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4. He is enlightned in the knowledge of Jefus Chrift, 1 Cor.i. 23,24. But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness: but unto them that are called, both Jews and Greeks, Chrift, the power of God, and the wisdom of God. The truth is, unregenerate men, tho' capable of preaching Chrift, have not (properly fpeaking) the knowledge of him, but only an opinion, a good opinion of him; as one has of many controverted points of doctrine, wherein he is far from certainty. As when ye meet with a ftranger upon the road, he behaving himself difcreetly, ye conceive a good opinion of him; and therefore willingly converse with him; but yet ye will not commit your money to him; because, tho' you have a good opinion of the man, he is a ftranger to you, ye do not know him. So many, they think well of Chrift; but they will never commit themselves to him; feeing they know him not. But faving illumination carries the foul beyond opinion, to the certain knowledge of Chrift and his excellency, Theff. i. 5. For our gofpel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the holy Ghoft, and in much affurance. The light of grace thus difcovers the fuitablenefs of the mystery of Christ, to the divine perfections, and to the finner's cafe. Hence the regenerate admire the glorious plan of falvation through Chrift crucified, lay their whole weight upon it, and heartily acquiefce therein for whatever he be to others, he is to them Chrift the power of God, and the wisdom of God. But unrenewed men, not feeing this, are offended in him; they will not venture their fouls in that bottom, but betake themselves to the broken boards of their own righteoufnefs. The fame light convincingly difcovers a fuperlative worth, a tranfcendant glory and excellency in Chrift; which darken all created excellencies, as the rifing fun makes the stars to hide their heads: and fo it engages the merchant-man to fell all that he hath, to buy the one pearl of great price, Matth. xiii. 45, 46. makes the foul well content, to take Chrift for all, and instead of all. Even as an unfkilful merchant, to whom one offereth a pearl of great price, for all his petty wares, dares not venture on the bargain; for tho' he thinks, that one pearl may be more worth than all he has, yet he is not fure of it: but when a jeweller comes to him, and affures him, it is worth double all his wares; he then greedily embraceth the bargain, and chearfully parts with all that he has for that pearl. Finally, This illumination in the knowledge of Christ, convincingly difcovereth to men a fulness in him, fufficient for the fupply of all their wants; enough to fatisfy the boundless defires of an immortal foul. They are perfuaded fuch fulnefs is in him, and that in order to be communicate: they depend upon it, as a certain truth; and therefore their fouls take up their eternal rest in him.

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4. The man is inftructed in the knowledge of the vanity of the world, Pfal cxix. 96. I have feen an end of all perfection. Regenerating grace elevates the foul, fets it, as it were, amongst the itars, from whence this earth cannot but appear a little, yea, a very little

thing; even as heaven appeared before. while the foul was immersed in the earth. Grace brings a man into a new world; while this world is reputed but a ftage of vanity, an howling wilderness, a valley of tears God hath hung the fign of vanity at the door of all created enjoyments; yet how do men throng into the houfe, calling and looking for fomewhat that is fatisfying; even after it has been a thousand times told them, there is no fuch thing in it, it is not to be got there, Ifa. lvi. 10. Thou at wearid in te greatness of thy ways; vet jaraft thou not, Th re is no hope. Why are men fo foolith? 1 he truth of the matter hes here, they do not fee by the light of gra.e, they do not fpiritually difcern, that fign of vanity They have often indeed made a rational difcovery of it: but can that truly wean the heart from the world? Nay, no more than painted fire can burn off the prifoner's bands. But the light of grace is the light of life, powerful and efficacious

Lafily, (To fum up all in one word) In regeneration the mind is enlightned in the knowledge of fpiritual things, 1 John ii 20 Ye have an unction from the holy One (that is, from Jefus Chrift, Rev in 18. It is an allufion to the fanctuary, whence the holy oil was brought to anoint the priests) and ve kn will hngs, viz neceffary to falvation. Tho' men be not book-learned if they be born again, they are Spiritlearned; for ali fuch are taught of God, John vi. 45 ihe Spirit of regeneration teach: th them what they knew not before; and what they did know, as by the ear only, he teacheth them over again as by the eye The light of grace is an overcoming light, determining men to affent to divine truths on the mere teftimony of God. It is no easy thing for the mind of man, to acquiefce in divine revelation Many pretend great refpect to the fcriptures, whom, nevertheless, the clear fcripture-teltimony will not divorce from their pre-conceived opinions. But this illumination will make men's minds run, as captives, after Chrift's chariot wheels; which, for their part, thall be allowed to drive over, and caft down their own imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth ijelf a anft the knowleage of God. 2 Cor. x_5. It will make them receive the kingdom of God as a little child, Mark x 15. who thinks he has fufficient ground to believe any thing, if his father do but fay it is fo.

Secondly, The will is renewed. The Lord takes away the ftony heart, and gives a heart of flesh, Ezek. xxxvi 26. And fo, of stones raifeth up children to Abraham Regenerating grace is powerful and efficacious, and gives the will a new fet It does not indeed force it: but sweetly, yet powerfully draws it, fo that his people are willing in the day of his power, Pfal. cx. 3 There is heavenly oratory in the Mediator's lips, to perfuade finners, Pfal xlv. 2 Grace is poured into thy tips. There are cords of a man, and bands of love in his hands, to draw them after him, Hof xi. 4. Love makes a net for elect fouls, which will infaliibly catch them, and hale them to land. The cords of Chrift's love ars ftrong cords: and they need to be fo; for every

finner is heavier than a mountain of brafs: and Satan, together with the heart itself, draw the contrary way. But love is ftrong as death; and the Lord's love to the foul he died for, is strongeft love; which acts fo powerfully, that it must come off victorious.

I. The will is cured of its utter inability to will what is good. While the opening of the prifon to them that are bound, is proclaimed in the gofpel: The Spirit of God comes to the prifon door, opens it, goes to the prifoner; and by the power of his grace makes his chains fall off; breaks the bond of iniquity, wherewith he was held in fin, fo as he could neither will nor do any thing truly good; brings him forth into a large place, Working in him both to will and to do, of his good pleafure, Phil. ii. 13. Then it is that the foul, that was fixed to the earth, can move heavenward; the withered hand is restored, and can be stretched out.

2. There is wrought in the will a fixed averfion to evil. In regeneration, a man gets a new fpirit put within him, Ezek. xxxvi. 26. and that Spirit lufteth against the flefb, Gal. v. 17. The fweet morfel of fin, fo greedily fwallowed down, he now lothes, and would fain be rid of it; even as willingly as one, that had drunk a cup of poifon, would throw it up again. When the fpring is stopt, the mud lies in the well unmoved: but when once the fpring is cleared, the waters fpringing up, will work the mud away by degrees Even fo, while a man continues in an unregenerate ftate, fin lies at ease in the heart: but as foon as the Lord ftrikes the rocky heart, with the rod of his strength in the day of converfion, grace is in him a well of water, Springing up into everlasting life, John iv. working away natural corruption, and gradually purifying the heart, Acts xv. 9. The renewed will rifeth up against fin, ftrikes at the root thereof, and the branches too. Lufts are now grievous, and the foul endeavours to ftarve them : the corrupt nature is the fource of all evil, and therefore the foul will be often laying it before the great Phyfician. O what forrow, fhame and felf-loathing fill the heart, in the day that grace makes its triumphant entrance into it? For now the madman is come to himself, and the remembrance of his follies cannot but cut him to the heart.

Laftly, The will is endued with an inclination, bent, and propensity to good. In its depraved state, it lay quite another way; being prone and bent to evil only: but now, by a pull of the omnipotent, all-conquering arm, it is drawn from evil to good, and gets another fet. And as the former fet was natural; fo this is natural too, in refpect of the new nature given in regeneration, which has its own holy luftings, as well as the corrupt old nature hath its finful luftings, Gal. v. 17. The will, as renewed, inclines and points towards God and godlinefs. When God made man, his will, in refpect of its intention, was directed towards God, as his chief end; in refpect of its choice, it pointed towards that which God willed. When man unmade himself, his will was framed into the very reverse hereof: he made himself his chief end, and his own will his law. But when man

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is new made, in regeneration, grace rectifies this diforder in fome meafure, tho' hot perfectly indeed; because we are but renewed in part, while in this world. It brings back the finner, out of himself, to God as his chief end, truly, tho' not perfectly, Pfal. Ixxiii. 25. Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I defire befides thee. Philip. i. 21. For to me to live is Chrift. It makes him to deny himself, and whatever way he turns, to point habitually towards God; who is the center of the gracious foul, its home, its dwelling-place in all generations, Pfal. xc. 1. By regenerating grace, the will is framed into a conformity to the will of God. It is conformed to his preceptive will, being endued with holy inclinations, agreeable to every one of his commands. The whole law is impreffed on the gracious foul: every part of it is written over on the renewed heart. And altho' remaining corruption makes fuch blots in the writing, that oft-times the man himself cannot read it: yet he that wrote it can read it at all times; it is never quite blotted out, nor can be. What he has wristen, he has written, it fhall ftand: For this is the covenant, I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts, Heb. viii. 10. And it is a covenant of falt, a perpetual covenant. It is alfo conformed to his providential will; fo that the man will no more be mafter of his own process; nor carve out his lot for himself. He learns to fay, from his heart, The will of the Lord be done, he fhall chufe our inheritance for us, Pfal. xlvii. 4. Thus the will is difpofed to fall in with those things, which, in its depraved ftate, it could never be reconciled to.

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Particularly, (1.) The Lord is reconciled to the covenant of peace. The Lord God promiseth a covenant of peace to finners; a covenant which he himself hath framed, and registrated in the Bible: but they are not pleased with it: nay, an unrenewed heart cannot be pleased with it. Were it put into their hands, to frame it according to their mind; they would blot many things out of it, which God has put in; and put in many things, God has kept out. But the renewed heart is entirely fatisfied with the covenant, 2 Sam. xxiii. 5. He hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and fare; this is all my falvation, and all my defire. Tho' the covenant could not be brought down to their depraved will, their will is, by grace, brought up to the covenant; they are well-pleased with it: there is nothing in it they would have out; nor is any thing left out of it, which they would have in. (2.) The will is difpofed to receive Chrift Jefus the Lord. The foul is content to fubmit to him. Regenerating grace undermines, and brings down the tow'ring imaginations of the heart, railed up against its rightful lord: it breaks the iron finew, which kept the finner from bowing to him, and difpofed him to be no more fiff mecked, but to yield to himself. He is willing to take on the yoke of Christ's commands, to take up the crofs and to follow him. He is content to take Chrift on any terms, Pfal. xc.3. Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power.

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Now, the mind being favingly enlightened, and the will renewed; the finner is thereby determined and enabled to anfwer the gofpelcall. So the main work in regeneration is done; the fort of the heart is taken: there is room made for the Lord Jefus Christ, in the innermoft parts of the foul; the outer-door of the will being now opened to him, as well as the inner-door of the understanding. In one word, Chrift is paffively received into the heart; he is come into the foul by his quickning fpirit, whereby fpiritual life is given to the man, who in himfelf was dead to fin. And his first vital act we may conceive to be an active receiving of Jefus Chrift difcerned in his glorious excellencies; that is, a believing on him, a clofing with him, as difcerned, offered, and exhibited in the word of his grace, the glorious gofpel: the immediate effect of which is union with him, John i. 12, 13. To as many as received him, to them gave he power (or privilege) to become the fons of God, even to them that believe on his Name; which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but oF GOD. Eph. iii. 17. That Chrift may dwell in your hearts by faith. Chrift having taken the heart by storm, and triumphantly entered into it, in regeneration, the foul by faith yields itself to him, as it is expreffed, 2 Chron. xxx. 8. Thus, this glorious King, who came into the heart by his Spirit; dwells in it by faith. The foul being drawn, runs; and being effectually called, comes.

Thirdly, In regeneration; there is a happy change made on the affections; they are both rectified and regulated.

1. This change rectifies the affections, placing them on fuitable objects, 2 Theff. ii. 5. The Lord direct your hearts into the love of God. The regenerate man's defires are rectified; they are fet on God himself, and the things above. He who before, cried with the world, Who will fhew us any good? he changes his note, and faya, Lord lift up the light of thy countenance upon us, Pfal. iv. Sometimes he faw no beauty in Chrift, for which he was to be defired; but now he is all defires, he is altogether lovely, Cant. v. 16. The main ftream of his defires is turned to run towards God: for there is the one thing he defireth, Pfal. xxvii. 4. He defires to be holy, as well as to be happy; and rather to be gracious than great. His hopes, which before were low, and staked down to things on earth, are now raised, and fet on the glory which is to be revealed. He entertains the hope of eternal life, founded on the word of promife, Tit. i. 2. Which hope he has, as an anchor of the foul, fixing the heart under trials, Heb.vi. 18. And it puts him upon purifying himself, even as God is pure, John iii. 3. For he is begotten again unto a lively hope, 1 Pet. i. 3. His love is raifed, and fet on God himself, Pfal. xxviii. 1. On his holy law, Pfal. cxix. 97. Tho' it strike against his moft beloved luft, he fays, The law is holy, and the commandment boly, and just, and good, Rom. vii. 12. He loves the ordinances of God, Pfal. 1xxxiv. 1. How amiable are thy tabernacles, O Lord of hofte? Being paffed from death unto life, he loves the brethren, (1 John iii. 14.) the people of God, as they

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