Sweet and Soul-Persuading Inducements Leading Unto Christ, Chapter 1
CHAP. I.
Gal. 2.20.
Nevertheleſſe I live, yet not I, but Chriſt liveth in me.
THE condition of the man in the Parable, travelling between Jeruſalem and Jericho, is a cleare and lively Embleme of the eſtate of a Chriſtian. The man in the Parable deſcended from Jeruſalem to Jericho: Man is fallen from Jeruſalem to Jericho, from heaven to the world, from God to Satan, from knowledge to ignorance, from holineſſe to uncleanneſſe, from liberty to bondage, from honour to ignominy, from fulneſſe to emptineſſe, from pure and perfect Religion to corrupt and carnall ſuperſtition: He is wholly gone downe from Jeruſalem to Iericho, from the participation of all grace, from all intereſt in God, and from all communion and acquaintance with God, into the ſervitude of corruption and conſortſhip with the world: The ſinne of man hath caſt him from the top and crowne of the choiſeſt glory, into the gulfe and ſinke of the fouleſt and baſeſt miſery. The man in the parable fell among theeves which ſtripped him of his rayment, and wounded him, leaving him halfe dead: Man is fallen among three great theeves, the Devill, ſinne, and the world; and theſe have ſtripped man of all his ſpirituall rayment; theſe have taken all grace and holineſſe from man, which once covered him, like a rich and coſtly garment; and they have alſo wounded, and left man halfe dead in his very naturall abilities. The fall of man hath totally ſtript him of all grace and holineſſe, and alſo given a mortall wound to his morall and naturall faculties. Hee that abides not with God at Jeruſalem, makes himſelfe a prey to ſinne, the Devill, and the world.
There came a Prieſt and a Levite paſſing by, and looking upon the man thus ſtript and wounded, but neither of them had compaſſion upon him, neither of them miniſtred any conſolation, nor lent an aſſiſting hand unto him: Neither the Prieſt, nor the Levite, neither the Morall, nor Ceremoniall Law, can deliver ſinfull man from Satans bondage, nor heale his wounded conſcience; neither the works of the one, nor the Rites and Ceremonies of the other, can reſtore man to his originall happineſſe, nor juſtifie him in Gods preſence. Mans beſt abilities and all-humane deviſes are miſerable comforters to ſinfull and perplexed ſoules in their anguiſh.
Though the Prieſt and the Levite had no compaſſion upon him, yet there came a Samaritan which had compaſſion upon him; though the Law ſhew no pitty, nor miniſter no comfort to wounded ſoules, and afflicted conſciences; yet the Lord Jeſus communicates both great and ſweet mercies to broken hearted ſinners. The Samaritane, a man from whom this diſtreſſed man could not expect any mercy, had compaſſion upon him, and helped him. Chriſt is become the Authour of mans comfort and ſalvation, beyond all humane and Angelical thought, conceit or imagination; the wiſedome, worke, and love of God in providing a Saviour for diſtreſſed ſinners, was farre above the reach and comprehenſion of all creatures: The Samaritan bound up this poore mans wound, and poured in wine and oyle; the Lord Jeſus binds up the broken-hearted, and gives the oyle of joy for mourning to them whoſe ſoules are truly humbled; the Samaritan ſet the man upon his owne beaſt. Chriſt communicates his owne honour to the penitent and broken-hearted ſinner; ſinne is the cauſe of mans dejection, Chriſt is the Authour of mans exaltation; the Samaritan brought this diſtreſſed man to an Inne, and tooke care for him, gave two pence to the Hoaſt, charged him to take care of him, and promiſed payment of whatſoever he ſhould ſpend more: The Lord Jeſus brings perplexed ſoules to God as to their ſpirituall Hoaſt, and to the miniſtery of the Goſpell, as to an Inne full of ſpirituall proviſion, gives his Miniſters the two Teſtaments, the Law and the Goſpell, out of them to miniſter to the ſoules of his people, and chargeth them as the miniſteriall Hoaſt of poore and perplexed ſoules, to make all neceſſary and plentifull proviſion, and in the end by his merits, his active and paſſive obedience, his two great pence, he diſchargeth the debt of all penitent and beleeving ſinners. The whole of a ſinfull and grieved ſoules happineſſe flowes from the Lord Jeſus; all the ſupply of mans want and emptineſſe is derived from Chriſts ſuper-abundant fulneſſe.
All the myrrh and odours, and inſtruments of Hesters purification, and all her rich and coſtly apparell were given her out of the bHeſt. 2.13, 17. Chriſt the Authour of mans welfare.Kings houſe, and the royall crowne was put upon her head by the Kings hand. All the purity and perfection, all the righteouſneſſe and juſtification, all the dignity and excellency of a holy and gracious ſoule is drawne from Chriſt, the ſpirituall and heavenly King. All mans holy and heavenly excellencies are borrowed from the Lord Jeſus: Man is an empty ciſterne, and hath all his fulneſſe from Chriſt, the true and everliving fountaine; Chriſt is the root by whom he is ſuſtained, the spring by whom he is filled, the Sun by which he is enlightened, the garment wherewith he is covered, the crowne with which he is honoured, the head by which he is guided, the eye by which he ſeeth, the hand by which he worketh, the foot by which he walketh, yea the very ſoule by which he liveth. Whatſoever goodneſſe or excellency is in a Chriſtian, it is Chriſts and not his owne; his very life is nothing but the living of Chriſt in him; he muſt ſay with Paul, Nevertheleſſe, I live, yet not I, but Chriſt liveth in me.
Scope of the Apoſtle.The words are a declaration of a Chriſtians life. Chriſt living in beleeving man, and man living unto Chriſt. The Apoſtle ſetting forth how he was dead to the Law, that he might live to God, tels us that he was crucified together with Chriſt. Chriſt being crucified for us, and we being by faith ingrafted into him, doe dye to ſinne, and mortifie our earthly members which are upon earth; the death of the Lord Jeſus is the death of ſinne in all beleeving Chriſtians, they live no more as formerly they did, they have Chriſt now living in them, and communicating himſelfe unto them: He that hath not experience of Chriſts living in him, in the way and worke of ſanctification, preſumes in vaine of being ſaved by his death and ſuffering; no man knowes the benefit of Chriſts death, but he that feeles the vertue of Chriſts life. Man hath no further aſſurance of Chriſts dying for him then as he feeles Chriſt living in him: He that knowes the power of Chriſts death in the mortification of his luſts, knowes alſo the vertue of Chriſts life in the quickning of his ſoule, and can ſay with Paul, now I live, yet not I, but Chriſt liveth in me.
Analyſis. 2. Parts.In the words, not to trouble you with many particulars, we have two generall things propoſed, 1. Chriſtian abnegation, I live, yet not I. 2. Holy and gracious vivification, but Chriſt liveth in me. In the abnegation, we have 1. the Subiect: I Paul the Apoſtle,Subdiviſion. 1. Subjection. Note. a man choſen and called of God, a man filled and furniſhed with the fulneſſe of Chriſt; and in and under him is underſtood all beleeving Chriſtians. Such alone as are truly ſanctified and gracious people are the compleat and proper Subiect of that life which is heavenly and ſpirituall: OnelyOnly the living body is the ſeat and ſubject of the ſoule; and that man alone that is ſpiritually quickned, hath Chriſt reſiding and dwelling in him, communicating holy and heavenly life to him.
2. Here is the Predicate, or thing affirmed, Life; 2. Praedicatum.and that is two wayes propoſed: 1. affirmatively, I live. 2. Negatively, yet not I. Firſt affirmatively, I live, I lived once under the Law, which made me a perſecutor of the Church of God, convinced me of ſinne, wrought in me all manner of concupiſence, and ſlew me, and I then found my ſelfe to be dead in ſinne, but now I have embraced Chriſt, and am crucified with him; now I am no more the man I was, but now I have Chriſt, who doth quicken me, who doth rule, and guide, and ſtrengthen me by his Spirit; now I live ſpiritually and holily, now I live to God, and not unto my ſelfe, to Chriſt, and not unto the world; now I live under grace, and not under the Law; now I live according to the will of Chriſt, and not after mine owne luſt and fancy; now I live indeed,Note. formerly I did but ſeeme to live; All life is as nothing,c1 Tim. 5.6. Mat 4.16. yea as a very death in compariſon of a holy and gracious life. Men without grace are as dead, even while they live: He that hath not Chriſt living in him, ſits in darkneſſe, and the ſhadow of death, all the dayes of his naturall and temporall life, as the Apoſtle ſaid of the Law compared to the Goſpell, That which was made glorious had no glory by reaſon of the glory that excelleth: ſo in this caſe, the naturall life of man, howſoever deare, and precious, ſweet or glorious, it may ſeeme to be; yet it is of no price, of no ſweetneſſe, of no glory, in compariſon of the worth, d2 Cor. 3 10.glory, ſweetneſſe, and comfort of a ſpirituall life, which excelleth; great is that mans happineſſe that lives by the life of Chriſt Jeſus. Hee is the moſt bleſſed and happy of all living perſons that lives the life of grace and holineſſe.