The Soules Ingrafting into Christ

p. 1THE SOVLES Ingrafting into CHRIST.

Behold, I will send my Messenger, and hee shall prepare the way before mee, and the Lord whom yee seeke shall suddenly come to his Temple: even the Messenger of the Covenant whom yee delight in: Behold hee shall come, saith the Lord of Hosts.

FOr the Preface two things are considerable. 1. What wee have done. 2. What wee will doe. We have finished the scope of our endevour, which was to shew how Christs Merits are applied to the Soule, how it stands possessed of grace here and happinesse hereafter. Now these two things must be wrought in the Soule, before it can be made partaker of saving grace: 1. A preparation. 2. an Implantation. A preparation there must be, for a sinner naturally as he hath no grace, so hee p. 2is not naturally capable to receive grace. This appeares in 2. things: 1. On Gods part, he breakes the cursed Combination betwixt Sinne and the Soule, hee drawes us from sinne to himselfe. 2. Something on our part touching the disposition of our hearts: and that in 2. workes. 1. Contrition, 2. Humiliation. Now there was a necessity of these two to be in the Soule, as wee then disputed, for these are the two maine hinderances of our Faith: 1. Security, when the soule being blinded takes rest and sees no need to be better, therefore desires it not, hence naturall men thinke it Curiosity, therefore the Lord sends in this worke, and causeth us to know the misery of sinne, and pierces our soules with it, and so upon this we desire a change, for else it sees it must be condemned. 2. When the sinner thus sees his misery, then he begins to scramble for his owne comforts, that he may releeve himselfe, hee will reforme sinne and doe superficiall duties, and so thinke to make amends, this is Carnall confidence, thus many a man perisheth, resting on these huskes, for Meanes are not Mediatours, and Services are not Saviours; Now in the place thereof God discovers that there is sinne enough in the best services. The Soule being thus plucked off from sin and from all his lusts, and pared from his abilities, renouncing all confidences, and being nothing hee is fit for Christ to bee all in all unto him; thus farre we have gone. All this while the Soule is like the children of Israel partly wandring in the valley of Teares, partly wildring in p. 3the desart of Humiliation. Egypt was a Type of a mans naturall condition, Moses a Type of the Law, Iosuah a Type of Christ, the wildernesse a Type of these two. Now the soule having passed through all these, is just upon the Coast of Canaan. The soule is like a graft, first, it is cut off, then pared, and then ingrafted: So Contrition cuts us off, and Humiliation pares us. The next Point is, the ingrafting into the Lord Jesus, the heart being thus prepared, it is implanted into the true vine, the Lord Christ.

p. 3Touching the worke, wee will discover these 2. things:

1. We will open it in generall.

2. We will discover the parts of it.

What it is in generall, our implantation into Christ, is the worke of the Spirit, whereby the humbled sinner stands possessed of Christ, and is made partaker of the Spirituall good things in him.

3. Things in the Description.

The humbled sinner, for else nothing to doe with Christ, stands possessed of Christ, I use the word possessor, because it is rather wrought upon the soule, than comes out of any Principle in the soule; Christ possesses him, and hence hee comes to bee possessed, Gal. 4.9. as if he should say, It is not, how wee can perceive him, but how hee will know us. Philip. 3.12. Still a man is more passive than active, the worke lyes on Gods part. The childe holds the father, because the father holds him. So we hold God, because he holds vs.

p. 4Hee is made partaker of the good things in Christ, still the action lyes on Christs part, wee worke so far, as we are wrought on.

These two things are generall in all the workes of application. 1. To be possessed of Christ: 2. To be made partaker of the Spirituall good in him.

As in vocation, Christ drawes the soule, hee challenges more of him, than the being possessed, and the soule following him there is the spirituall good.

In Justification, Christ layes downe a price, there is the possession, and withall, the soule is freed from the guilt and punishment of sinne; there is the spirituall good.

In Adoption, Christ, not onely cals a sinner, and justifies him, but adopts him, and makes him of a sinner a sonne, there is a nearer possession, and he hath the privileges of a sonne; there is the Spirituall good derived from Christ.

In Sanctification, the Lord Christ, by the power of his Spirit leaves a stampe of his Image, grace for grace, he is marked for his owne, this is the further possession; he is freed from the power of corruption; this is the Spirituall good. Thus in all we see, the soule is possessed of Christ, hee is partaker of the Spirituall good in him.

p. 4All this is done by Gods Spirit: a graft cannot put it selfe into the stocke, but the same hand that cut it off, and pared it, must ingraft it, to the same Spirit that wrought Contrition, and humiliation, comes to bee the Spirit of grace and promise. Now for the ground of our discourse, p. 5wee have chosen this Text, which is a Prophecie of Iohn the Baptist.

Wherein observe 2. things.

The words are spoken of Iohn the Baptist.

First, Consider the worke of Iohn the Baptist, he was the Messenger of God, and was to prepare the way for Christ. 2. We have the Consequence, The Lord will suddenly come into his Temple: We come to the point, but before I can discover the severall particulars, give me leave to open two words, that so the doctrine may bee undeniable.