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Pofition 3.

The faints have not fellowship and communion with Chrift, in the fore mentioned benefits and privileges by one and the same medium, but by various mediums and ways, according to the nature of the benefits, in which they participate.

For instance, they have partnership and communion with Christ, as hath been faid, in his righteousness, holiness, and glory, but they receive these distinct blessings by divers mediums of communion: we have communion with Chrift in his righteousness, by the way of imputation; we partake of his holiness, by the way of infufion; and of his glory in heaven, by the beatifical vifion. Our juftification is a relative change, our fanctification a real change, our glorification a perfect change, by redemption, from all the remains both of fin and mifery.

Thus hath the Lord appointed feveral bleffings for believers in Chrift, and feveral channels of conveying them from him to us; by imputed righteoufnefs, we are freed from the guilt of fin; by imparted holinefs, we are freed from the dominion of fin, and by our glorification with Chrift, we are freed from all the relics and remains both of fin and mifery, let in by fin up

on our natures.

Pofition 4.

That Jefus Chrift imparts to all believers, all the spiritual blefJings that he is filled with, and withholds none from any that have union with him; be these bleffings never fo great, or they that receive them never fo weak, mean, and contemptible in outward refpects, Gal. iii. 27." Ye are all the children of God by faith "in Jefus Christ " The falvation that comes by Christ is stiled the common falvation, Jude 3. and heaven the inheritance of the faints in light, Col. i. 12. "There is neither Greek nor Jew, "(faith the apoftie) circumcifion nor uncircumfion, Barbarian, "Scythian, bond or free, but Chrift is all and in all," Col. iii. 11.

He means, there is no privilege in the one to commend them to God, and no want of any thing in the other to debar them from God; let men have or want outward excellen cies, as beauty, honour, riches, nobility, gifts of the mind, fweetness of nature, and all fuch like ornaments, what is that to God? He looks not at these things, but refpects them, and communicates his favour to them as they are in Christ: He is all, and in all. The gifts and bleffings of the Spirit are given to men as they are in Christ, and without respect to any exter nal differences made in this world among men: hence we find excellent treasures of grace in mean and contemptible perfons in

the world; poor in the world, and rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom; and as all believers, without difference, receive from Chrift, fo they are not debarred from any bleffing that is in Chrift: "All is yours, for ye are Christ's,' 1 Cor. iii. ult.; with Chrift, God "freely gives us all things," Rom. viii. 32. Pofition 5.

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The communion believers have with Chrift, in fpiritual benefits, =is a very great mystery, far above the understanding of natural men. There are no footsteps of this thing in all the works of creation, therefore the apostle calls it "The unfearchable riches "of Chrift," Eph. iii. 8. axis whytor to Xpisy: The word fignifies, that which hath no footsteps to trace it by yea, it is fo deep a mystery, that the angels themfelves ftoop down to look into it, Pet. i. 12. " Eye hath not feen, nor ear heard, "neither have it entered into the heart of man the things which "God hath prepared for them that love him: but God hath "revealed them unto us by his Spirit," I Cor. ii. 9, 10.

Thirdly, and laftly, I fhall, in a few particulars, open the dignity and excellency of this fruit of our union with Christ, and fhew you, that a greater glory and honour cannot be put upon man, than to be thus in fellowship with Jefus Chrift, John xvii. 22. "The glory which thou gavest me, I have given them, that they may be one, as we are one:" And therefore, more particularly, let it be confidered,

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First, With whom we are affociated; even the Son of God; with him that is over all, God blessed for ever. Our affociation with angels is an high advancement, for angels and faints are fellow-fervants in the fame family, Rev. xix. 10. and through Chrift we are come to an innumerable company of angels, Heb. xii. 22. But what is all this to our fellewship with Jesus Christ himself, and that in another manner than angels have? For though Chrift be to them an head of dominion, yet not an head of vital influences, as he is to his mystical body the church: this therefore is to them a great mystery, which they greatly affect to ftudy and pry into.

Secondly, What we are that are dignified with this title, the fellows or co-partners with Jefus Chrift: Not only duft by nature, (Duft thou art), but finful duft; fuch wretched finners, as, by nature, and the fentence of the law, ought to be associ ated with devils, and partakers with them of the wrath of the almighty God to all eternity.

Thirdly, The benefits we are partakers of, in and with the Lord Jefus Chrift; and, indeed, they are wonderful and aftoaihing things, fo far as they do already appear, but yet we fee

SERM. VIII. but little of them, comparatively, to what we shall fee, 1 John Hi. 1, 2. "Now are we the fons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we fhall be, but we know that when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we fhall fee him as he is." O what will that be! to fee him as he is, and to be transformed into his likenels.

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Fourthly, The way and manner in which we are brought into this fellowship with Chrift: which is yet more admirable. The apostle gives us a ftrange account of it in 2 Cor. viii. 9. For you know the grace of our Lord Jefus Chrift, that though he was rich, yet for your fakes he became poor, that "ye through his poverty might be rich" he empties himself of his glory, that we might be filled; he is made a curfe, that we might enjoy the bleffing; he fubmits to be crowned with thorns, that we might be crowned with glory and honour; he puts himself into the number of worms, Pfal. xxii. 6., that we might be made equal to the angels. O the unconceivable grace of Chritt!

Fifthly, The reciprocal nature of that communion which is betwixt Chrift and believers: We do not only partake of what is his, but he partakes of what is ours: he hath fellowship with us in all our wants, forrows, miferies, and afflictions; and we have communion with him in his righteoufnefs, grace, fonfhip and glory he takes part of our mifery, and we take part of his bleffednefs; our fufferings are his fufferings, Col. i. 24. O what an honour is it to thee, poor wretch, to whom a great many would not turn aside to ask how thou doft; to have a King, yea, the Prince of all the kings of the earth, to pity, relieve, fympathize, groan and bleed with thee, to fit by thee in all thy troubles, and give thee his cordials, to fay thy troubles are my troubles, and thy afflictions are my afflictions: whatever toucheth thee, toucheth me alfo. O what name shall we give unto fuch grace as this is?

Sixthly, and lastly, Confider the perpetuity of this privilege: Your fellowship with Chrift is interminable, and abides for ever. Chrift and the faints fhall be glorified together, Rom. viii. 17. while he hath any glory they shall partake with him. It is faid indeed, 1 Cor. xv. 24. that there fhall be a time when Christ will deliver up the kingdom to his Father; but the meaning is not that ever he will ceafe to be an Head to his faints, or they from being his members: No, no, the relation never ceases; juftification, fanctification, and adoption, are everlasting things, and we can never be divefted of them.

Infer. 1. Are the faint's Chrift's fellows? What honourable

perfons then are they! and how should they be efteemed and valued in the world! If a king, who is the fountain of honour, do but raile a man by his favour, and dignify him by bestowing some honourable title upon him, what refpect and obfervance is pres fently paid him by all perfons? But what are all the vain and empty titles of honour, to the glorious and substantial privileges with which believers are dignified, and raised above all other men by Jefus Chrift? He is the Son of God, and they are the fons of God alfo: he is the heir of all things, and they are joint-heirs with Chrift: he reigns in glory, and they fhall reign with him : he fits upon the throne, and they fhall fit with him in his throne. O that this vile world did but know the dignity of believers, they would never flight, hate, abuse, and perfecute them as they do. And O that believers did but understand their own happi nefs, and privileges by Chrift, they would never droop, and fink under every small trouble at that rate they do.

Infer. 2. How abundantly hath God provided for all the ne: ceffities and wants of believers! Chrift is a ftorehouse filled with bleffings and mercies, and it is all for them: from him they "receive abundance of grace, and of the gift of righteousness," Rom. v. 17. Of his fulness they all receive grace for grace," John i. 16. All the fulaets of Chrift is made over to them for the fupply of their wants: "My God fhall fupply all your need "(faith the apostle), according to his riches in glory by Jefus "Chrift," Phil. iv. 19. If all the riches of God can fupply your needs, then they fhall be fupplied. Say not, Chrift is in the poffeffion of confummate glory, and I am a poor creature, truggling with many difficulties, and toiling in the midst of many cares and fears in the world; for care is taken for all thy wants, and orders given from heaven for their supply: My God fball Jupply all your need. O fay with a melting heart, I have a full Chrift, and he is filled for me: I have his pure and perfect righteoufnels to justify me, his holiness to fanctify me, his wisdom to guide me, his comforts to refresh me, his power to protect me, and his all-fufficiency to fupply me. O be chearful, be thankful, you have all your hearts can with; and yet be humble; it is all from free-grace to empty and unworthy creatures.

lafer. 3. How abfurd, difingenuous, and unworthy of a Chriftian, is it to deny, or withhold from Christ any thing he hath, or by which he may be ferved, or honoured? Doth Chrift commu nicate all he hath to you, and can you withhold any thing from Chrift? On Chrift's part it is not mine, and thine, but ours, or mine and yours; John xx. 17. "I afcend to my Father, and your Father; to my God, and your God." But this cur

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SERM. VIII. fed idol felf! which appropriates all to its own defigns and uses How liberal is Chrift! and how penurious are we to him! Some will not part with their credit for Christ, when yet Christ abafed himself unspeakably for them. Some will not part with a drop of blood for Chrift, when Chrift fpent the whole treafure of his blood freely for us; yea, how loth are we to part with a fhilling for Chrift, to relieve him in his diftreffed members, when as yet we know the grace of our Lord Jefus Christ, "that though he was rich, yet for our fakes he became poor, "that we through his poverty might be rich!" O ungrateful return! O bafe and difingenuous fpirits! The things Chrift gives us are great, and the things we deny to him are small: he parts with the greatest, and yet is denied the leaft. The things he communicates to us, are none of ours, we have no right nor title by nature, or any defert of ours to them; the things we deny or grudge to Chrift, are by all titles his own, and he hath the fullest and most unquestionable title to them all what he gives to us, he gives to them that never deserved it; what we withhold from him, we withhold from one that hath deserved that, and infinitely more from us, than we have,

or are.

He interested you freely in all his riches when you were enc mies; you ftand upon trifles with him, and yet call him your best and dearest friend: he gave himself, and all he hath to you, when you could claim nothing from him; you deny to part with these things to Chrift, who may not only claim them upon the higheft title, his own fovereignty, and abfolute property, but by your own act, who profefs to have given all in covenant to him what he gives you, returns no profit to him; but what you give or part with for him, is your greatest advantage. O that the confideration of these things might fhame and humble your fouls.

Infer. 4. Then certainly no man is, or can be fuppofed to be a lofer by converfion, feeing from that day, whatever Chrift is, or hath, becomes his.

O what an inheritance are men poffeffed of by their new birth! Some men cry out, Religion will undo you; but with what eyes do these men fee? Surely, you could never fo reckon, except your fouls were fo incarnated, as to reckon pardon, peace, adoption, holiness, and heaven, for nothing; that invifibles are non-entities, and temporals the only realities. It is true, the converted foul may lofe his eftate, his liberty, yea, his life for Chrift; but what then? Are they lofers that exchange brass for gold? or part with their prefent comforts for

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