CIlAr. VI.] IN THE SANCTIFICATION OF BELIEVERS. 519
members. The Romanists, indeed, cast some distvirbance on the former, by interposing another immediate, ruling, governing head, between him and the catholic church; yet do they not deny but that the Lord Christ, in his own person, is the absolute, supreme king, head, and ruler of the church. And the latter the Socinians cannot grant; for denying his divine person, it is impossible to conceive how the human nature, subsisting alone by itself, should be such an immense fountain of grace as from whence there should be an ema- nation of it into all the members of the mystical body. But by all other Christians this hath hitherto been acknowledged ; and, there- fore, there is nothing belongs unto gospel grace or holiness but what is originally derived from the person of Christ, as he is the head of the church. And this is most evidently expressed in the places before alleged; for, 1 Cor. xii. 12, it is plainly affirmed that it is between Christ and the church as it is between the head and the members of the same natural body. Now, not only the whole body hath guidance and direction in the disposal of itself from the head, but every member in particular hath influences of life actually and strength from thence, without which it can neither act, nor move, nor discharge its place or duty in the body. " So also is Christ," saith the apostle. Not only hath the whole mystical body of the church guidance and direction from him, in his laws, rules, doctrine, and precepts, but spiritual life and motion also ; and so hath every mem- ber thereof, — they all receive from him grace for holiness and obe- dience, without which they would be but withered and dead mem- bers in the body. But he hath told us that " because he liveth we shall live also," John xiv. 19: for the Father having given him to have "life in himself," chap. v. 26, whereon "he quickeneth" with spiritual life " whom he will," verse 21, from that fountain of spiri- tual life which is in him supplies of the same life are given unto the church; and, therefore, because he liveth we live also, — that is, a spiritual life here, without which we shall never live eter- nally hereafter. And, Eph. iv. 15, 16, the relation of believers unto Christ being stated exactly to answer the relation and union of the members of the body unto the head, it is exjjressly affirmed that as in the natural body there are supplies of nourishment and natural spirits communicated from the head unto the members, by the sub- serviency of all the parts of the body, designed unto that purpose, to the gi'owth and increase of the whole in every part: so from Christ, the head of the church, which he is in his divine person as God and man, there is a supply of spiritual life, strength, and nourishment, made unto every member of the body, unto its increase, growth, and edification ; for " we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones," chap. v. 30, being made out of him as Eve was out of Adam,
620 THE POSITIVE WORK OF THE SPIRIT [BOOK IV.
yet so continuing in him as to have all our supplies from him ; " we in him, and he in us," as he speaks, John xiv. 20. And, Col. ii. 19, it is expressly affirmed that from him, the head, there is nourishment ministered unto the body, unto its increase with the increase of God. And what this spiritual nourishment, supiDlied unto the souls of be- lievers for their increase and growth from Christ their head, can be, but the emanation from his person and communication with them of that grace which is the princij)le and spring of all holiness and duties of evangelical obedience, none has as yet undertaken to de- clare ; and if any do deny it, they do what lies in them to destroy the life and overthrow the faith of the whole church of God. Yea, upon such a blasphemous imagination, that there could be an inter- cision for one moment of influences of spiritual life and grace from the person of Christ unto the church, the whole must be supposed to die and perish, and that eternally.
(Uhly.) The whole of what we assert is plainly and evidently pro- posed in sundry instructive allusions, which are made use of to this purpose. The principal of them is that both laid down and declared by our Saviour himself: John xv. 1, 4, 5, " I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine ; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, and ye are the branches: he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me" (or, severed from me, apart from me) " ye can do nothing." The natural in-being of the vine and branches in each other is known unto all, with the reason of it; and so is the way whereby the in-being of the branches in the vine is the cause and means of their fruit-bearing. It is no otherwise but by the communication and derivation of that succus, — that is, juice and nourishment, — which alone is the preservative of vegetative life, and the next cause of fruit-bearing. In this juice and nourishment all fruit is virtually, yea, also, as to the first matter and substance of it ; in and by the branch it is only formed into its proper kind and per- fection. Let any thing be done to intercept this communication from tSe vine unto any branch, and it not only immediately loseth all its fruit-bearing power and virtue, but itself also withereth and dieth away. And there is a mutual acting of the vine and branches in this matter. Unto the vine itself it is natural from its own fulness to communicate nourishment unto the branches, — it doth it from the principle of its nature ; and unto the branches it is also natural to draw and derive their nourishment from the vine. " Thus is it," saitli the Lord Christ unto his disciples, " between me and you. ' I am the vine,'" saith he, " 'and ye are the branches.' And there is a mutual in-being between us; I am in you, and ye are in me, by virtue of