shall know (Him,) even as we are known (of Him)." For we shall live with Him, behold His glory, enjoy His blessed company, admire and love Him for ever. These things being duly weighed, I need not use any other arguments to persuade those who hope and desire in good earnest to be saved, to make it their great care and study to get their minds possessed with as true a knowledge, and as deep a sense of Christ their Saviour, as possibly they can; but shall conclude this, as St. Peter doth his Second Epistle. "Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things [2 Pet.3.17, 18.] before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own steadfastness: but grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To Him be glory, both now and for ever," Amen. SERMON XIX. THE NEW CREATURE IN CHRISTIANITY. SERM. [1 Tim. 1. 1 John 2. 2.] [1 Tim. 2. 4.] 2 CORINTHIANS V. 17. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. ALTHOUGH it be certain from God's own Word, that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, that He gave Himself a ransom for all, that He tasted death for every man, and that He is a propitiation for the sins of the whole world; yet it is certain also, that there are many sinners in the world which shall not be saved by Him: yea, we have just cause to fear, that but few will be so; few, not in themselves absolutely considered, but few in comparison of the many more that will be damned, notwithstanding all that He hath done and suffered for them. But this cannot posHis power, who is sibly be imputed to any defect in them in His Gospel, if they will accept of it: but if they will not have it, but refuse and slight it, chusing and preferring the things of this world before it, they can blame nobody but themselves, when they come to see their mistake and folly. And yet this is the case of most men. What Christ Himself once said to the Jews, “Ye will not come to Me, John 5. 40. that ye might have life," the same may be said to the greatest part of mankind, and of them also who profess to believe in Him, and to hope for life and Salvation from Him; yet they will not come unto Him for it for some are so selfwilled, that they will not go out of themselves, nor be beholden to Him for their Salvation; others wilfully shut their eyes, and will not see the way that leads to Him; and of those who have their eyes opened, that they cannot choose but see it, whether they will or no, yet many will not walk in it, they have their trades to mind, or their land to till, they have families to provide for, and bodies to look after. These are things they are sensible of, as being present with them; as for their future state, that is a thing remote and out of sight, and therefore they never trouble their heads about that, so long as they can find any thing else to do, which is commonly so long as they live: and if they ever chance to think of it, as sometimes perhaps they may, they bethink themselves also that they are Christians, they were baptized long ago, and never renounced their Baptism, but still continue members of Christ, believing that He is the Saviour of the world, and that He hath done so much to save them, that He hath left no great matter for them to do. As for Jews, and Turks, and Heathens, they pity their condition, as being without the pale of the Church, and so without any hopes of Salvation: but as for their parts, they are Christians, and are resolved to live and die so, and never to profess any other religion, but that which Christ hath settled in the world; and therefore doubt not but whatsoever becomes of other, they shall be saved. This is the language, or at least, these are the thoughts of most of those who profess to believe in Christ; they profess to do so, and that is all, concerning themselves no more about Christ, than the Turks do about Mahomet, the Indians about Braman, or the Jews about Moses; they look upon XIX. SERM. Him as the founder of their religion, and do not question but that He hath taught them the right way to Heaven, and therefore hope to go thither when they die, without taking any more care about it. And that is the great reason, why of so many who profess to believe in Christ, there are so few who are saved by Him: whereas, if they really did what they profess to do, even believe in Christ aright, as He hath taught them in the Gospel, they could not but be saved. But then they would find the Christian religion quite another thing than what they imagined it to be: it would make such a mighty change and alteration in them, that they would be another kind of creatures than what others are, or they themselves ever were before. For if they truly believed in Christ, they would be in Him; and the Apostle here tells us, that "if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature;" old things are passed away, "behold all things are become new in Him." And to the same purpose Gal. 6. 15. he saith elsewhere, that "in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature," or, as the word, I think, may be more properly rendered in this place, "a new creation," for the Greek word arios signifies both creation and creature; and the context here seems to require it to be taken in the active sense, because circumcision and uncircumcision are so: but the meaning of the whole is still the same, even that whether a man be circumcised or not circumcised, whether he do or do not enjoy such outward rites and privileges, he is neither the better nor the worse; the only thing necessary in the Christian religion, is "the new creation." If a man be not created anew, whatsoever he hath or hath not, it is all one, he is no true Christian, he doth not truly believe in Christ; for if he did, he would be "a new creature:" and so the word must of necessity be understood in my text, not of the act, but subject; for the Apostle here speaks of the person that is in Christ, and saith, that he "is a new creature," which therefore cannot possibly be understood of the act of creation, but the thing created: "If any man," saith he, "be in Christ, he is a new creature." In which words, we shall first consider the terms, and then the truth asserted in them: the terms to be explained are two, as in all such propositions, the subject and the predicate, "what it is to be in Christ," and then, "what it is to be a new creature." As for the first, it is a phrase which the Holy Ghost delights often to use; and therefore I could never persuade myself, but that there is something particular and more remarkable in it, than what is commonly taken notice of: I shall not recite the many places where it occurs, but such only from whence the meaning of it may be gathered. "There is therefore," saith the Apostle, "now, no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus:" from Rom. 8. 1. whence we may conclude, that they are said to be in Christ, who are not only in His Church, but in His Person, so as to be really vested and interested in Him, in His merits, for the pardon of their sins, and in His righteousness, whereby they may be justified, or accounted righteous before God; for otherwise they could not but be condemned. To the same purpose, the same Apostle having recounted his own privileges and righteousness which he had in the law, he saith, "But what things were gain to me, those I counted Phil. 3. 7.9. loss for Christ: yea, doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord; for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, and be found in Him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ." Where we may observe, that he reckons his being in Christ, no common or ordinary thing, but the greatest blessing he could ever have, and he expresseth it several ways: first, by his winning Christ, ἵνα Χριστὸν κερδήσω, that I may win or gain Christ to myself, that He may be mine, my Saviour, my Redeemer, my Lord, as he here calls Him: and then he adds, "That I may be found in Him." In Him! How? by having His righteousness; that I may be "found," saith he, "in Him, not having mine own righteousness, but that which is through the faith of Christ." Which shews plainly, that he desired to be found in Christ, so as to have the righteousness of Christ to be his righteousness, that he might be accounted righteous by it; which could not be, unless it was his own and therefore, by being in Christ, he can mean nothing less than such an union to Him, whereby a man is |