4. The child so born cometh from a place of darkness and confine- ment into a state of light and liberty ; so doth the new creature. The terminus a quo, term from which, is darkness and bondage, figured by the state of the child before his birth ; and the terminus ad quern, term vo which, is a state of liberty, of light, and the knowledge of God in Christ : 2 Cor. iv. 6, ' For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath sliined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.' And they are called into the liberty of God's children, or freedom from the slavery of sin, and subjection to wrath : Kom. viii. 2, * For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.' We are freed from those manacles of corruption wherein we were wrapped before.
5. The new creature brought forth is living, endued with properties, inclinations, and dispositions agreeable to the nature that begat it; so there is in us a principle of a new life that carrieth some measure of resemblance and conformity with the life of God. The effects of every perfect generation are life and likeness. Likeness is not enough to constitute a generation. An exquisite limner may draw a perfect pic- ture of his son, yet this picture is not said to be begotten or born of him, but made by him. The products of art have likeness, but not life. Again, life is not enough ; in equivocal generations there is life, but not likeness ; as frogs and worms and putrid creatures breed out of the slime by the heat of the sun ; these are produced, but not born. Both must be ; as when a man begets a son in his own image and likeness, there is both: so here, when we are born again, there is life and likeness.
[1.] Life. There is another manner of life than we lived before. We live the life of God, from which we were alienated before, Eph. iv. 18, as appeareth by new actions, desires, and delights. So there are other manner of principles and operations than came from life natural. It is now a living unto God : Gal. ii. 20, * The life that I live in the flesh is by the faith of the Son of God.' As life natural is a living to itself, to its own ends and interests, so is this. Take end and principle together, it is a living to God. All the acts of the natural life are overruled to nobler ends : 1 Peter iv. 6, ' That they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the
VeR. 23.] SERMONS UPON 1 PETER I. 23. 303
spirit.' They are quickened by the Spirit to live a life of purity and holiness.
[2.] Likeness : 2 Peter i. 4, ' Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these you might be partakers of the divine nature.' A restitution of the image of God lost at first. And because many duties imply inferiority and subjection, and many neces- sities are introduced by the fall, therefore we are not only conformed to God, but to Christ, or God in our nature : 2 Cor. iii. 18, ' But we all witli open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.' That is the great work of the Spirit by the gospel ; there is a nature put into us, that of all things in the world cometh nearest to the nature of God himself.
6. Upon the new birth there ariseth a visible relation between the child born and his parents ; so, besides change of disposition, there is a change of state, a relative change, and a real change ; from a child of the devil he becometh the son of God through faith : John i. 12, ' To as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.' And from a child of wrath he is made an heir of salvation, accepted for one of God's family, and hath a right to all the privileges depending thereupon.
Secondly, The necessity of this work of regeneration.
1. With respect to grace and glory.
[1.] As to the work of grace, a man is unmeet for God's use till he be purified by this work of God upon his heart. There is something that doth hinder, nothing doth further this work. Something doth hinder: 2 Tim. ii. 21, ' If a man purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified and made meet for the Master's use, and prepared unto every good work.' There is a mass of corruption which remaineth as a clog upon us, which maketh us averse and indis- ])osed for the work of God ; all this must be done away. As a man that would build his house exactly regular and uniform must not patch up the old building, but raze it to the very bottom, that he may lay a new foundation, so doth God take away the old rubbish of cor- ruption, wholly demolish Satan's work, purge the soul from those lusts which inclined it to carnal vanities, before it is meet for his spiritual service. Nothing to further ; and so you cannot serve God till you are born again : Eph. ii. 10, ' You are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works.' Every creature hath faculties suitable to those operations which belong to that creature ; so man must be a new created and formed creature, that he may be prepared, fitted, and made ready for tlie Lord. You cannot expect new operations till there be a new life. Here the business sticketh with man. This should be looked after and desired first, as a peculiar branch of the spiritual life. We expect strengthening grace before we have received renewing grace. This is like little children, that attempt to run before they can go. This is as if a man complained of an aching tooth when a mortal dis- ease hath seized on his vitals, of a cut finger when at the same time he is wounded at heart, of wandering thoughts in prayer when at the same time the heart is habitually averse and estranged from God. They cotnplain of want of quickening grace when they want converting grace;