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according to the Representation and Language of Holy Scripture: And it is easy to see what must become of this old Man, this Man of Sin, upon the Appearance of Christ Jefus, who came to deftroy the Works of the Devil, to give Light and Life to those who fat in the Shadow of Darknefs and Death; he and his Works must be destroyed to make way for the Spirit of Righteoufness, and his holy Works. But thus to deftroy the old Man, to root out all the corrupt Affections of Nature, and to implant a new Principle of Life and Holiness, to restore the decayed Image of God, to give new Defires to the Soul, new Affections to the Heart; what is it but to new-make the Man, and by a fecond Creation to restore him to the Rights and Privileges of the firft, which were long fince forfeited by Sin and Difobedience? For this Reason the Christian is faid to be a new Creature: If any Man be in Chrift, he is a new Creature, 2 Cor. v. 17. In Christ Jefus neither Circumcifion availeth any thing, nor Uncircumcifion, but a new Creature, Gal. vi. 15. In the fecond Chapter of the Ephefians, we are faid to be the Workmanship of God, created in Chrift Jefus And in the fourth Chap

unto good Works. ter, ver. 23 and 24, we are faid to be renewed

in the Spirit of our Mind: To put on the new Man, which after God is created in Righteoufness and true Holiness. Nay, we are faid even to put on Chrift, from the Similitude of Will and Affections between Chrift and his true Members: As many of you as have been baptized, fays the Apoftle to the Galatians, have put on Chrift, Chap. iii. 27.

From this Account it is eafy to understand the Propriety of the Words or Phrases made use of to express these two Conditions. Sometimes we read, that we were dead before the Knowledge of Chrift: Sometimes, that we died and were buried with Chrift: Again, that we rofe with Chrift, and are alive in him. Now, to be dead before the Coming of Chrift, and yet to die with Chrift after his Coming, and yet still to be alive in Christ, may seem to be Affertions inconfiftent with refpect to the fame Perfon: And fo indeed they are. But, if we take the fame View of Man that the Scripture does, the Inconsistency will foon vanish. Man was at firft created after the Image and Likeness of God, with a Rectitude of Mind and Will, with Inclinations adapted to his true Happiness, and subject to the Influence and Direction of Reason: This was Man after the Image of God. But, upon. T 3 Difobedience,

Difobedience, Man became a quite different Perfon; his Understanding was darkened, his Will corrupted, his Inclinations distorted to the Purfuit of Evil continually. This Change was a real Death of the Man, created after the Image of God; he could no longer exercife any of the Functions proper to his Life, but lay buried' under the Ruins of Sin and Iniquity: And this was the Death of the World before the Knowledge of Christ. What then was the Life of the World at the Coming of Chrift? It was the Life of Sin; of the earthly Man, made not in the Image of God, but after the Likeness of the Son of Difobedience, To deftroy this Man of Sin, Chrift came into the World; and they that are Chrift's have crucified the Flesh, with the Affections and Lufts, Gal. v. 24. And thus, with respect to the Life we had at the Coming of Chrift, which was the Life of Sin, we are faid to die with Chrift, and to be buried with him; becaufe we renounce that Life, and the Affections proper to it. Thus dying to Sin, we begin again to live unto God, and unto true Holinefs: And this is a Refurrection of the Man made after the Image of God, which before was dead in Trefpaffes; and therefore we are faid to be made

alive in Chrift, and to rife together with him.

Farther This Change was what we had not Power fo much as to wish for, or defire for ourselves: It was undertaken and effected by Chrift alone; he took our Nature and our Iniquities upon himself, and underwent Death in the behalf of all: He dying therefore upon the Crofs for all, all are faid to be crucified with him. He, as the Apostle to the Hebrews tells us, tafted Death for every Man, Heb. ii. 9. And it is St. Paul's Inference, that if one died for all, then were all dead, 2 Cor. v. 14. And the Way to attain to the Benefits of the Death of Chrift, is, as we learn from the fame Apostle in his Epistle to the Philippians, to be conformable unto his Death. This Conformity consists, as we have already feen, in dying to Sin, and the Affections of it; in putting off the old Man, in putting on the new Man, who is created after Righteousness. This St, Paul, in the fixth of the Romans, styles, being planted in the Likeness of his Death, and being planted in the Likeness of his Refurrection. To this likewise he plainly refers in the 29th Verse of the eighth Chapter: For whom he did foreknow, he also did predeftinate to be conformed

to the Image of his Son, that he might be the Firft-born among many Brethren. There are many Precepts likewife in Scripture, founded upon this Notion of our Conformity with Chrift. The Text is one Inftance: Another you have in the thirteenth of the Romans; But put ye on the Lord Jefus Chrift, and make not Provifion for the Flesh to fulfil the Luft thereof. And again, How shall we, who are dead to Sin, live any longer therein? And many other Places there are, which must be opened with this Key.

Nay, the very Effence of Christianity confifts in this Conformity with Chrift; and therefore Baptifm, which is our Admiffion to the Gospel, is nothing else but a folemn taking upon ourselves this Conformity. This we learn from St. Paul in the fixth of the Romans: Know ye not, fays he, that so many of us as were baptized in Jefus Chrift, were baptized into his Death? Therefore we are buried with him by Baptifm into Death; that like as Chrift was raifed up from the Dead by the Glory of the Father, even fo we also Should walk in Newness of Life, Chap. iii. 4. To walk in Newnefs of Life is our Conformity to the Refurrection of Chrift, which was to new Life and Glory. For thus the Apoftle

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