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Show virtue of this our Saviour became in a capacity to merit for us; to fulfil the law for us actively and paflively. In Otort, the wbole I! refs of our Redemption lay upon this, that the Son of God Otould take upon him Qur nature, and be incarnate for us. 2, Hi< Juffering being ttmpted, was a fruit of the Appletree · ;. you have the f!ory of it, Math. 4• r. He "'M /ut by the Spirit i11ta the wildernt[I to be tempted by the Devil. This fruit is likewife ex,. cceding fwect to a believers talle: And there is infinite reafon that it llKmld be fo. The believer hath heard that Chrif! was tempted by the Devil; he fearchcth the Scripture, and Math.~: he finds it true; he fits down and thinks with himfelf, 2 things. r. Will be tempted wh• knew no Sin l W111 th<J Devil fo h.ld, with one in whom he could find nothing? Then furely, Temptatiolt. f are no Arg~tmentJ to prnve a man a child of w,.th. I may be hHjfeted bySat•n too,and yet be a child of God by Adoption,leeing he was tempted who was the natural Son cf God by an dfential and eterna 1 union. Oh ! How f weet is this many times to a.tempted Souls ta!le! 2. Again, the Spoufe confiders further ;. was Chrl/1 tempted?· for what was it ? It wa~ not for Sin in himfi:lf that God fulfered it; for the Prince of thi1 World fortttd-nothing in bim. It was not for his tryal, for God knew what was in his Son, and needed not do it ( as he doth by us) to lll3ke him know himlelf. It muf! be . therefore for us, he mufl needs fulfer , as a public~ Per/on; tf! take out rhejli~tgroflhofe evilr,a'nd·a.s the Apofile fa\th, H<h. 2. 17. 1bat be might JUccour tho[. that are tempte4. Oh how fweet is this· un. to a believers talle! . N9thing fo poweth,his, Soul to the Earth as a violent gull ofTemptation,man¥ a pollr Creature fi.nks under it; but when he can be- pcrfwaded,that nothing- of this nature will conclude him no c,hild of God ; "t:hat Chrifl ~as tbmfore tempttd that bt might beilble to $uc<J,oll•the tcmpt!d: Oh how he chcareth at this news I how fwcet is this. fmit to his fane! Thirdly, Chrif\s Aaive Obcdimce, is another piece of frui~ growing upon this Appletrec. This comprehends all thofepar. ticular acts of Righteoufi1efs by which he perf~ctly fulfilled the l~w of God in thougbt, n:ord and deed. The bciiever hath heard this; th'lt the Son of God was mani,teU..d in humane lleflJ, and that in our fldh, he fulfilled the Ia w of God in thought, word and deed; he was born withotlt fin, there never was unclean !hougllt ·in 'hls heart, never finful wotd p_roceeded out of hi' • mouth, what chrifi, fillit il? mouth~ never ;~y finful act done by him; he c? nfiders with' himfelf, that none of all this was r.eceffary for htmfelf, bemg God-man; or at leaf! that fuppofing (what fome urge) that alltve Obedimc. was a debt due unto God from .the humane nature of Chrill, becaufe that was a cre.rure ; yet thts Obedtence was the Obedience not of a Nature, but of a p~rlo~ that w.asGod.man, and fo there was a meritorious Surplufage tn lm Obedtence. T he be-liever confiders , that the Scripture faith ; Th•t h~ w.lf made fin • Cor. >· " · for uf,that ''"might be m•dt the righmufi~ef' of God m hun:. As. he ,.,111 made Sin for ut, (o we are made the Rif!.hteou{nefi ofGod lltiJim; he was made fin for us by imtmtatton; we ccmmttted the Sm, but God reck!}ned it to bim,and he w.s a_ccounted_the Smner: So we are made the Righttou[nejiO[ Godzn htm ; he dtd t~t acts " htch were Ri bteollf' but God impute! hir a[lr ofRzgbtmt[nef' t~ ur. And now O~!how fweet is this to a believers tafle! theres no~htng.fo trouble~ a believing Soul as the relkdions he hath upon htmfelt; confider-lrrg how often he breaks the Law of God in thoughts, words and actions and he hath many fad thoughts how he1hall Hand before the Rig,bteollf Lord who ldveth RigiJteou[nef'. B~t when he co~- fiders That Jefus Chrif! fulfilled the Law f Jr btm, and that he IS compl~at in <..:hrifl; That he hath done all : And thH all.our act~ are but of Obedimct and GrJtit,.de ; nothmg fo: ~atiSfActton: Oh ! H'"' jweet ii tbi< t• the bclieverr t,jle ~ Henc~ It ts. that God accepts at his hand, the willing mind _con)Oiscd .~nh a Jufl.mdeavour, although both be incumbred w11h many fathngs and Imperfections in act. . Fourthly, His paffive Obetliente is an.otbcr piec_e of the fruit •if th>! Appletru. His bloody death , and b1tter pathon > when a poor Soul comes to be a wakened to confider that it is ordained to aD Erernity either ofhappinels or milery : That the wages of every ' Sin is death: That it came into the world a debtor to the-law and jutlice of God; and if it could have fpent all irs time in· the worlll from the cradle to the tomb, without any Stn, this would no~ have excufed it from divine rvrath: for by one mans Dilobedience, (even Adam! ) it was of old made a Sinner, and it rr>Jt conceivltl i!'· Sili and brougl!t forth in iniq11i!~· When ttfurthcr con~ders,that 1f It Omuld now begin to ->eform tts ltfe, and It were a tlung poffiblei for it, to fpcnd all..th~ remaiAing part of it's life, without one Sin, yet it mntl to Hell; for what \ati>f•ction can it give God, for .alt · the Sin that it huth already 'ornmitted, in. th~time of its ignor•nct~ ·' · and : |
