can hardly perswade my selfe to thinke so For thought it be true that by flesh and bloud man oftentimes is signified yet the wordes in that sense are neuer so diuided or placed Let vs take the examples which they alleage that so expound these wordes Flesh and bloud hath not revealed these things to thee Flesh and bloud Mat. 16. 17. 1. Cor. 15. 50 cannot inherit the kingdome of God All the rest are like these wherein who doth not easily marke both that Flesh is still set in the first place and Bloud neuer Flesh and Bloud not Bloud and Flesh and also that they are alwaies ioyned together and not seuered the one from the other If our Euangelist had meant to haue spoken of man by that kinde of speech hee woulde haue said which are borne not of flesh and bloud May wee diuide those former places Flesh hath not reuealed Bloud hath not reuealed Flesh caÌ„not inherit Bloud cannot inherit These were marueilous strange kinds of speech not agreeâ—ble to the phrase of the holy Ghost in Scripture Wherefore thoh I acknowledge that interpretatioÌ„ to be true for the generall sense of it yet I see not how I may like of it in the particulars especially seeing the holy Ghost vseth a diuers manner of speech in these 2 later from the former There hee said no more but Not of bloud In the other he denies also the will or desire not of the will of the flesh not of the will of man Let vs then if you please vnderstand by bloud the matter by flesh the man the efficient cause and maker as it were what shall wee say of the will of the flesh and man Surely I will not grratly striue with any man who thinkes it should be taken for concupiscence It is enough that I propounded the reason of my doubt before Giue mee leaue now to deliuer what I conceiue of the matter which is no more but this that I had rather vnderstand by will desire then lust What then shall bee the sense of it This as I take it that the Euangelist giues vs to vnderstand that the Sonnes of whom hee intreates are not borne according to or by any desire of man which might procure or affect or wish that kinde of Son-ship How fitly this will agree with the scope of the place it shall appeare by and by when I haue examined that which remaines All that wee haue said hitherto concerning this birth is to shew whence it is not Not of bloud not of man VVhence is it then Of God God sometimes notes the nature of the God head sometimes some one of the three persons How may wee most fitly expound it in this place What if wee referre it to the Ioh. 3. 5. sanlen in concord Euang. cap. 1. holy Ghost the spirit of whome euery man must bee borne that shall enter into the kingdome of God I doubt mee wee shall hardly finde any one place of Scripture where the worde God signifieth any seuerall person but the Father I deny not that in some place that is said to be don by God which in som other is particularly ascribed to the Sonne or to the holy Ghost but I say that in those places where God is so named the nature is to bee vnderstood nd not any one person The compareing of these places together doth teach vs that the Sonne and the holy Gost are by nature God but it doth not proue that where God is named there either of these two persons is specially signified Neither is it necessary to apply this to God the Father but rather the opposition standeth betwixt the diuine humane nature not of man that is not of man-kind or of the nature of man but of God of the diuine nature which is one and the same in all three persons Thus haue wee the meaning of the Euangelist that the Sonnes hee spake of arise not to that dignity by any power or wisedome of man but meerely and only by the mighty worke of God himselfe who begets them to himselfe by the effectuall working of his spirit and of his owne gratious fauour vouchsafeth to adopt them for his Sonnes I doe the rather make the sense so large because I woulde not willingly omitte any thing which it may bee reasonably presumed the holy Ghost did or might intende For the cleerer vnderstanding whereof let vs cal to minde what was before deliuered at the twelfth verse that there is a double Son-ship in respect of GOD the former is that whereof our LORD disputes with Nicodemus by which wee are borne againe Ioh. 3. 35. c. of the spirit and fitted for the later which is our Adoption by GGD the Father The prerogatiue of being the Sonnes of GOD is our being adopted which is not vouchsaf't vs by GOD at the first while wee are in our corrupt naturall estate but then only bestowed vpon vs when by beleeuing wee are become one with IESVS CHRIST the naturall Sonne of GOD his Father The other Sonne-ship is but a preparing of vs therevnto by which that beleefe is begotten in vs by the powerfull working of the holy Ghost in the ministery of the worde In this sense the thirteenth verse dependes thus vpon the last wordes of the twelfth Saint Iohn had said that they become the Sonnes of GOD which beleeue in the name of the Messiah Hee proceedes to shewe how they attaine to this beleefe By being borne not of bloud c but of God They haue it not by nature in their birth they get it not by any naturall desire or will but they are borne anew of God and haue it by him framed and formed in them The doctrine of both these points is most true the wordes will beare them both they will both stande with the scope of the place and purpose of the Euangelist Chrylost in Io. homil 9. The oph ad hune locum that I am not afraid of doing any wrong to the Text though I make so large an interpretation therof Let vs then in the feare of God handle these things some what particularly but shortly as the time requireth What a prerogatiue it is for men to bee the Sonnes of God wee heard in the last exercise here the Euangelist farder sets foorth the excellency thereof by shewing the basenesse of our naturall birth which for the matter of it is bloud for the making at the best but humane whereas the other is wholly and only from God I will not amplify the former point touching our naturall birth as I might doe but only referre you to the consideration of it by your selues For your better direction wherein I will name two Iob. 10. 9. 10. 11. Ezech. 16. 4. 6. places of Scripture which I commende to your humble and diligent meditation In the former the naturall breeding of man-kind is purposely described in the later his birth is shewed by way of allegory if wee consider the intent of the holy Ghost but
not Yet the force of the light appeares in some who by it attaine to knowledge and saluation But this belongs to an other place and discourse let vs go forward in our exposition Wherein we are first to consider the words then to deliuer the sense The words are not so doubtfull in themselues as the varietie of interpretations hath made them which indeede is so great that if I should handle them at large both you and I should be sooner wearied then edified I will therefore content my selfe with some little speech concerning the diuersitie of the expositions And therein first wee must see what light it is the Euangelist speakes of then what hee saies of it that it shineth in darknes By light generallie CHRIST or his doctrine or both are thought to bee signified The variety of opinions principallie consists in the diuers respects in which hee may bee conceiued to bee spoken of All which may bee referred to these two heads his diuine Nature or his Person And so much of these respects in generall the particulars I must needs reserue till I haue shewed what is meant by darknes and not comprehending for without the knowledge of them this cannot be vnderstood In the meane while wee may easily ghesse at the Euangelists meaning if wee assure our selues as there is good cause wee should that the light here is all one with that in the former verse Whereof who can reasonably make any doubt Hath not the Euangelist held the same course before One and the same worde was in the beginning was God was with God By the same word were all things made nothing was made without him In him was life and that life which was in him was the light of men And the light shineth What light but that which he named in the clause before Now that both the person and the doctrine may well bee vnderstood by this light it is cleare by that which our Sauiour often saith of himselfe in this Gospellâ— I am Ioh. 8. 12. 1. 46. the light of the world I am come a light into the world And that this belongs to his person it is manifest because he restraines this light to his continuance in the world While I am in the world I am the light of the world walk while yee haue the light while ye haue the light beleeue in the 9. 5. 12. 35. 36. light But what neede I goe any further then this chapter What was Iohns witnesse but that Iesus was the Lambe of Ioh. 1. 6. 7. Ver. 29. Ver. 33. God that takes away the sinnes of the world That hee was the Messiah whome the father had sent Therefore doth hee as it were point him out Iohn seeth Iesus comming vnto him and saith Behold the Lambe of God And Ver. 29. Ver. 36. he beheld IESVS walking by and said Behold the Lamb of God What should I vse many words It not his person signified when Saint Iohn saith In him was Ver. 4. life It is then truely said of our Sauiours person that hee is light and shineth But how is our Sauiour light Not onely as by his diuine power he giues vs light through the worke of his Spirit in our hearts whereof in this place our Euangelist doth not speake but also in regard of the doctrine of euerlasting life which hee preached in his owne person while hee liued here amongst men and now teacheth dayly by those whome hee hath made his Ambassadors to intreat men on his behalfe and in his name that they 2. Cor. 5. 19. would bee reconciled vnto God Let vs see howe this may bee prooued Light is come into the world saith Ioh. 3. 19. our Sauiour and men loued darknesse more then light What light Namely the true knowledge of saluation whereof our Sauiour had discoursed before to Nicodemus not without his wonder and astonishment How Ver. 4. can a man be borne which is olde sayd Nicodemus when Christ preached to him of regeneration by water and the spirit without which no man can enter into heauen Afterward when he labord to instruct him in the knowledge of his corrupt naturall estate and shewd him that the spirit inlightens whome hee pleaseth as the winde blowes where it list How can these things be sayd Nicodemus Ver. 9. The world can not abide this light which discouers the shame and miserie of her darknes Men had rather continue a good opinion of their owne vertue and holines though with error then forgoe that proud conceit they haue naturally of themselues by seeing their sinnes layde open by the light of truth Thus was Christ the light of the world while he was in the world because Ioh. 9. 5. he preacht the Gospell to as many as would heare it And this was the light which shuld not as he threatens them alwaies be with them So then by light the doctrin of the Gospell and knowledge of euerlasting life is vnderstood and the person of our Sauiour there by signified so farre as concernes his deliuering and teaching of that mystery This being thus conceiued it is no hard matter to knowe what is ment by shining What else shewing and manifesting it selfe so that they which wil may see it and by it see the way to euerlasting life No man lighteth Mat. 5. 15. a candle to put it vnder a bushel but to set it on a Candlesticke that it may giue light to all that are in the house Let your light so shine before men saith our Sauiour applying the former similitude that they may see your good workes 〈◊〉 le si 〈◊〉 Arian â—â— 3. cap. 3. They that would haue the place vnderstood of that inlighting by which Christ makes vs discerne the truth of that which is taught vs doe not put any difference betwixt shining and inlighting whereas it is plaine that the holy Ghost in this place intends not to entreat of the effect in the hearts of men but of the natural property and immediate act of the light Neither doth this sense of word wel agree with that which followeth And the darknesse comprehended it not Is not this contrary to the former If the light shine so that it inlighten the darknesse how can it bee said that the darknesse doth not comprehend it For it will appeare anone that by not comprehending not acknowledging or not receiuing the light is signified But although the darknes bee not cleered and made bright by the light yet the light it self shineth that is casteth and spreadeth abroad his beams Doth not the Sun shine but when it is seene Shines it not vpon the blind Euen so the light of truth glistereth brightly though it be not discernd by theÌ„ on whoÌ„ it fals But this as I noted before is easily acknowledged the greatest doubt is why the euangelist changeth his manner of speech and speakes of the persent time The light shineth We haue had nothing hitherto but of the
their naturall being So are some euen as many as beleeue in Christ his sonnes concerning their spirituall beeing For it is God that creates as it were new hearts in them that restores that image of his which they had lost that giues them spirituall life and motion to all righteous and holy actions I do but name the things according to the present occasion leauing the handling of them to more fit opportunitie in the next verse It is enough that we vnderstand in what meaning wee are the Children of Godâ— because wee are borne of him and yet not his Sonnes by nature But is this that which the holy Ghost intendeth in this place to signifie that Christ is autor of regeneration to all them that beleeue I suppose this is not all For it is easie for euery man to discerne that the Text speaketh of such a being sonnes as followeth faith and beleeuing whereas the birth that is mentioned in the verse following goeth before faith which is one of those â—â—â—ces that are formed in vs and brought forth by that â—irth This is that the Apostle saith other where Ye are Gal. 3. 26. ill the Sonnes of God by faith in Iesus Christ First wee beleeue and then by beleeuing we are the sonnes of God This is as it were the second birth the first is that which necessarily must bee had before a man can haue any â—pirituall life in him For as our Sauiour tells Nicodemus That which is borne of flesh is flesh and that that is Iohn 6. borne of the spirit is spirit No man can possibly haue â—aith of the flesh but the spirit must beget a faithfull man There is no remedy then but wee must seeke for â—ome other being sonnes or that I may speake more â—hortly Sonne-ship Giue mee leaue to vse the worde because it is fit though somwhat harsh till it be worne smooth with often vsing Where shall wee finde that Sonne-ship wee inquire for Let vs examine what and how many kindes of Sonnes wee know amongst men not speaking of these which are made sonnes by alliance who is ignorant that there are two kindes of Sonnes by nature and by adoption The one is borne the other is chosen a Sonne The former kinde is so well knowne that it were idle to say any thing of it Of the later we haue small knowledge amongst vs by experience saue only in them who by their last Will and Testament make them their Heyres that haue no interest to their estate but onely by the fauour and appointment of the Testator Among the old Romans it was very ordinary as their histories lawes in that case prouided euidently pleÌ„tifully shew The scripture affords vs few or none examples of this kinde Wee haue a shadow of it in the course that Iacob tooke with Iosephs two sonnes Manasses Ephraim They were indeede his grand children or nephewes by nature But by fauour hee made theÌ„ equall to the rest of his sons their vncles so that they make two of the 12. Tribes Let my name Gen. 48. 16. saith Iacob be named vpon them that is Let them be accounted my sonnes as if they had bin begotten of my body The like may be said of Moses and Esther who were after a sort the adopted Children of Pharaohs daughter and Mordecai Of him the Text saith that his mother after shee had weaned him brought him to Pharaohs daughter and he was as her Sonne Which Exod. 2. 10. Heb. 11. 24. is farder proued by the Epistle to the Hebrewes that he refused to be called the sonne of Pharaohs daughter Of her it is recorded in the history that after the death of her father and her mother Mordecai who was her cosin Germane Est 2. 7. tooke her for his owne daughter By this Son-ship the partie thus adopted obtaines a title and interest to the estate of him that hath adopted him as if hee were his naturall child Of this sonne-ship by Adoption from God there are 〈◊〉 in loa lib 1. cap. 10. two kindes in the scripture the one a figure and resemblance of the other When the Lord sent Moses to Pharaoh for the deliuerance of the children of Israell hee gaue him this instruction for the discharge of his Embassage Thou shall say to Pharaoh Thus sayth the Lord Exod. 4. 22. Israell is my sonne my first borne Would you know what sonneship this was The Apostle wil resolue you where speaking of the prerogatiue that God vouchsaf't the Iewes he reckens among other blessings the Adoption Rom. 9. 4. what was that else but a choosing of that people out of all the nations in the world to be his peculiar vnder his protection The Lord sayth Moses set his delight in thy fathers to loue them and did choose their seede after them euen Deut. 10 15. you aboue all people Therefore did hee bestow vpon them the Land of Canaan a land especially furnisht by him with the blessings of this present life Flowing with milke and honey Glorious was this estate of theirs their Exod 33. 3. adoption full of fauour to the enuie of all the world their owne happy securitie But as glorious and bountifull as it was it was for all that but a shadow of the spirituall sonneship There is another manner of Adoption mentioned in the new Testament and imparted to them that beleeue in Iesus Christ When the fulnesse of time was come sayth Galat. 4. 4. 5. Saint Paule God sent foorth his sonne made of a woman made vnder the law That hee might redeeme them which were vnder the law that wee might receiue the adoption of sonnes According as he had predestinated vâ— saith the same Eph. 1. 5. Apostle to be adopted through Iesus Christ To vs thus adopted he giues the spirit of adoption whereby wee cry Abba Rom. 8. 15. father This is the sonneship the Euangelist speakes of in this place This is that spirituall Adoption by which wee are truely made the sonnes of God I shall not need to adde any farther proof of the matter because it hath appeared already that none of the other Sonneships can agree with that which is here auouched For to none of them is beleeuing required especially beleeuing in Iesus Christ but to this only To that Sonneship which is by creatioÌ„ it is neither lookt for nor possible that wee should bring faith For wee must needes be eâ—e wee can beleeue and our very being is our being sonnes So the Iewes vpon that promise of God to their father Abraham were borne not made sonnes their Adoption consisted not in the seuerall choyse of particular men but in separating the seede of Abraham Isaac and Iacob from all families and nations in the world whatsoeuer Neither is our spirituall sonneship of the former kinde attained to by faith but by it we are made faithfull Therefore to be sonnes is to be adopted by God for his children in Christ I will make
plainely and truly if wee respect the matter it selfe Reade them both at your leasure and I make no doubt but you will bee ashamed to thinke that beeing so meanely bred and brought foorth I speake as fauourably as I can wee should bee so strangely proud and insolent as for the most part wee are VVeake and base is our naturall beginning mighty and glorious is our spirituall adoption By that wee are borne the Sonnes of men by this wee are chosen the Sonnes of God In our first condition wee are brought foorth to all kinde of misery in our second estate wee are aduaunced to true felicity The one casts vs naked and forlorne vpon the bare earth the other lifts vs vp from earth to heauen That brings vs out of prison to punishment this leades vs from paine to pleasure with our conception begins our mortality our adoption giues vs entrance into immortality And doe we for all this stand doating vpon our naturall estate Are wee proud of that of which wee may rather bee ashamed What art thou that bearest thy selfe so high A Gentleman A Nobleman A Prince Heyre apparant to the Empire of the whole earth Bee it so yet was thy breeding and bearing no other then Iob and Ezechiell describe The poorest and basest wretche that goeth on the ground had the same manner of beginning and being Remember thy selfe as thy death shall bee like his dust to dust so was thy birth like to his bloud of bloud flesh of flesh Thou art the sonne of an Emperor Yet of a man Be not deceiued thy nature is no better then his though thy eares and sorrowes may proue more and greater A gentleman a nobleman a King are not names of diuers natures but of diuers troubles Adoption adoption is that which makes difference betwixt Humane and Diuine Caine and Abell were both Adams sonnes Ismaell and Isaac Abrahams All foure were borne a-like of bloud of the will of the flesh of the will of man But Isaac and Abell were adopted the sonnes of GOD Caine and Ismaell were neuer any more but the sonnes of men Looke how much God is more excellent then man so much more glorious is it to bee the sonne of God then of man Looke how much the spirit exceedes the flesh so much better is it to bee borne of the spirit then of the flesh If thou bee the adopted sonne of God by grace it skils not whose sonne thou art by nature Beleeue in Christ and thou hast the prerogatiue to bee the sonne of GOD. Neuer tell mee how meane and poore thy parents were Neuer boast how rich and noble they were Bloud and flesh man must hinder either all or none at all For in all these all are equall How meane soeuer thy bloud be it is bloud How noble soeuer it bee it is but bloud Thy nobilitie helpes not thy basenesse hinders not thy adoption Not of bloud not of flesh not of man but of God God needes no such time and meanes for adoption as thy naturall parents neede for procreation There is no stay but in thy selfe Thou shalt no sooner beleeue in the name of Christ but presently God will accept thee for his sonne Is so excellent an estate so easilie to be come by and doo wee refuse or delay to vse the meanes Surely there needes no other proofe that our second birth of regeneration is not of bloud nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man but of God then that so fewe are so borne againe I am come now to the last poynt of this Text and exercise which I will runne ouer verie briefely The prerogatiue to bee the sonnes of God belonges to them onely that receiue our Sauiour Christ by beleeuing in him Who are they that doe so receiue him They that are borne of GOD. What is it to bee borne of GOD To haue our vnderstanding inlightned with the knowledge of the Gospell our hearts inclined to embrace it so that wee wholly renounce our selues all trust in our owne righteousnesse all good opinion thereof and rest onely vpon Iesus Christ to bee reconciled to GOD by him This estate as our Euangelist teacheth vs in this place is not attained to by any power or desire of man but by the mighty working of GOD Psal 51. 10. who creates as the Prophet sayeth new hearts in vs changing stone into flesh taking our stonie hearts Ezech. 11. 19. Cap. 36. 26. out of our bodies and giuing vs hearts of flesh For the naturall man take him at the best with all the helpes that nature learning and education canne afforde is notwithstanding all these vnable to acknowledge or like of the meanes which God in his owne wisedome hath appointed for our saluation The holy Ghost giues vs the reason of it For sayeth hee by the penne of Saint Paul they are foolishnesse vnto 1. Cor. 2. 14. him and cannot bee discerned but by the spirit which no man can haue but by a second birth from GOD. I cannot stand to inlarge this point by many proofes neither is it greatly needfull because it hath beene done already in my former exercises and shall be done hereafter if it please God as occasion shall be offered Yet I may not at any hand forget because it especially concernes the glory of God the ende of all true religion to call to your remembrance what hath formerly beene deliuered touching the worke of God in bringing men to beleeue in Christ The summe of it is this that it is God which makes vs both able and willing to beleeue not waiting for the choyse of our freewill which like a free horse runnes headlong to infidelitie but gratiously and powerfully inclining vs to beleeue Doost thou then beleeue in Christ to saluation whereas many other that haue had the same worde outwardly by the ministerie of men and the same grace inwardly by the motion of the spirit offered to them continue in vnbeleefe Take heede thou doe not imagine that this difference proceeded from thy selfe That they doe not beleeue it is by their owne fault That thou doest beleeue it is by not by thine owne vertue Noe sayest thou I knowe that and confesse it I stood in need of the grace of GOD as well as other men I was not able to bee saued without it nor to procure it GOD of his owne goodnesse found out the meanes prouided them gaue mee knowledge of them inabled mee to embrace them All this I willingly ascribe to God Is this all thou giuest him many men at the least as thou perswadest thy selfe haue been equall to thee in all these fauours from God who yet neuer attained to beleefe in Christ I would faine knowe of thee how this difference grewe that thou beleeuest and they doe not They would not and I would Thou sayest well For indeede noe man euer beleeues but willingly Yet this doth not satisfie my doubt I demaund farther how came it to passe that thou wouldest and they would not Doe not aunswere mee Because I would For if that bee all thou canst say thou doest rather condemne thy folly then commend thy obedience in yeelding I sawe it was the onely course I coulde take for my saluation Did not those other which beleeue not see that too as well as thou Else the difference proceeded not from the choyse of thy will but from the cleerenesse of thy iudgement I graunt they sawe as much as I but they did not like it as well as I. Wee are neuer a whit the neerer for all this conference I aske still howe thou camest to haue a better liking of it then they had I vsed the freedome of my will better then they did I perceiue then when all comes to all the difference must arise from free well But our Euangelist sayeth Not of the will of man Otherwise there Rom. 3. 27. were verie iust and great cause in men of boasting and small glorie or thankes due to God euerie man being the principall cause of his owne saluation For as I haue shewed heeretofore thus might anie man that beleeues reason with GOD Why should I bee challenged of vnthankefulnesse