purifying and making glorious in holiness, of his whole people. They know that this is actually to be accomplished by the Spirit, according to the innumerable promises given to that purpose. He is to sprinkle that blood upon their souls; he is to create the holiness in them that they long after; he is to be himself in them a well of water springing up to everlasting life. In this state they look to Jesus: here faith fixes itself, in expectation of his giving out the Spirit for all these ends and purposes; mixing the promises with faith, and so becoming actual partaker of all this grace. This is their way, this their communion with Christ; this is the life of faith, as to grace and holiness. Blessed is the soul that is exercised therein: "He shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit," Jer. xvii. 8. Convinced persons who know not Christ, nor the fellowship of his sufferings, would spin a holiness out of their own bowels; they would work it out in their own strength. They begin it with1 trying endeavours; and follow it with vows, duties, resolutions, engagements, sweating at it all the day long. Thus they continue for a season,-their hypocrisy, for the most part, ending in apostasy. The saints of God do, in the very entrance of their walking with him, reckon upon it that they have a threefold want:[1] Of the Spirit of holiness to dwell in them. [2.] Of a habit of holiness to be infused into them. [3.] Of actual assistance to work all their works for them; and that if these should continue to be wanting, they can never, with all their might, power, and endeavours, perform any one act of holiness before the Lord. They know that of themselves they have no sufficiency,—that3 without Christ they can do nothing: therefore they look to him, who is intrusted with a fulness of all these in their behalf; and thereupon by faith derive from him an increase of that whereof they stand in need. Thus, I say, have the saints communion with Christ, as to their sanctification and holiness. From him do they receive the Spirit to dwell in them; from him the new principle of life, which is the root of all their obedience; from him have they actual assistance for every duty they are called unto. In waiting for, expectation and receiving of these blessings, on the accounts before mentioned, do they spend their lives and time with him. In vain is help looked for from other mountains; in vain do men spend their strength in following after righteousness, if this be wanting. Fix thy soul here; thou shalt not tarry until thou be ashamed. This is the way, the only way, to obtain full, effectual manifestations of the Spirit's dwelling in us; to have our hearts purified, our consciences

purged, our sins mortified, our graces increased, our souls made humble, holy, zealous, believing,—like to him; to have our lives fruitful, our deaths comfortable. Let us herein abide, eyeing Christ by faith, to attain that measure of conformity to him which is allotted unto us in this world, that when we shall see him as he is, we may be like unto him.

CHAPTER X.

Of communion with Christ in privileges-Of adoption; the nature of it, the consequences of it-Peculiar privileges attending it; liberty, title, boldness, affliction-Communion with Christ hereby.

III. THE third thing wherein we have communion with Christ, is grace of privilege before God; I mean, as the third head of purchased grace. The privileges we enjoy by Christ are great and innumerable; to insist on them in particular were work for a man's whole life, not a design to be wrapped up in a few sheets. I shall take a view of them only in the head, the spring and fountain whence they all arise and flow, this is our adoption: "Beloved, now are we the sons of God," 1 John iii. 2. This is our great and fountain privilege. Whence is it that we are so? It is from the love of the Father. Verse 1," Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God!" But by whom immediately do we receive this honour? As many as believe on Christ, he gives them this power, to become the sons of God, John i. 12. Himself was appointed to be the first-born among many brethren, Rom. viii. 29; and his taking us to be brethren, Heb. ii. 11, makes us become the children of God. Now, that God is our Father, by being the Father of Christ, and we his children by being the brethren of Christ, being the head and sum of all the honour, privilege, right, and title we have, let us a little consider the nature of that act whereby we are invested with this state and title,-namely, our adoption.

Now, adoption is the authoritative translation of a believer, by Jesus Christ, from the family of the world and Satan into the family of God, with his investiture in all the privileges and advantages of that family.

To the complete adoption of any person, these five things are required:

1. That he be actually, and of his own right, of another family than that whereinto he is adopted. He must be the son of one family or other, in his own right, as all persons are.

2. That there be a family unto which of himself he hath no right, whereinto he is to be grafted. If a man comes into a family upon a personal right, though originally at never so great a distance, that man is not adopted. If a man of a most remote consanguinity do come into the inheritance of any family by the death of the nearer heirs, though his right before were little better than nothing, yet he is a born son of that family,—he is not adopted. [In adoption] he is not to have the plea of the most remote possibility of succession.

3. That there be an authoritative, legal translation of him, by some that have power thereinto, from one family into another. It was not, by the law of old, in the power of particular persons to adopt when and whom they would. It was to be done by the authority of the sovereign power.

4. That the adopted person be freed from all the obligations that be upon him unto the family from whence he is translated; otherwise he can be no way useful or serviceable unto the family whereinto he is ingrafted. He cannot serve two masters, much less two fathers.

5. That, by virtue of his adoption, he be invested in all the rights, privileges, advantages, and title to the whole inheritance, of the family into which he is adopted, in as full and ample manner as if he had been born a son therein.

Now, all these things and circumstances do concur and are found in the adoption of believers:

1. They are, by their own original right, of another family than that whereinto they are adopted. They are "by nature the children of wrath,” Eph. ii. 3,—sons of wrath,—of that family whose inheritance is "wrath,"-called "the power of darkness," Col. i. 13; for from thence doth God "translate them into the kingdom of his dear Son." This is the family of the world and of Satan, of which by nature believers are. Whatever is to be inherited in that family,-as wrath, curse, death, hell,—they have a right thereunto. Neither can they of themselves, or by themselves, get free of this family: a strong man armed keeps them in subjection. Their natural estate is a family condition, attended with all the circumstances of a family,-family duties and services, rights and titles, relations and observances. They are of the black family of sin and Satan.

2. There is another family whereinto they are to be translated, and whereunto of themselves they have neither right nor title. This is that family in heaven and earth which is called after the name of Christ, Eph. iii. 15,—the great family of God. God hath a1 house and family for his children; of whom some he maintains.on the riches of his grace, and some he entertains with the fulness of his glory. This is that house whereof the Lord Christ is the great dispenser, it having

1 Hab. iii. 6.

pleased the Father to "gather together in one all things in him, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth, even in him," Eph. i. 10. Herein live all the sons and daughters of God, spending largely on the riches of his grace. Unto this family of themselves they have no right nor title; they are wholly alienated from it, Eph. ii. 12, and can lay no claim to any thing in it. God driving fallen Adam out of the garden, and shutting up all ways of return with a flaming sword, ready to cut him off if he should attempt it, abundantly declares that he, and all in him, had lost all right of approaching unto God in any family relation. Corrupted, cursed nature is not vested with the least right to any thing of God. Therefore,

3. They have an authoritative translation from one of these families to another. It is not done in a private, underhand way, but in the way of authority. John i. 12, " As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God,”—power or authority. This investing them with the power, excellency, and right of the sons of God, is a forensical act, and hath a legal proceeding in it. It is called the “making us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light," Col. i. 12;—a judicial exalting us into membership in that family, where God is the Father, Christ the elder brother, all saints and angels brethren and fellow-children, and the inheritance a crown immortal and incorruptible, that fades not away. Now, this authoritative translation of believers from one family into another consisteth of these two parts:

(1.) An effectual proclamation and declaration of such a person's immunity from all obligations to the former family, to which by nature he was related. And this declaration hath a threefold object:

[1.] Angels. It is declared unto them; they are the sons of God. They are the sons of God, and so of the family whereinto the adopted person is to be admitted; and therefore it concerns them to know who are invested with the rights of that family, that they may discharge their duty towards them. Unto them, then, it is declared that believers are freed from the family of sin and hell, to become fellow-sons and servants with them. And this is done two ways:

1st. Generally, by the doctrine of the gospel. Eph. iii. 10, "Unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places is made known by the church the manifold wisdom of God."

By the church is this wisdom made known to the angels, either as the doctrine of the gospel is delivered unto it, or as it is gathered thereby. And what is this wisdom of God that is thus made known to principalities and powers? It is, that "the Gentiles should be fellowheirs and of the same body with us," verse 6. The mystery of adopting sinners of the Gentiles, taking them from their slavery in the 1 Rom. viii. 29; Heb. ii. 12. * Job i. 6, xxxviii. 7; Heb. xii. 22-24; Rev. xxii. 9. VOL. II. 14

family of the world, that they might have a right of heirship, becoming sons in the family of God, is this wisdom, thus made known. And how was it primitively made known? It was "revealed by the Spirit unto the prophets and apostles," verse 5.

2dly. In particular, by immediate revelation. When any particular soul is freed from the family of this world, it is revealed to the angels. "There is joy in the presence of the angels of God" (that is, among the angels, and by them) "over one sinner that repenteth," Luke xv. 10. Now, the angels cannot of themselves absolutely know the true repentance of a sinner in itself; it is a work wrought in that cabinet which none hath a key unto but Jesus Christ; by him it is revealed to the angels, when the peculiar care and charge of such a one is committed to them. These things have their transaction before the angels, Luke xii. 8, 9. Christ owns the names of his brethren before the angels, Rev. iii. When he gives them admittance into the family where they are, Heb. xii. 22, he declares to them that they are sons, that they may discharge their duty towards them, Heb. i. 14.

5.

[2.] It is denounced in a judicial way unto Satan, the great master of the family whereunto they were in subjection. When the Lord Christ delivers a soul from under the power of that strong armed one, he binds him,-ties him from the exercise of that power and dominion which before he had over him. And by this means doth he know that such a one is delivered from his family; and all his future attempts upon him are encroachings upon the possession and inheritance of the Lord Christ.

[3] Unto the conscience of the person adopted. The Spirit of Christ testifies to the heart and conscience of a believer that he is freed from all engagements unto the family of Satan, and is become the son of God, Rom. viii. 14, 15; and enables him to cry, "Abba, Father," Gal. iv. 6. Of the particulars of this testification of the Spirit, and of its absolving the soul from its old alliance, I shall speak afterward. And herein consists the first thing mentioned.

(2.) There is an authoritative ingrafting of a believer actually into the family of God, and investing him with the whole right of sonship. Now this, as unto us, hath sundry acts:

[1.] The giving a believer a new name in a white stone, Rev. ii. 17. They that are adopted are to take new names; they change their names they had in their old families, to take the names of the families whereinto they are translated. This new name is, “A child of God.” That is the new name given in adoption; and no man knoweth what is in that name, but only he that doth receive it. And this new name is given and written in a white stone;-that is the tessera of our admission into the house of God. It is a stone of judicial acquitment.