The Drunkards Character, Section 149
§ 149.
BUt,Object. for ought thou knowest, thou art regenerate,What it is to be born againe: hast repented, and doest believe in Christ, as well as the best.
Indeed,Answ. some will not believe they have the Plague, till they see the Tokens: but to put this out of question, know that to be regenerate, is to bee begotten and borne anew, Iohn 1. 13. by the ministery of the Word, Iames 1. 18. 21. and the Spirits powerfull working with it, Ioh. 3. 3. 5. 8. and of the children of wrath, and bondslaves of Sathan by nature, to be made, by grace, through faith in Christ, (the Sonnes of God, Titus 3. 3. to 9. and that they which are thus borne, have Christ formed in them, Galathians 4. 19. are led by the Spirit of God, Rom. 8. 14. and live uprightly, 1 Iohn 3. 9. and exercrse righteousnese, ver. 10. Regeneration will alwayes manifest it selfe by a just and holy life, by the innocency of our actions, and the sobriety of our speeches: God's children are known by this marke, they walke not after the flesh, but after the Spirit, Rom. 8. 1. they are translated from the raigne of sin; to the raigne of grace; they confesse him, ore, with the mouth; professe him, opere, with the life; love him, corde, with the heart; for these are the three objects of a Christians care, the devotion of his heart, the profession of his mouth, and the conversation of his life.
It is the summ of all Religion, to imitate him we adore: he that follows Christ's ex ample, is a true Christian; hee that squares his life according to the rule of Gods Word, is godly, and none else: for otherwise if we be drunkards, and swearers, wel may we boast that wee are the Sonnes of God, as the Spanyards did to the West Indians, when they came first amongst them: but he that knowes any hing, will certainly conclude with those poore Salvages, that hee cannot bee a good God, who hath such evill Sonnes; well may he be the god of this world, as the Divell is called, 2 Cor. 4. 4.
If Christ be formed in any, he destroyeth the Divells power, which formerly he had in them, Heb. 2. 14. 15. and his wicked works, 1 Ioh. 3. 8. he is not subject to the dominion of sin, sinne doth not raign in him, Psa. 19. 13. wherefore be resolved against transgression, as you would be resolved of your regeneration, and salvation. True conversion workes a manifest change; the old man, changeth with the new man; worldly wisdome, with heavenly wisdome; carnall love, for spirituall love; servile feare, for Christian and filiall feare; idle thoughts, for holy thoughts; vaine words, for holy and wholsome words; fleshly workes, for workes of righteousnesse, &c. as if a man were cast into a new mould. Otherwise, if godlinesse hath not made us good, what power hath it wrought? A feeble godlines it is, that is ineffectual; if it hath not wrought us to bee devout to God, just to men, sober, and temperate in the use of Gods creatures, humble in our selves, charitable to others, where is the godlinesse, where is the power?
When the heart is changed, and set towards God, all the members will follow after it; as the rest of the creatures after the Sunne, when it ariseth; the tongue will praise him, the foot will follow him, the eare will attend him, the hand will serve him, nothing will stay after the heart, but every one goes, like hand-maides, after their Mistresse; which makes David (presenting himself before God,) summon his thoughts, speeches, actions, &c. saying, all that is within me praise his holy name, Psal. 103. 1. Prov. 23. 26. so that it is a true rule, he that hath not in him all Christian graces, in their measure, hath none; and he that hath any one truly, hath all. For as in the first birth, the whole person is borne and not some peeces: so it is in the second, the whole person is borne againe, though not wholly; how much the regenerate man is changed from what hee was wont to be, may be seene, 1 Corinth. 6. 9. 10. 11. Tit. 3. 3. to 8. Rom. 6. 4. to 23. and here upon Christ is compared to purging fire, and Fullers Sope▪ to signifie, how hee should fine and purg, purifie and cleanse his people Mal, 3. 2. 3.
God never adopteth any his children, but he bestowes love tokens upon them, which are the earnest of his Spirit in their hearts, 2 Cor. 1. 22. and his saving graces, as an earnest, and for a signe: that they shal overcome their Ghostly enemies, and live everlastingly with him in heaven: as he gave Hezekiah, the going backe of the Sunne tenne degrees, for a signe, that hee should be delivered out of the hands of the King of Ashur, and have added to his dayes fifteene yeares, 2 Kings 20. 6. 8. 11
Alasse! though there bee scarce a man on earth, but he thinks to goe to heaven; yet heaven is not for every one, but for the Saints, would any man have a lot in Canaan, let him bee a sure to bee a true Israelite.
And so we see, there must of necessity bee a manifest change; that fruitfulnesse, is the best argument, he hath begotten us anew; that the signes of salvation, are to be sought in our selves, as the cause in Iesus Christ; that wee must become new creatures, as S. Paul hath it, 2 Cor. 5. 17. talk with new tongues, Mar. 16. 17. and walk in new wyaes, Matth. 2. 12. hating what we once loved, and loving what we formerly hated, then shall we have new names, Rev. 2. 17. put on new garments, and have a portion in the new Ierusalem, Revel. 21. otherwise not. Take notice of this, all ye carnall worldlings, who are the same that yee were alwayes, even from the beginning', and think the same a speciall commendations too, though you have small reason for it, for that wee need no more to condemne us, then what we brought into the world with us. Besides, doe you live willingly in your sinnes? Let mee tell you, ye are dead in your sinnes, this life is a death; and wee need no better proofe, that you are dead, then because you feele not your deadnesse.