst do me good, said Jacob, Gen. 32. 12. So Lord thou said'st that thou wouldest give me thy Spirit to cause me to walk in thy statutes and to do them, Ezek. 36. 27. Thou said'st thou wouldest write thy Law in my heart; Now Lord! according to thy word and Covenant help, strengthen, keep, direct, establish my heart, subdue mine iniquities, suffer me not to be tempted above what I am able, let thy grace be sufficient for me, make thy power manifest in weakness, &c.

2. By keeping up communion with Christ, and drawing virtue and influence from him: without me ye can do nothing, said Christ; I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me, said Paul: Why! It is in and by Christ, that we are what we are, that we do what we do, that we are strengthened with all might, that we stand, that we walk, that we work, that we run our race, that we finish our course, that we continue in well-doing to the end: Now faith keeps up our hearts, and keeps up communion with Christ our Head, our Root, our Life, our Fountain, our Strength, and our Sufficiency, and receives out of his fullness, and makes us partakers of his life, and of his death, and of his victories over sin, and Satan, and the world, and of his strength for active and passive obedience.

3. By taking us off from all our own self-sufficiencies, and self-confidences (which breed nothing but pride and presumption, and hypocrisy, and apostasy, and carelessness) and exciting our hears to pray, and to fear, and to watch, and diligently to attend the Ordinances of Christ; all which are means to strengthen and preserve us in well-doing, &c

4. By observing the continual mercies of God to us in the things of this life, and the gracious performance of his promises unto us, both which are as so many cords to bind us faster unto God, and are of great force with a believing heart to engage it more unto God, and to walk the more closely, and faithfully, and exactly, and fruitfully before him: to be the more ashamed to sin against him, to be barren and uneven with so blessing and encouraging a God!

5. By letting in the love of God in Christ (the goodness and sweetness of his favor) into our Consciences. It is faith which hath the sight of all the kindness of God, and conveys unto us the tastes of all the mercy of God, how God stands affected to us, how accepted we are with him, what grace our poor souls have found in his eyes, what his thoughts are of us, and how dear we are to his soul: And verily if Faith be the glass (as it were) for us to see the face of our loving God, O how will this inflame and knit our hearts in love to God again! and how will that love continue us to the choicest, to the fullest, to the chearfullest, to the faithfullest service of obedience!

5. By holding out before us, both the honor of God, and the reward of God: Our faithful walking with him is an honor to him, and a delight to him, These are my people, these live like a people of God, they glorify him: and that is the great Argument which faith useth to make the people of God to be faithful and steadfast, Herein is my Father glorified, Joh. 15. 8. And besides that, it holds out the crown of life, the great recompense of reward, that Well done good and faithful servant! enter thou into the joy of thy Lord: Hold fast that which thou ha •• , that no man take thy 〈◊〉 . He that continues, to the end shall be saved. And faith he 〈◊〉 w • a • God hath done for us, and what God • s still to us, and what an immortal inheritance, and exceedingly exceeding weight of Glory he hath prepared and reserved for us, doth thereupon quicken, encourage, support, draw out our hearts to be industrious, obedient, diligent and faithful.

3. The third and last duty from this, that you are by Faith united to Christ, and brought into the Covenant, is this, Remember your Jesus Christ, remember that it is Christ only upon whose account you and God are in Covenant: he is the door of your hope, he is the Way, the Truth, and the Life; in him are ye found, and in him have you found life, and love, and mercy, and grace, and peace, and salvation. You could never have seen the reconciled, loving, gracious God as your God, but in and by him: He hath made you near, and accepted, and beloved, and blessed; He alone! Therefore.

1. Never magnify yourselves, but Christ; never ascribe anything to your worthiness, but ascribe all to Christ: O Christ, I had never seen, nor tasted, nor enjoyed this, nor that, nor anything but for thy sake.

2. Love Jesus Christ exceedingly for himself, and for all the treasures of the Covenant opened for you, and laid out upon you, &c.

3. Go still in his Name unto the Father: By him you come into Covenant, and by him you obtain successively every good 〈…〉 Co • enant, &c.

Jesus the Mediator of the Covenant.

T HE Apostle in the 14. verse of this Chapter exhorts the believing Hebrews (unto whom he wrote this Epistle) to the serious study and practice of peace and holiness: And in the 15. verse he dehorts them from all bitterness of spirit, and profaneness of life. This latter he doth enforce by an argument ab exemplo: in verse 16. from Esau that loose and profane person (who for one morsel of bread sold his birthright) preferring the satisfaction of his sensual appe • ite, before the fruition of so a great blessing and dignity, the which he therefore forfeited, and could never obtain, although he sought it carefully with tears, verse 17.

The former duty of holiness he urgeth upon them from the consideration of their evangelical estate (that is) of the excellencies, blessings, and privileges which they had obtained by the Gospel of Grace: To illustrate this the more, he makes a comparison between the Law and the Gospel; and the condition under the one, with the condition under the other, from verse 18. to verse 25. wherein he doth represent unto them their admirable advantages by the Gospel, and therefore their stronger obligation to embrace it, and to live answerable unto it in holiness of conversation.

The condition in which sinners lie whiles under the Law and the curse thereof, and without Christ, is set forth in the 18, 19, 20, 21. verses. I will give you the sum of it.

They have to do with God as a terrible Judge, sitting on the Throne of his Justice, This is represented by Mount Sinai that burned with fire, and where the • e was blackness, and darkness, and tempest, verse 18. All which show unto us that dreadful and burning wrath of God against sinners; and when he manifests himself unto them as their offended Judge, then they are filled with confusion, and perplexity, and horror. They can neither fly from this God, nor yet abide his dreadful presence; this is set out in verse 19. 20. as if nothing but death were to be expected and present destruction: And truly the manifestations of God were (then) so terrible, that Moses himself said, I exceedingly fear and quake, ver. 21. No not the most righteous person is able to stand before God as a • udge.

But now let us consider the other estate unto which Believers in Christ are brought by the Gospel. This is set forth in verse 22, 23, 24. But ye are come unto Mount Zion, the heavenly Jerusalem, instead of Mount Sinai which was the seat of wrath; ye are come to Mount Zion which is the throne of Grace: And unto the City of the living God; ye are not now in a wilderness condition, but brought into a resting place, into the heavenly Jerusalem (which is the vision of peace) where (being reconciled by Christ) you do abide, and enjoy the living God for your God.

And to Myriads, or innumerable company of Angels; even the Angels are fellow-Citizens with you in the heavenly Jerusalem, and in this life your fellowservants and Ministers.

To the general assembly and Church of the first-born which are written in heaven. Through Christ ye are made members of the true Catholic Church, of the Elect and of all Believers, whose names are enrolled in heaven, written in the book of life, predestinated unto grace and glory.

And unto God the judge of all, who will condemn and punish his adversaries; and absolve, comfort, and reward, and save his people, according to his faithful promises.

And to the Spirits of just men made perfect. To the Church triumphant in heaven, which is freed from all sin and misery, and partakes of perfect holiness and happiness; to which you have now a present right, and of which (are long) you shall by Christ have a sure enjoyment with them that are already entered into that Possession.

And to Jesus the Mediator of the new Covenant. Ye are under a Covenant of grace which proclaims remission of sin, and of which Christ himself is Mediator and Surety; by whom God is satisfied and reconciled.

And to the blood of sprinkling; to the partaking of this blood which was shed for the remission of sins, and to cleanse us from sin; so that you are now justified and sanctified by him; which speaketh better things than that of Abel. The blood of Abel spake and cried out against Cain for curse and vengeance; but the blood of Jesus Christ speaks to God for mercy and pardon of sin, and peace, and life, and is effectual for these.

Thus you see into what a surpassing condition the Gospel brings believers in Christ, and of what efficacy the Apostles exhortation of them to holiness should therefore be.

CHAP. VII. The Covenant of Grace considered in relation to Christ the Mediator.

T HIS last verse I have purposely chosen to carry on farher the discourse of the Covenant of Grace in relation to Christ Jesus as Mediator thereof: And let me tell you that herein lies the strongest hopes, and the sweetest comforts, and the surest grounds that we sinners have; that as there is a New Covenant (a Covenant of Grace) so that Jesus Christ is the Mediator thereof: For set Jesus Christ aside as Mediator in this Covenant, there would be no admission of sinners into it, nor any participation of the good things in it, nor any ability of our standing or abiding in it.

I find in Scripture a seven-fold relation that Jesus Christ hath to the Covenant.

1. He is the substance of the Covenant, even the Covenant itself, Isa. 42. 6. I will give thee for a Covenant of the people, Isa. 49. 8. He is our very peace, and our very life, and our very salvation; and (if I may not be mistaken) he it is that fulfils, and makes the Covenant good on both sides.

2. He is the principal confederate party: As Adam was in that Covenant of works standing for himself and all his posterity; so Jesus Christ in this Covenant of Grace for himself and all that believe on him, Heb. 1. 5. I will be to him a Father, and be shall be to me a Son, 1 Joh. 20. 17. I ascend to my Father and your Father, and to my God and your God.

3. He is the Messenger of the Covenant, (Mal. 3. 1. The Messenger of the Covenant whom ye delight in) He it is who opens and reports unto us the good will of his Father, and the gracious love of the Father, and what hath past and hath been agreed on 'twixt the Father and him touching our salvation; he reveals this Covenant, and treats with sinners about it, and shows them the way how to come in, and prevails with them by his Spirit.

4. He is the Witness of the Covenant, Isa. 55. 4. Behold I have given him for a Witness to the people. Rev. 1. 5. From Jesus Christ the faithful witness, &c. He testifies to the Covenant, by word, and deed, and oath, and his testimony is true, 1 Tim. 1. 15. This is a faithful saying and worthy all acceptation, that Jesus Christ is come into the world to save sinners: He is the Yea and Amen to every word of promise and grace that God hath spoken concerning us, that it is good and true, that God hath said it, and that he will perform it.

5. He is the Surety of the Covenant. Heb. 7. 22. Jesus was made a Surety of a better Testament and Covenant: As God is (in some respect) a Surety for Christ, Isa. 52 13. Behold my servant shall deal prudently; so Christ is a Surety for God, undertaking that his Father shall perform what he hath promised, Joh. 6. 37. All that the Father giveth me shall come to me, and him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out, verse 38. For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. verse 39. And this is the Fathers will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me, I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And a Surety for us; He did enter into Bond for us to pay our ransom; To become sin for us, that we may be made the righteousness of God in him.

6. He is the Testator of the Covenant, and he died to confirm the Covenant: His death sealed it, so that we may challenge and plead the good of the Covenant as children do their Estates left unto them in a Testament sealed, Heb. 9. 16, 17. Where a Testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the Testator: For a Testament is of force after men are dead.

7. He is the Mediator of the Covenant: Thus is he styled in the Text, the Mediator of the New Covenant. Thus in Heb. 8. 6. The Mediator of a better Covenant. Thus in Heb. 9. 15. The Mediator of the New Testament. He is that days-man 'twixt God and us, that lays his hand upon us both, such a one as Job wished for, Job 9. 33. He takes up all differences, answered all demands, paid the ransom, and reconciled us.

There is,

• 1. Internuncius, A Messenger between two parties.
• 2. Arbiter, An Umpire, an indifferent man chosen to judge between two. A litigantibus eligitur, & habet totius rei potestatem.
• 3. Intercessor, who useth entreaty for another.
• 4. Advocatus, who defendeth or soliciteth another man's cause.
• 5. Mediator ut supra; and there is a Mediator per modum Annuntiationis, or Revelationis, as M • ses who stood between God and the people, Indicans illis verbum Dei, Deut. 5. 5. I stood between the Lord and you at that time, to show unto you the Word of the Lord, per modum reconciliations: So Jesus Christ who by his death or sacrifice appeased God, and reconciled us unto God, 1 Tim. 2. 5. There is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ. verse 6. Who gave himself a ransom for all.

But what is a Mediator? He is

1. Qui medius est inter duos parum inter se congruentes, aut etiam sibi invicem hosts; he is a middle Person (a third Person) between two who are either jarring and quarrelling, or else who plainly fall • out and becomes enemies; he is one who steps in 'twixt the offending, and offended person.

2. Qui mediate inter partes: He is one who mediates between those parties, (that is) who undertakes to take up their differences, and to atone and reconcile them, and make them one in love and friendship again, and for that purpose engageth himself to give such a satisfaction to the offended party, whereby all grounds of injury and displeasure being removed, he, and the offending party comes to stand in the terms of affection, peace, and amity, as if no difference ever had been between them.

3. Qui promovet, he is one who doth so attend and personate the reconciling of parties, that he gives not over that work or enterprise, until he hath accorded them, and drawn them into a state of love and reconcilement, until he hath indeed made them friends.

4. Qui utriusque nomine: He is one who transacts this work between the parties in the name of the both parties dealing with the offending party in the name of the offended; and with the offended party, in the name of the offeding party; so to satisfy the one, and so to relieve and help the other.

In all these respects is Christ a Mediator 'twixt God and us sinners.

1. God the Father he is that one party, and the sinner is the other party; betwixt both of them Jesus Christ the Son of God comes in as a middle or third party.

2. And mediates, takes it upon him to set them at one again, who by reason of sin • e are at variance and enmity; and this he doth by undertaking to give satisfaction to God offended and provoked by sin.

3. And so prosecutes this work that he refuseth not anything required and insisted upon by the offended God, necessary to make him reconciled, but willingly yields to do and suffer all (and did so) to make up a peace twixt him and sinners.

4. In the transacting of all this, He acted in the name of them both, with the one, and with the other.

For the opening of this excellent and useful Point, I shall touch briefly upon seven particulars.

• 1 The necessity of a Mediator between God and us sinners.
• 2. That Jesus Christ is the Mediator, and he only.
• 3. How Jesus Christ is to be considered, as standing under the Name and Office of a Mediator.
• 4. According to what Nature in Christ he is our Mediator, whether according to his Divine nature only, or Human Nature only, or both.
• 5. What did concern Christ to do or suffer for us as Mediator.
• 6. What the merits, efficacies, virtues and benefits are depending on him as Mediator, and flowing from his mediation.
• 7. What Christ still doth in the behalf of the people in Covenant, for whom he is a Mediator.