CHAP. V. of Regeneration. WE must not so insist upon Christ without, as to ex- clude Christ within. Christ works in us, Phil.i. 6. ii. 13. Heb. xiii. 21. 1 Thess. ii. 13. 2 Thess. i. 11. 1 Cor. xii. 6. Regeneration is as necessary to salvation as Justification, John, iii. 3. Mark, xvi. 16. by our Justification we live le- gally: i. e. are freed from the curse of the law; by our Regeneration we live spiritually, Heb. x. 38. Eph. ii. 1. Regeneration proved from the Homily on Christ's Nativity, from the Homily on Whitsunday, and the Homily for Ro- gation Week. The same doctrine asserted in the Book of I. Regeneration is necessary to eternal salvation, John, iii. 5. 1 Cor. xv. 50. 2 Cor. v. 17. Gal. vi. 15. v. 6. 1 Cor. vii. 19. All are obliged to keep those two command- ments of faith and love, 1 John, iii. 23. Ignatius, the martyr, quoted. The Necessity of our New-Birth in Christ Jesus, might be further showed from the scriptures, the infinite holiness of God, and the original and actual sinfulness of mankind. Is Regeneration so necessary ? II. The New Birth, is not the effect of man's own will from the doctrine of Original Sin, John, i. 18. James, i. 18. 1 Pet. i. 23. 1 Cor. iv. 15. Our Saviour delivers this doctrine, John, xv. 5. 2 Cor. iii. 5. Jer. xxxi. 18. Cant. i. 4. Lam. v. 21. Our Church declares it in her Liturgy. III. The fruits and effects of Regeneration are faith, love, 1 John, v. 1. Non-commission of sin, 1 John, iii. 9. Victory over the world by faith, 1 John, v. 4. First, Its pleasures. Secondly, Its crosses. Thirdly, Its cares. A desire of the sincere milk of the word, 1 Pet. ii. 2. Dr. Edwards, quoted. They who are born of God will bring forth these fruits. Matt. vii. 10. John, xv. 2. viii. 39. OF ORIGINAL SIN. CHAP. I. ORIGINAL SIN, so called, because it is the sin of Adam, who was our head and origin; and from him it is derived to us. This sin, considered in relation to Adam, consists of two things; 1. His actual transgression, in eating the forbidden fruit; 2. The corruption of his nature consequent thereupon. Accordingly, original sin, so far as it affects us, consists, 1st, In the imputation of Adam's actual sin to us; 2dly, In the inherent pollution of our natures; upon both which accounts we fall under the curse of God, and become the objects of his eternal displeasure. This, therefore, I shall demonstrate at large; and that I may render what I have to say. upon this subject more easy and intelligible, I shall divide my matter into the three following propositions; and show, I. That Adam's sin is imputed to all his posterity. II. That all men derive an inward pollution or depravation of nature from him; And, therefore, III. Are justly liable to the torments of hell for ever. I. I am, in the first place, to prove, that Adam's sin is imputed to all his posterity. The Homily on the Misery of Man hath these express words, "In ourselves, (as of ourselves,) we "find nothing whereby we may be delivered from "this miserable captivity, into the which we are "cast through the envy of the devil, by breaking of "God's commandment in our first parent Adam." This passage is plain and clear to our purpose; and if I was to allege no more, is sufficient to show the judgment of our reformers in this point. Here is express mention made of our breaking God's commandment in Adam, which can no better be understood than of our standing in Adam as our common head and representative; and so, consequently, when he broke God's commandment, we are said to have broken it in him, because his breach or violation of the divine command. is imputed unto us. This, I think, is a clear explication of the words; and no unprejudiced mind can deny it. The Homily on the Nativity of Christ speaks the same language, and affords us another evident proof of our present proposition. Thus, it is said, “As ❝in Adam all men sinned universally, so in Adam "all men universally received the reward of sin.” Here we are informed, that all men, without exception, sinned in Adam, which could be no otherwise than as he was their head in covenant, and so his sin was charged upon them all. And lest, by sinned in this place, some should understand our suffering death, which was a consequence of Adam's sin, (as is the common way of our Pelagian and Socinian adversaries) it is very seasonably added, “ In Adam ❝ all men universally received the reward of sin.” Where we see there is a plain difference made between sinning and receiving the penalty of sin; the former denotes the imputation of Adam's crime to all his natural descendants, the latter the punishment due to us thereupon. And a little afterwards the church laments the misery of our fallen state in these words; "Oh! what a miserable and woful "state was this, that the sin of one man should de stroy and condemn all men." But how could the sin of one man destroy and condemn all men, unless it was imputed to them all? Besides, observe the word condemn implies and pre-supposes a crime for which we are condemned; guilt and condemnation go together; this latter passes upon all men, all, therefore, are guilty; and in what instance? We are here informed, in the sin of one man. This, therefore, is a clear demonstration, that the guilt of that one man's sin, viz. Adam's, is transferred to all .men. |