I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” We necessarily become one with Christ, by means of that communication of the Spirit from him, because so the man Christ and we do both live spiritually by the self-same Spirit indwelling in both, Rom. viii. 2, forecited. Col. iii. 3, 4, "Ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God." "When Christ who is our life," &c. And the distance between Christ the head in heaven, and us on earth, hinders not the indwelling of the same Spirit in both, and our union thereby; in regard the Spirit is an infinite Spirit.

The agency of the Spirit in us, when quickened by that communication, is his "working faith in us, and thereby uniting us to Christ:" Col. ii. 12, "Buried with him in baptism, wherein also you are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God. Compared with 2 Cor. iv. 13, "We having the same Spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken: we also believe, and therefore speak." Eph. iii. 17, "That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith." It is not the habit of faith, but actual believing, by which the Spirit unites us to Christ: Gen. xv. 6, " And Abram believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness." John i. 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." The Spirit worketh in us that actual believing, producing it in us immediately out of the spiritual life given us by that communication of himself to us: Phil. ii. 13, " It is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do of his good pleasure," John v. 25, "Verily, verily I say unto you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear, shall live." Compared with chap. i. 12, forecited. Ver. 13, "Which were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, but of God." And by that actual believing also we are united to Christ, inasmuch as thereby we apprehend Christ, and knit with him, Phil. iii. 12; John i. 12; Eph. iii. 17, all forecited. But as for elect infants, idiots, and others, through want of exercise of their reason, incapable of actual believing, what comes of them in that case, is, that they are united to Christ by the communication of the Spirit to them, and Christ's purchase is effectually applied to them thereupon: Luke i. 15, "John shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb." Compared with 1 Cor. xii. 13," By one Sprit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been made all to drink into one Spirit."

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The bonds, then, of the spiritual union betwixt Christ and actual believers, are, the Spirit on Christ's part, and faith on their part: 1 John iii. 24, "He that keepeth his commandments, dwelleth in him, and he in him and hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us." Eph. iii. 7, "That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith." And that work of God about us, in which the Spirit works faith in us, and unites us to Christ, is our effectual calling.

QUEST. 31. What is effectual calling?

ANSW. Effectual calling is the work of God's Spirit, whereby, convincing us of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds in the knowledge of Christ, and renewing our wills, he doth persuade and enable us to embrace Jesus Christ, freely offered to us in the gospel.

EXPLICATION.

An effectual calling in the general is, when the party called comes upon the call. The call whereby sinners are invited to partake of the redemption purchased by Christ, is the call of the gospel : 2 Thess. ii. 14, "Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ." Even the gospelcall itself is not given to all and every one in the world: Rom. x. 14, 15, "How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? and how shall they preach except they be sent ? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them which preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things;" But the gospel call is given to all to whom the word of God comes, whether written or preached: John v. 39, "Search the scriptures, for in them ye think ye have eternal life, and they are they which testify of me," Rom. x. 17, "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."

Sinners are, by the gospel-call, called to come out from the world lying in wickedness: 1 John v. 19, "And we know that the whole world lieth in wickedness." Compared with 2 Cor. vi. 17, "Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing: and I will receive you." And sinners are called to come to Jesus Christ in union and communion with him: Mattth. xi. 28, "Come unto me all ye that labour, and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Chap. xxii. 4, "Again

he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings, are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage." By that coming to Jesus Christ, is meant, embracing him freely offered to us in the gospel." Christ offered in the gospel is embraced, by believing on him: John i. 12, "As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name." There is need of calling us to come to Christ, in union and communion with him, because, by nature, we are far from God, and fast asleep in sin: Eph. ii. 13, "But now in Christ Jesus, ye who sometimes were far off, are made nigh by the blood of Christ." Compared with Jam. iv. 8, " Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you." Eph. v. 14, “ Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light."

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The gospel-call, to whatever sinner of mankind it comes, is accompanied with a sufficient warrant for his coming to Christ, in union and communion with him. That warrant is the free offer of Christ to us in the gospel: Prov. viii. 4, " Unto you, O men, I call, and my voice is to the sons of man." Mark xvi. 15, 16, Jesus said unto the disciples, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned." Christ is offered in the gospel freely, to us mankind-sinners, in that any of us may, though none but truly sensible sinners will come to him, and unite with him: John iii. 16, "God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him, should not perish, but have everlasing life." Rom. xx. 17, "And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth, say, Come. And let him that is athirst, come: and whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." Chap. iii. 19, I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eye-salve, that thou mayest see."

The calling of sinners by the gospel is ineffectual on many. It is ineffectual on them, in that they come not to Christ upon the call: Prov. i. 24, "I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded." But it is effectual on the elect: Rom. viii. 30, "Whom he did predestinate, them he also called." Acts xiii. 48, "As many as were ordained to eternal life, believed." It is effectual on them, in that, sooner or later, they certainly come to Christ upon the call: John vi. 37, "All that the Father giveth me, shall come to me."

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Our effectual calling is the work of God's Spirit: 1 Thess. i. 4, 5, Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God. For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance." John vi. 63, "It is the Spirit that quickeneth, the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." And thereby he doth persuade and enable us to embrace Jesus Christ freely offered to us in the gospel. The Spirit renders the gospel-call effectual on us, powerfully determining us, and putting us in a capacity, to answer the call, by embracing Christ. He determines us to answer the gospel-call, by persuading us effectually to embrace Christ: Gen. ix. 27, "God shall enlarge [marg. persuade] Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem." John vi. 44, 45, "No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me, draw him and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me." Phil. ii. 13, "It is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do of his good pleasure." He puts us in a capacity to answer the gospel-call, by enabling us to embrace Christ, John v. 44, 45; Phil. ii. 13, above cited. There is need of the Spirit's calling us effectually, by persuading and enabling us to come to Christ in union or communion with him; because, being in ourselves dead in sin, we are neither willing nor able to come: John v. 25, " Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God and they that hear shall live." Compared with Psalm ex. 3, "Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power." Phil. ii. 13; John vi. 44, forecited.

The Spirit persuades and enables us to embrace Jesus Christ freely offered to us in the gospel, by convincing us of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds in the knowledge of Christ, and renewing our wills. The work of the Spirit for persuading and enabling us to embrace Christ, is threefold; namely, conviction, saving illumination, and the renewing of the will. But conviction is not a work of the Spirit, of the same kind with the other two.

Conviction is a work of the Spirit, acting as "a spirit of bondage upon us, Rom. viii. 15. The Spirit, acting as a Spirit of bondage, convinceth us of our sin and misery: John xvi. 8, " And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment." Acts ii. 37, "Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter, and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?" The effect of the Spirit's work of conviction upon us, is a sight of our sins as heinous

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in the sight of God, and of his wrath due to us for them, filling us with remorse, terror and anxiety, John xvi. 8, Acts ii. 37, forecited. Chap. xvi. 20, "Then he (the jailor) called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas." The word of God by which the Spirit works that conviction, is the law: Rom. iii. 20," By the law is the knowledge of sin." He convinceth us of our sin by it, bringing home on our consciences the commands, of the law, as of divine authority, and binding on us in particular : Rom. vii. 7, " What shall we say then? is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet." Compared with Exod. xx. 1," And God spake all these words," &c. He convinceth us of our misery by it, bringing home on our consciences the curse of the law, as the curse of the Lord himself, binding on us in particular: Gal. iii. 10," As many as are of the works of the law, are under the curse : for it is written, cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them." Compared with Rom. iii. 19, "Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.” Mal. iii. 9, " Ye are cursed with a curse; for ye have robbed me." That law-work doth not issue in faith and conversion, in all whom it is wrought upon; Matth. xxvii. 3, 4, 5, “Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying I have sinned, in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed and went and hanged himself." Acts xxiv. 25, "And as Paul reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled, and answered, Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient season, I will call for thee." Neither is that law-work of the same measure in all that are converted: Luke xix. 6, " And Zaccheus made haste, and came down, and received him joyfully." Compared with Acts ix. 9, "And Saul was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink." But so much of it is necessary, as brings the soul to see an absolute need of Christ, and to despair of relief by any other way: Gal. iii. 24, "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster, to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith," Luke vi. 48, "He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock," &c. The part this law-work of the Spirit hath in persuading and enabling us to embrace Jesus Christ, is, that it begins the persuasion. It begins the persuasion, urging us with our lost and undone