not the Son of God hath not Life but the wrath of God abideth on him 2. See another Text John 14.6 Jesus saith unto him I am the Way the Truth and the Life no man cometh to the Father but by me I am the way by which you may come to the Father as to your last and highest End and Happiness I am the Door by me if any man enter in he shall be saved John 10.9 There 's as much as He that hath the Son hath Life But then observe No man cometh unto the Father but by me He who hath not the Son of God hath not the Way nor the Truth nor the Life 3. Take a third Witness to confirm both parts of the Point Acts 4.12 Neither is there Salvation in any other for there is none other Name under Heaven given among men whereby we must be saved The Affirmative That Salvation and Life is in Christ is included in the excluding word Neither is there Salvation in any other Salvation is in and by Jesus Christ but not in any other for there is none other name c. And therefore if any one hath not the Son of God he hath not Life From what is said you may come to be past fear and doubt of your everlasting Salvation if you have the Son of God as you shall hear by and by you may be sure your Life your Treasure your Happiness is safely laid up for you And on the contrary a Man that reads these Words may read his own Doom He who hath not the Son hath not Life Conclude now as you have or or have not the Son of God Jesus Christ the Saviour so you shall live or die eternally But yet take this for prevention of Trouble or Despair As it is certain no Man hath any Right or Title to eternal Life except he believeth and hath the Son so he who hath not the Son at present now may have him may believe and be saved if he attend for him in the means of Grace and have him while he may be had that is while he is offer'd to him I take the Words as Doctrins or Divine Propositions without putting them into any other Form 1 D. He that hath the Son hath Life 2 D. He that hath not the Son hath not Life In opening the first observe these Particulars 1. Who and what is this Son spoken of in the Text. 2. What it is to have the Son 3. What is that Life which they have who have the Son 4. The reason why he who hath the Son hath Life or how it will follow and appear that he who hath the Son Jesus hath and must needs have Life 1. By the Son is to be understood Jesus Christ the Son of God our Mediator and Redeemer of whom there is frequent mention in this Chapter The Son is that same Holy One and wonderful spoken of in the first Verse Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God v. 5. Who is he that overcometh the World but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God He who came by Water and Blood even Jesus Christ ver 6. He to whom the Father the Word or the Second Person in the Godhead and the Holy Ghost bear witness the Three in Heaven that bear witness and to whom the Three bear witness on Earth the Spirit the Water and the Blood ver 7 8. He who is called Son his Son Son of God ten times from ver 8. to the end of the Chapter And observe ver 20. And we know the Son of God is come He who was given and sent is come in our Flesh to be a Mediator between God and us and hath given us an Vnderstanding to know him that is true and we are in him that is true even in his Son Jesus Christ This is the true God and eternal Life This Son this Son of God is the true God and eternal Life is in him ver 11. He is called Life John 14.6 and the Word of Life 1 John 1.1 and Eternal Life v. 2. He is the true God and hath Life in Himself and he is eternal Life essentially as the Son of God the only begotten Son John 3.16 And because the only begotten begotten by eternal Generation by the Father he was Life and had Life in Himself from Eternity before the Beginning therefore he is immutable and immortal he is Eternal Life originally and in the Fountain And that eternal Life which the Father of his meer Grace and Love hath given to us who are born of God is in his Son who is entrusted with it for us and hath power to give it to us John 17.2 and he who hath him hath eternal Life for that reason From these Scriptures learn four great Points and Matters of Faith 1. That Jesus Christ is so the Son of God that he is certainly the True God 2. That the Son of God is come into the World as sent of God as made of a Woman as manifest in the Flesh having taken part of the same Flesh and Blood which his Brethren were partakers of Gal. 4.4 1 Tim. 3.16 Heb. 2.14 3. That the only begotten Son of God hath Life in Himself yea is the Life the word of Life and eternal Life 4. That Christ his Son Jesus Christ hath that eternal Life in him as our Mediator Saviour and Head which God hath given to them who are born of God regenerated by the Spirit and adopted to be the Sons of God and Heirs of Life Jesus Christ our Mediator and Saviour is that Son which whoever hath hath Life Give me the attentive Ear to two Texts more which being taken together as they ought to be will prove That the Son of God is the same with Jesus our Saviour and that as our Jesus he is called the Son of God Luke 1.31 32 35. And behold thou shalt conceive in the Womb and bring forth a Son and shalt call his Name Jesus He shall be great and shall be called the Son of the highest c. And to her Question who thought it to her a thing incomprehensible but not impossible ver 34. How can it be seeing I know not a Man The Angel answered and said unto her The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee and the power of the Highest shall over-shadow thee Therefore also that Holy Thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God The Name Jesus is the Name of the Son of God as Mediator given him from the End or Effect of his coming into the World Mat. 1.21 Thou shalt call his Name Jesus for he shall save his people from their Sin The same is called according to the Prophesie of Isaiah Emmanuel God with us and the same called the Son of God Mat. 1.23 He shall be called * Dr. Owen of the Person of Jesus Christ against Biddle p. 180. c. Mr. Estwick's Articles of Mr. Biddle's Faith confuted p. 211. A. B.
case in the Book of God They are all lost and dead Men they shall never see Life Not to have the Son of God is a Negative of having him and not to have Life is a Privative of having Life The Reasons and Truth of this Sentence doth spring from the former He that hath the Son hath Life which implies these Propositions or Doctrins 1. The Son of God hath Life in him and is the Saviour of all them that believe and he alone excluding all other ways or means or persons neither is there Salvation in any other 2. He whoever he be that would have Life must have the Son 3. He that hath the Son of God hath Life and none but he Therefore he who hath not the Son hath not Life because he alone hath Life who hath the Son of God And as God did for his great Love give his Son made this Law abstract in the first Sentence so in Justice he hath added this other The words are so plain and certain that they need no Proof but only a laying open of the case that all Men may see into themselves And the desire of my Soul is that by seeing how it is as long as you have not Christ and how it shall be for ever if you will not have him you may be prevailed upon to believe in Christ to close with him and cleave to him for Life Beside what was proved in the former Doctrin from John 3.36 Acts 4.12 Open your Eyes and see open your Ears and hear and conclude with the Text upon full Proof and Evidence both in Jews and Gentiles 1. The Jews had Moses and the Prophets Priviledges Ordinances Types and Shadows and Promises of Christ but if they had not Christ they were lost and undone for they had not Life For God declared and enacted this Law or Rule to be followed in giving Life John 5.24 Verily verily I say unto you he that heareth my Word and believeth on him or him that sent me hath everlasting Life and shall not come into Condemnation but is passed from Death to Life And again John 6.40 And this is the Will of him that sent me that every one who seeeth the Son and believeth on him may have everlasting Life and I will raise him up at the last day vers 36. But I say unto you ye have seen me and believe not How could they then have everlasting Life or escape that Sentence v. 53. Except ye eat the Flesh and drink the Blood of the Son of Man ye have no Life in ye It is not your eating Bread and following me for Loaves that can give you Life but you must by Faith eat of Christ and live 2. All they who believed not are severely threatned with dying in their sins I said therefore unto you that ye that die in your Sins for if ye believe not that I am he ye shall die in your Sins 3. All that were sensible of Sin and Death that were stung in Conscience were to look to him for Cure John 3.14 15. and were invited to come to him Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden c. Mat. 11.28 But they who would not come unto him would not come that they might have Life John 5.40 4. They who put away the Word of God from them judged themselves unworthy of Eternal Life Acts 13.46 and were cut off for their Unbelief Rom. 11.20 23. 2. Thus God determined concerning the Jews Let us pass from them to the Gentiles Could they have Life who had not Christ If Life and Immortality were brought to Light by the Gospel as they were 2 Tim. 1.10 then they were in Darkness before that was brought to Light and their state before the Gospel-light did shine and the Gospel-call did sound in their Ears is every where described to be miserable and doleful as Dead in Sin as Children of Wrath Slaves of the Devil Ephes 2.1 3. Out of the way Rom. 3.10 11 12. And without hope Ephes 2.12 2. After the Gospel was preached it was still certain He that believed not and had not the Son had not Life To open this observe there was and is but one way one streight Gate for all Flesh to enter into Life For observe 1. When the Apostles were to go into all the World and to preach the Gospel to every Creature capable as the Jews called the Gentiles by way of Contempt they were to keep to this Rule He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved he that believeth not shall be damned Mark 16.16 And Paul was sent to the Gentiles to open blind Eyes to turn them from darkness to light that they might receive an Inheritance among them that are sanctified by Faith that is in me Acts 26.18.2 When the Gospel brought forth Fruit this was the Fruit they were translated into the Kingdom of his dear Son Col. 1.13 And as many as were ordained to eternal Life believed Acts 13.48 See 1 Thess 1.9 10. and 1 Cor. 15.11 So we preach vers 3. c. and so ye believed 3. Consider what was the principal Subject-matter of the preaching and writing Was it not Christ and him crucified 1 Cor. 2.2 5. Was it not Christ Jesus the Lord 2 Cor. 4.5 Was it not Faith in Christ the Benefits and Fruits of Faith Yes certainly 1. They shewed the necessity of Faith and the Righteousness of God by Faith Rom. 3.22 28. 2. The great Blessing the Justification of Life by Faith Rom. 3.25 26 30. Chap. 5.1 Being therefore justified by Faith we have Peace with God c. and Salvation which is the Consummation of all Blessedness and Life in Perfection Ephes 2.8 By Grace ye are saved and that through Faith Receiving the End of your Faith the Salvation of your Souls 1 Pet. 1.9 3. They forewarned all of the danger of Unbelief Heb. 3.18 19. c. 4.2 3. See the Heads of Doctrin preached by Paul to the Corinthians 1 Cor. 15.3 4 5. 4. How many Arguments are spent in perswading to Perseverance and how many flaming Threatnings are drawn to deter from everlasting Deaths from the 23d Verse of the 10th to the Hebrews to the end of the 12th Chapter All this serves to convince every considering Person that as Life and Power to save all Men is in Christ and that they who would live must have him so they who have him not shall certainly perish Application I hope I have cleared and laid open the Case of every Man that hath not Christ not to leave any Soul that shall read this in that horrid state of Death but to perswade them to a timely Flight from the Wrath to come upon all that believe not and trust not to God through Jesus Christ alone for Mercy I beseech you receive the Love of the Truth that you may be saved 1. If all who have not Christ have not Life then he convinced of the miserable and necessitous condition of all them who are under
unto a Living Stone disallowed indeed of Men but chosen of God as precious They disallowed the living stone chosen of God and precious upon whom as upon a Corner-stone the Church is built and that was their Unbelief they would not have him but laid him aside and threw him by He was to the Jews a stumbling-block and to the Greeks foolishness but to them that believe Christ the wisdom and power of God The Believer approves what the Unbeliever disalloweth the one admireth what the other despiseth II. To have the Son is to have him highly in our Estimation it is to have him by a new spiritual convincing Evidence in our Minds and to think highly of him to esteem so highly of him as to honour the Son as we honour the Father John 5.23 Mark the place before quoted 1 Pet. 2.4 Certainly saith the Soul God cannot be mistaken in the choice of a Saviour a Rock of Salvation for one to build upon for eternal Life Christ is a Stone perfectly fitted for his Place he is a Living Stone that will put Life into all the Stones the Spiritual Building as the Church is called 1 Cor. 3.9 He is chosen of God and precious therefore the rightly informed and illuminated Soul esteems him highly as a living stone as chosen of God who perfectly knew his Excellency and precious But to you that believe he is precious 1 Pet. 2.7 Life is precious to him that hath been convicted and found himself condemned and lost and the Son that hath Life for him is most precious to him He can't prize him according to his Worth The greatest Honour he can do him is to believe what is testified of him O how base is every thing in comparison of his Saviour They that are called out of Darkness to Light do see the Wisdom and Power of God in him 1 Cor. 2.24 They admire him in all his Characters and Properties They glorifie him as the Son of the highest as the only begotten of the Father full of Grace and Truth as the only Name under Heaven given among men whereby they shall be saved They fall down and worship him they cannot reach him with their highest Thoughts As his Name is wonderful so is he wonderful in his Person Emmanuel God-man the Holy one of God the fairest among ten thousand yea altogether lovely They esteem him for himself for his All-sufficiency for the greatest and hardest of all Works that of a Saviour They esteem him for his Singularity He is One and but one like the Sun in the Firmament one Sun for the whole World so he is one Sun of Righteousness with healing in his Wings for all that are wounded and fear the scorching burning Wrath of the just and holy God They esteem him as a Pearl of great Price all the goodly Pearls sought for by the Merchants will be given for him at any time by every wise understanding Heart They who have him count all things but Dung and Loss that they may win him There is nothing in him but unsearchable Riches They who have him have nothing but gains and winnings by him yea tho they should lose their Lives for him they can't lose them but shall have eternal Life Mat. 16.25 That I may win Christ said Paul O that the World could believe it Believers are made Partners with him in the Benefits of his Sufferings Victories Exaltation and Glory What things are these O think of him as he is that you may have him O labour to be acquainted with him that you may set up a Throne for him in your Hearts as for a Prince and Saviour that you may prize him 1. As he who is all and in all 2. That you may prize him according to your need of him and his fulness and freeness to supply Mean things are valued when we need them But Christ is one of incomprehensible Worth he hath in him the desirableness of all things necessary and of all things that are called incomparable 3. Esteem him as your Souls Alas who esteems them tho not to be exchanged for a World esteem him as your Life yea infinitely better than the longest and happiest Life upon Earth The highest and dearest thing you can reckon of is Life is eternal Life esteem Christ as that Life He gave his Life for it he hath it in his Gift and Power he brought Life to the Dead and Life from Death III. He that hath Christ for Life hath him in his Will and Heart He doth understandingly judiciously and heartily receive him He hath him so as to close with him with a voluntary intire gladsom Consent He hath him with the Approbation of his Mind and Judgment he hath overcome his Doubts and his Cavils if he had any he hath not a Word nor a Thought against him he is fully satisfied with him and therefore doth receive him into his Heart and with it No man hath the Son for Life except the Son hath his Heart that is the House in which Christ will dwell That Christ may dwell in your Hearts by Faith The Heart of Faith is wanting till Faith hath the possession of the Heart Holy Mr. Baxter in that Excellent Treatise Dir. and Perswasions to a sound Conversion p. 283. Ephes 3.17 That is the place of his Rest which he desires to dwell in who dwells not in Temples that are made with Hands Such was his Grace and Love that he came down from Heaven to cast out Devils fleshly and worldly Lusts out of thy Heart to make thee free to recover the possession of thy Heart for himself O give him thy Heart he best deserves it This is the Word of Faith which we Preach If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and believe with thy Heart that God hath raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved For with the Heart man believeth unto Righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto Salvation Rom. 10.8 9 10. He that believeth with his Heart that God raised Christ from the Dead for our Justification Rom. 5.24 is righteous and justified before God He and he alone who believeth with his Heart will have Courage and Boldness in dangerous Times to confess him before men and call upon him and he alone shall be saved and have Life through him Then Lidia had Christ and Salvation when the Lord opened her Heart Acts 16.14 Judas had Christ in his Head and upon his Tongue as a Preacher but he had not the Son for Life because he had him not in his Heart In the Gospel the Son is set forth in his Names and Properties which are admirable commending and inviting all that know him and believe the Testimonies concerning him And not only so but he is propounded and offered by his Embassadors yea he makes gracious Offers standing at the Door If any man hear my voice and open unto me I will come in to him c. The Covenant of Grace is a