For first, it cost God onely a word when he made that; Let there be light, and there was light; but ere this mercy could be purchased for any, Christ was to become man and dye for us; so that God doth not onely speak, but in his man-hood suffer; for you must know, as justification and pardon of sinne is a fruit of Christs bloud, so is also this new Creation, and new making of us.

Again the excellency and glory of the heaven and earth is only in a naturall way, this in a morall way, They declare the glory of God, as passive objects, These as active agents, and understanding instruments. If therefore the Ancient looking upon the heavens, said, If these be thus beautifull, how beautifull is God the Maker of them? so may we much rather, beholding the grace and holinesse of this new Creature, cry out and say, He that makes man thus holy, how holy is he? If this new Creature be so admirable, how wonderfull is the Creator of it? Hence also it is, that the godly are said, to shine as lights, Philip. 2. 15 in dark places, that so others beholding them, may glorifie God in the day of their visitation. If the world be thought a Book sufficient to convince men of God, and that they shall be inexcusable, because they did not glorifie God as according to this knowledge; how much rather, that so many godly men as have lived with you, wil be a condemnation to you, if ye have not followed their examples? you shal not only give an account of that good gotten by the Sermons we preach; but of the godly life of those new Creatures who have dwelt amongst you; not onely our Sermons, but their conversations should have turned you unto God.

7. This work of grace must be wholly of God, Because even in Christs humane⁸ nature, where there was a fulnesse of it, yet it was the gift of God. The humane Nature of Christ, though infinitely advanced by reason of the hypostaticall union, yet being not God, but a Creature, could not furnish or anoint it self with those rich graces he was adorned with; Therefore the Scripture saith, God giveth not the Spirit in measure to him, John 3. 34. It was given him, though it was not in measure; now then if this new Creature of grace was wrought by God in Christs humane nature, how much rather must it be wrought in us, who are altogether polluted, when his humane nature was like the sunne, wholly spotlesse? This is a clear and an undenyable demonstration, that God is sole Author of this grace; That as the Sun is like an universall principle in regard of light, and every thing is enlightned by that, so is God the universal Fountain of all that holinesse which is communicated unto the godly.

8. This must needs be Gods Creation onely, Because he hath so absolutely promised⁹ to accomplish it for us. All those expressions, I will give a new heart, and write my law within thee, Jer. 31. 33. And I will take away the heart of stone, Ezek. 36. necessarily inferre that it is Gods peculiar prerogative; for if this could not be till man had consented, and there could not be any application of grace till we had given way; Then all those promises of God must be onely conditionall, expecting till man will yield also; and thus it would not be Predestination but Postdestination; and mans will should not follow Gods, but Gods will lackey it after mans. But this cannot be thought, that God is not sui juris in his promise, and that he is not able to make good by his hand, whatsoever is gone out of his mouth. Oh therefore, when thou findest thy heart so greatly assaulted by sinne, and thou complainest thy lusts and corruptions are too strong for thee, remember they are not too strong for God.

9. If this were not Gods Creature meerly, Then the greatest glory in a mans conversion¹⁰ and salvation would belong to himself. Certainly, if a man cannot arrogate this to himself, that he made himself a Man rather than a Toad, much lesse can he glory in any such strength, whereby he should difference himself from other men wallowing in sinne. This differencing work of God, Christ himself resolveth into his Fathers will; Even so Father, for so it pleaseth thee, Matth. 11. And Paul also into the like cause, What hast thou that thou hast not received? and Who makes thee to differ from another? 1 Cor. 4. 7. Certainly, it’s the greatest Idolatry which God can be jealous of, to give the glory of thy new nature unto any other but himself; Thou dost not indeed fall down to a stock and a stone to worship that, but thou dost inwardly put confidence, and rely upon thy own power and abilities, to procure thy own salvation, and inward peace.

By these Arguments it may appear, that whensoever you see a man, of an old servant to sin and Satan, made the Son of God and a new Creature; you may say, Verily God was there, these devils and lusts have been cast out onely by the finger of God.

Now in making his Children new Creatures, he demonstrates severall properties¹¹ of his in their great lustre and glory: As

First, His great goodnesse and pitty to us: How often is this called his grace, and the riches of his grace. It was Gods goodnesse to make a world, but this is the riches of his goodnesse not to throw us away, as refuse, fit fuell onely of everlasting flames; It might have been with all man-kind as it was with the Devills; in their Deluge God did not provide an Ark to save so much as eight persons, not one Angel had he compassion on. This grace of God is so deeply apprehended by the partakers thereof, that they rejoyce in it, speak of it all the day long, plead for it, and that they live, or have any outward comforts is nothing to this wonderful mercy of God to them.

Secondly, He declares his Power; That you have heard sufficiently of, it being a¹² Creation, it being the same power that made the World, that raiseth the dead out of the grave; and although we do not use to call it a Miracle, yet it is Mirandum, a wonderfull thing; and indeed it being to the hearts of men, changing them, and new framing them, it must argue an omnipotent power; how often do we speak to the ear, intreat and invite, but it is God onely that can turn the heart; yea, how many resolutions and desires are sometimes excited in many men, but they vanish away like a land-floud? How often have they purposed to leave their sins, to set upon other duties, but sinne is too strong for them. Oh that power of God, which keeps the Sea from over-whelming the banks, that power of God, which hangs the earth upon nothing: This must be seen to turn the streams of our corruption backward. Draw me, cryeth the Church, and I will run after thee, Cant. 1. 4. No man comes unto me, unlesse my Father draw him, John 6. 44.

Thirdly, His Wisedome, That is admirable from many considerations; for if you¹³ do respect the persons whom he doth commonly make these new Creatures, they are for their outward condition, mean and contemptible in the world, Not manywise, not many noble, &c. 1 Cor. 1. 27. though some of these he chuseth, nor doth he approve according to outward appearance: As his wisedome is remarkable herein, so for their quality; He takes the worst weeds, and makes them the sweetest flowers, the most crooked pieces in the timber and makes them a glorious building; thus Paul, Zacheus Publicans and Harlots; his wisdome is wonderfull herein, that so all may be of his grace. Then these are but few in comparison of those rejected; Many are called, but few are chosen. Hereby his love to those who partake of it is made more glorious: And lastly, Gods wisedome is seen in the time of making them new Creatures, wherein so many concurrences of strange love meet together, that it ravisheth, and over-whelms them for ever.

Fourthly, His holinesse is admirable herein. If a clod of earth, or piece of muck,¹⁴ should be made a glorious Star in the heavens, it is not more wonderfull then for a man become like a beast in his affections and actions to be made like an Angel, doing the will of God. We see when God made man with other Creatures at first, what a signall difference there was in his processe about the making of one above the other: Let us make man after our own Image, Gen. 1. 26. And here again God doth renew, and remake us after his Image: Once God said by way of scorn, Man is become like one of us; but now in grace and holiness, he saith, Man is become like God. If we admire the skill of Artificers, who of rags and other base materials can blow up such a curious piece of clear and splendent glasse; how glorious is God, who makes thy earthy and sordid heart, heavenly, and pure, who makes thy swi[…]sh desires, Angelical. The Philosophers called the matter of the heavens Quintestentiall, and this soul is above a sinfull constitution.

Use Of Exhortation: If thou hast found any good grounds, that God hath made¹⁵ thee such a glorious new Creature, let thy heart and mouth be filled with praises. All the power in heaven and earth, but Gods onely, could not make them such. Oh but this new Creature is a rare Creature; like new and strange sights brought from remote parts of the world: For if we be new Creatures, how is it that the old man is so prevalent in thee? how is it that thy old lusts, thy old conversation is not quite abandoned? Thou wouldst easily call it blasphemy to say, God makes thee lye, makes thee swear, are such sins of his Creation? O then wallow in the dust for shame and sorrow, as thou hast heretofore wallowed in lusts and pleasures; let the glory, beauty and lovelinesse of this new estate much move thee: This is a commendable new fashion, when thy principles are new, thy aimes and ends are new, thy life and manners are new; How can men with-hold from panting and longing after it!

Footnotes

1. Observ. It is the alone power of God that produceth the New-creature. ↩

2. Arguments. 1. God onely can create. Requisite to Creation, I. Infinite power. ↩

3. II. The Creature is made of nothing. ↩

4. III. Creation is in an instant. ↩

5. IV. The operations of the new Creature are so excellent, that it must needs be of God only. ↩

6. V. We are the old Serpents, old Creatures, till thus new created. ↩

7. VI. It is a greater work than the Creation of the World. ↩

8. VII. The graces in Christs humane nature were the gift of God. ↩

9. VIII. God hath absolutely promised it. ↩

10. IX. Otherwise the glory of the work would belong to a mans self. ↩

11. God discovers many of his glorious Attributes in forming the new Creature. 1. Goodnesse. ↩

12. 2. Power.
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13. 3. Wisedome.
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14. 4. Holinesse.
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15. Use. Exhortation. Blesse God for the new Creation if found in our hearts. ↩