of the faith of Abraham, having an inward principle of true grace in his foul, now that body of fin which bath begun to fall before him, it shall not prevail, (thenceforth it shall not Rom.6.14. have dominion over him, but it shall furely fall. Having received the deaths-wound, it shall decay and languish more and more. As it was betwixt the two houses of David and Saul in the same Kingdome, 2 Sam.3.1. So shall it be betwixt the regenerate and unregenerate part in the fame person. The one shall wax stronger and stronger, the other weaker and weaker. The promife is expresse, He that hath begun the good work (whereof mortification is a part) he will perfect it to the day of Jesus Chrift. This Paul was confident of in the behalfe of his Philippians, Phil.1.6. And this let all true beleevers rest confident of in respect of themfelves.

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Use 2. Onely let not this confidence make Onely contiany secure, fearleffe, carelesse. God will per- nue the indeafect this good work in you, but how? Nempe vours of Mor vobis cooperantibus (as Grotius glosseth upon tifying it. it,) You working together with his grace. And this let all beleevers bee excited unto. Having received this grace of God, now work wee together with that grace, fetting our selves to this mortifying work. Not looking upon it as the work of a day, or a month, or a year, but of our whole life time; continue we our endeavours, making a daily progresse in this work; every day labouring to weaken the body of fin more and more; praying against it, watching

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watching against it, striving against it. Think it not enough that fin hath received the deaths wound. A wild beaft, though mortally wounded, may yet turn again, and indanger him that lanced him: And so may fin the foul of a regenerate person. And therefore having begun this good work, the mortifying of fin, go on in it. As the Romans were wont to deal with their Malefactors; Having fastned them to the Croffe, then they brake their legs, and peirced their fide, to let out their vitall blood. Even thus deal wee with the body of fin, ufing all means for the through mortification of it; breaking the bones, the power and strength offin, and peircing the heart of it by renewed contrition and repentance; letting out the vitall blood of it; never resting till we have let fin wholly out of our heart, till the heart be brought to an inward loathing and detestation of all fin; and so to feel the whole body of fin daily decaying, languishing, dying. Such is the Christians death, a copy and counterpane of the death of Jesus Christ, resembling it in the properties thereof, a True, voluntary, violent, painfull, lingring death. And thus have I done with the former of these conclusions, which informs us, that The ChriStians death unto fin, carries with it a refembLance of the death of Christ for fin, It is ὁμοίωμα το θανάτε αὐξ, the likenesse or Representation of his death. The second and third follow.

All true Beleevers are partners in this death; and

and that, by a vertne flowing from Jesus Christ. Upon these two I shall infist severally by way of Doctrinall Explication, and Illustration, jointly by way of practicall Application: Begin with the former.

All true beleevers are partners in this death. Doctrine 2. All that are in Jesus Christ, are thus conforma- All beleevers ble to him in his death. This the Apostle here are dead unto

layeth down by way of fuppofition, [ If we have been planted together in the likenesse of his death; Taking it for granted, that all who are ingrafted into Christ, have a mysticall union with him, they have also a communion with him, and that first in his Death. This is that which he hath told us in the two verses foregoing. [Know ye not (faith the 3d verse) that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Chrift, were baptized into his death? Again, ver. 4. Therefore wee are buried with him by baptism into death. And thus he here inculcates again the fame thing under a different expreffion, [ If we have been planted together in the likeness of his death.] So are all true beleevers. Being in Christ, they die with him: being dead to fin, as he died for fin.

fin.

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That they are so, we find it often asserted Confirmat. by this Apostle, as in this chapter, ver.2. How Shall wee that are dead to fin (faith he) live any longer therein? and again ver.11. Likewise reckon ye your selves to be dead indeed unto fin.] So elswhere; This is that he teis his Coloffians Colof.3.3. For ye are dead] dead to the world, to the flesh, to fin. This he faith of himselfe

Gal.

Gal.6.14. The world is crucified to me, and I unto the world. And the like of all others, Gal.5.24. They that are Christs, have crucified the flesh. All in effect speaking one and the same thing with this in the Text; that all which are in Chrift, are ingrafted with him in

the likenesse of his death; being dead to fin, as he died for fin.

What this death unto fin is.

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Explication. Quest. But what is this death unto fin? Or how are Christians said to be dead unto fin? Ans. It is not my purpose here largely to insist upon the Doctrine of Mortification, which, as I have touched upon already, in handling of the verses fore-going, fo I shall meet with again and again in the verses following. Briefly, To be dead unto fin, is not to be wholly freed from the Inhabitation, and molestation of it; to be delivered from the body of fin, to have it eradicated, plucked up by the roots. No, that is contrary to universallexperience: None but find and feel that fomes peccati, corruption of nature, the body of fin, still dwelling, and living, and working in them; But to be freed from the dominion, the reigning power of fin. To have the vigour' and strength of fin, (which is the lift of fin) so broken, so enervated and weakned by the work of the Spirit of grace dwelling in the foul, as that it doth not rule, and reign, and bear sway as it did before regeneration. This it is to be dead to fin. So much we may learn from this Apostle, who exPlains his own meaning in the 12th verse of this ChapChapter: Having in the former verse bid his Romans, Reckon themselves dead unto fin, he adds in this verse, Len not therefore sin reign in your mortall bodies, that ye bould obey it in the lufts thereof. This reigning power of fin, when it hath the upper hand of the motions of the Spirit of God in the foul, beareth fuch a fovereign, incontroulable sway in it, fo overpowring the faculties of it, as that the man is wholly overcome by it, made a fervant, yeilding a willing and spontaneous obedience to it, making either none, or, at best, a weak and vain resistance against it: this is the life of fin. Now when this power is broken, when it is conquered by a fuperiour power, the power of the Spirit of grace, so as the believer is freed from the dominion of fin; now though fin do still live in him, yet he is said to be dead to it.

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And he may be faid fo to be, and that in Theregenerate a threefold respect. In regard of Acceptation, perfon dead Inchoation, Affurance.

unto fin, three

wayes.

1. In regard of Acceptation. God behol-1. In regard of ding the believer in and through Chrift, he God's acceptabeholdeth him not as he is in himselfe, but tion. as he is in Christ; and fo he beholdeth him as crucified, as dead with Chrift. Besides, where there is a willing and ready mind, God accepteth a man according to what he hath, and not according to what he hath not. So the Apostle informeth us, 2 Cor.8.12. God measures men's bounty, and liberality, (for of that the

Apoftle there speaketh,) not by their bands, or purses,

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