"Simon Peter faw it, he fell down at Jefus' feet, faying, Depart from me, for I am a finful man, O Lord."*

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This difpofition is daily manifeft in many who are under the dominion of fear. The worship of God is painful to them, his fervice is a burden, his prefence is terrible : they keep at a distance, therefore, as much as they can or dare. Their peace and compofure is chiefly owing to their lofing themfelves, and occupying their minds entirely with different objects. No fign will more surely discover the nature and influence of flavifh fear than this. There is a gloom and melancholy fpread over every thing in religion to them; when they are engaged in facred duties, it is a heavy tirefome talk, and they rejoice in getting them over, as a bullock when he is loofed from the yoke. On the other hand, real chriftians, though burdened with finful fear, cannot take refuge in any thing else than God; they dare not take their reft in the creature, but fay with Job, "Though he flay me, yet will I trust in him ;" or with the Pfalmift David, "Yet the Lord "will command his loving-kindnefs in the day-time, and "in the night his fong fhall be with me, and my prayer "unto the God of my life." Nothing gives relief to fuch, till they attain to a view of the divine mercy, and a humble hope of peace and reconciliation.

3. Whether have you comfort and fatisfaction in a fenfe of God's favor, as well as a diftreffing fear of his wrath. This alfo will ferve to diftinguish between those who have no other religion than what fear produces, and those in whom it only maintains a conflict with a better principle. There are fome who are reftrained from fin, and compelled to many duties, by fear, who may easily fee what governs them, becaufe they are altogether firangers to joy and fatisfaction in God. This is not, indeed, what they aim at. They have never yet feen his favor as the object of fupreme defire. They only believe fo far as to tremble, and would fain by compofition, fo to speak, and fome degree of compliance, though reluctant and backward, avoid the divine wrath. A coldnefs and conPfal. xlii. 7.

* Luke v. 8. + Jub xiii. 15.

ftraint runs through all their performances, and they are apt to call in queftion the reality of joy in God, and communion with him, because they are altogether strangers to it themselves. But all the real children of God defire a fenfe of his love, as well as grieve or fear under a sense of his difpleasure. The light of his reconciled countenance gives them more joy and gladness than the greateft affluence of corn or of wine; and under the fevereft chaftifement, instead of flying from his prefence, they fay with Job, "O that I knew where I might find him, that I "might come even to his feat; I would order my cause "before him, and fill my mouth with arguments."* Nothing, indeed, can be more proper than calling the one a filial, and the other a flavifh fear: for great is the difference between a child fearing the difpleasure of a parent whom he fincerely loves, and a flave dreading the refentment of an enraged tyrant, whofe fervice he abhors.

SECT. IV.

From this metaphor, EXCEPT A MAN BE BORN AGAIN HE CANNOT SEE THE KINGDOM OF GOD, and other parallel expressions in the holy scriptures, we may learn that the change bere intended is SUPERNATURAL.

WH

HEN I fay it is a fupernatural change, I mean that it is what man cannot by his own power effect without fuperior or divine aid. As we are by nature in a state of enmity and oppofition to God, fo this is what we cannot" of ourselves" remove or overcome. The exercife of our own rational powers, the perfuafion of others, the application of all moral motives of every kind will be ineffectual, without the fpecial operation of the Spirit and grace of God. Thus the apoftle John defcribes those who believe in the name of Chrift: "Which were born not of "blood, nor of the will of the flefh, nor of the will of man, "but of God." And thus the apostle Paul expreffes himfelf: "Not by works of righteoufnefs which we have done, * John i. 13.

* Job xxiii. 3, 4.

"but according to his mercy he faved us, by the washing of "regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghoft."* There is no part of the fcripture doctrine which the natural man hears with greater averfion, or opposes with greater violence. It gives fo humbling a view of our own character and state, and ftands fo directly oppofed to pride and felf-fufficiency, that it cannot be truly acceptable to any, till they are brought to a faving acquaintance with its power and efficacy. However it hath been, this "fool"ishness of preaching," or rather, this commonly esteemed foolish part of preaching, that God hath most remarkably blessed for the falvation of fouls; I will therefore endeavor to fhew, in as plain and fatisfying a manner as I am able, that this is the doctrine of the holy fcripture; and then to vindicate it from the chief objections that are ufually raised against it.

แ

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How many paffages of Scripture are there, that speak in the strongest terms, not only of our miserable but helpless state before converfion. Thus the apoftle to the Ephefians," And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trefpaffes and fins."+ And again, " But God, who is "rich in mercy, for his great love where with he loved us, " even when we were dead in fins, hath quickened us to"gether with Chrift (by grace ye are faved.") In his epistle to the Coloffians, he repeats the fame thing; " And you, being dead in your fins and the uncircumcifion of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all your trefpafles." The reader muft "know, that in many other paflages the fame truth is to be found, couched under the fame or like metaphors; fuch as “blindness, darkness, hardness of heart." The force of the expreflion is feldom fufficiently attended to. Suffer me then to put the question, Do you give credit to the holy scriptures? Do you form your opinions without partiality or prejudice from them? Then you must receive it as truth that man, in his natural ftate, can do nothing of himself to his own recovery, without the concurrence of fuperior aid. If there is any meaning or propriety in fcrip

Titus iii. 5. † Eph. it. 1. Eph. ii. 4, 5. Col. i. 13.

ture language, we muft yield to this. What more could be faid, than that we are "dead" in fin? What more incapable of action, than one who is entirely deprived of life?

But left there fhould be any remaining exception, the thing is afferted in plain and explicit terms, without any metaphor, by the apostle John, from our Saviour's own mouth: "No man can come unto me, except the Father "which hath fent me, draw him; and I will raise him up at the laft day. It is written in the prophets, And they fhall be all taught of God; every man, therefore, "that hath heard and hath learned of the Father, cometh "unto me."* I fhall mention only one paffage more, in which, under the fimilitude of a wretched outcaft infant, the prophet Ezekiel represents the natural ftate of Jerufalem. "And as for thy nativity, in the day thou waft born, thy "navel was not cut, neither waft thou washed in water to fupple thee; thou waft not falted at all, nor fwaddled at "all. None eye pitied thee, to do any of these unto thee, "to have compaffion upon thee; but thou waft caft out in "the open field, to the loathing of thy perfon, in the day "that thou waft born. And when I paffed by thee, and "faw thee polluted in thine own blood, I faid unto thee, "when thou waft in thy blood, Live; yea, I faid unto "thee, when thou waft in thy blood, Live." Here all "the circumstances are collected, that could fignify at once a miferable and weak, wretched and helplefs condition; or that could ferve to make our deliverance at once a fignal inftance both of grace and power.

This leads me to obferve, that the fame truth will receive further light from thefe paffages of fcripture, in which the real agent in this great change is pointed out, and which celebrate the efficacy of his power. As in the text it is afferted, that, "except a man be born again, he can"not enter into the kingdom of God." So in other paffages, "true believers are faid to be "born of God-born from "above-born of the Spirit." The power of God exerted in the renovation of the finner, is defcribed in language taken

* John vi. 44, 45. Ezek. xvi. 4, 5) 6.

from the firft formation of the world.

"For we are his

"workmanship, created in Chrift Jefus unto good works, "which God hath before ordained that we fhould walk in "them."* And, " If any man be in Chrift, he is a new "creature; old things are paft away, behold all things are "become new." See the prophecies ofthe Old Teftament, refpecting the plentiful effufion of the holy Spirit in the times of the gofpel: they contain a clear defcription of divine fupernatural influence. Thus the prophet Ifaiah, "For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and "floods upon the dry ground. I will pour my Spirit up"on thy feed, and my bleffing upon thine offspring; and "they fhall spring up as among the grafs, and as willows by the water-courfes." To the fame purpose the prophet Ezekiel: "Then will I fprinkle clean water upon แ you, and ye fhall be clean from all your filthinefs, and "from all your idols will I cleanse you. A new heart also "will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within; and "I will take away the ftony heart out of your flesh, and I "will give you an heart of flesh; and I will put my spirit "within you, and caufe you to walk in my ftatutes; and દ ye fhall keep my judgments, and do them." Let it not feem tedious to any that I have collected fo many paffages of fcripture on this fubject. It is no light thing; and indeed, it is no common thing to believe it from the heart. But let us now affirm it, on divine teftimony, that regeneration is the work of the Holy Ghost.

I would not build this truth upon any other evidence. When we fland in God's room, bear his message, and fpeak in his name, nothing fhould be affirmed, which cannot be fupported by a "Thus faith the Lord." But having done fo, I think I may warrantably obferve how much the vifible ftate of the world correfponds with the fcripture declarations on this fubject. I hope this will be neither unfuitable nor unprofitable, confidering what an inward averfion men have to receive and apply them. Do we not daily fee many inftances of perfons, of firft

* Eph. ii. 10. VOL. I.

† 2 Cor. v. 17. If. xliv. 3, 4. Ezek. xxxvi. 25, 26, 27.

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