you of death, which parts husband and wife: yea, separates the soul from the body? Will not death do it? No; the Apostle, Rom. viii. 38, 39, is persuaded that neither death, (as terrible as it is) nor life, (as desirable as it is) nor devils, those evil angels, nor the devil's persecuting agents, though they be principalities or powers on earth; nor evil things present, already lying on us; nor evil things to come on us; nor the height of worldly felicity, nor depth of worldly misery; nor any other creature, good or ill, "shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” As death separated Christ's soul from his body, but could not separate either his soul or body from his divine nature: so, though the saints should be separated from their nearest relations in the world, and from all their earthly enjoyments; yea, though their souls should be separated from their bodies, and their bodies separated in a thousand pieces, their bones scattered, as when one cutteth or cleaveth wood; yet soul and body, and every piece of the body, the smallest dust of it shall remain united to the Lord Christ: for even in death, "they sleep in Jesus," 1 Thess. iv. 14. And, "he keepeth all their bones, Psal. xxxiv. 20. Union with Christ, is the wherein we grace stand firm and stable, as "Mount Zion, which cannot be removed."

LASTLY, It it a mysterious union. The gospel is a doctrine of mysteries. It discovers to us the substantial union of the three persons in one God-head, 1 John v. 7, "These three are one:" The hypostatical union of the divine and human natures, in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ, 1 Tim. iii. 16, "God was manifest in the flesh:" and the mystical union betwixt Christ and believers; "This is a great mystery," also, Eph. v. 32.-0 what mysteries are here! the Head in heaven, the members on earth; yet really united! Christ in the believer, living in him, walking in him; and the believer dwelling in God, putting on the Lord Jesus, eating his flesh, and drinking his blood! this makes the saints a mystery to the world; yea, a mystery to themselves.

SECONDLY, I come now more particularly to speak of this union with, and ingrafting into Jesus Christ. And, (1.) I shall consider the natural stock, which the branches are taken out of. (2.) The supernatural stock, they are ingrafted into. (3.) What branches are cut off the old stock, and put into the new. (4.) How it is done. And, Lastly, The benefits flowing from this union and ingrafting.

Of the Natural and Supernatural Stocks, and the Branches taken out of the Former, and ingrafted into the Latter.

I. Let us take a view of a the stock, which the branches are taken out of. The two Adams, that is, Adam and Christ, are the two stocks: for the Scripture speaks of these two, as if there had never been more men in the world than they, 1 Cor. xv.45. "The first man Adam was made a living soul, the last Adam was made a quickening Spirit," ver. 47. "The first man is of the earth, earthly: the second man is the Lord from heaven.” And the reason is, there never were any, that were not branches of one of these two; all men being either in the one stock, or in the other; for in these two sorts all mankind stand divided, ver. 48. "As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly." The first Adam, then, is the natural stock: on this stock are the branches found growing at first; which are afterwards cut off, and ingrafted into Christ. As for the fallen angels, as they had no relation to the first Adam, so they have none to the second.

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There are four things to be remembered here, (1) That all mankind (the Man Christ excepted) are naturally branches of the first Adam, Rom. v. 12. "By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin: and so death passed upon all men." (2.) The bond which knit us unto the natural stock, was the Covenant of Works. Adam being our natural root, was made the moral root also; bearing all his posterity, as representing them in the Covenant of Works. For, "by one man's disobedience, many were made sinners," Rom. v. 19. Now, there behooved to be a peculiar relation betwixt that one man and the many, as a foundation for imputing his sin to them. This relation did not arise from the mere natural bond betwixt him and us, as of a father to his children; for so we are related to our immediate parents, whose sins are not thereupon imputed to us, as Adam's sin is. It behooved then to arise from a moral bond betwixt Adam and us; the bond of a Covenant, which could be no other than the Covenant of Works, wherein we were united to him as branches to a stock. Hence Jesus Christ, though a son of Adam, Luke iii. 23. 38, was none of these branches; for seeing he came not of Adam, in virtue of the blessing of marriage, which was given before the fall, (Gen. i. 28. "Be fruitful, and multiply," &c.) but in virtue of a special promise made after the fall, (Gen. iii. 15. "The Seed of the Woman shall bruise the serpent's head.") Adam could

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not represent him in a covenant made before his fall. (3.) As it is impossible for a branch to be on two stocks at once; so no man can be, at one and the same time, both in the first and second Adam. (4.) Hence it evidently follows, that all who are not ingrafted in Jesus Christ, are yet branches of the old stock; and so partake of the nature of the same. Now, as to the first Adam, our natural stock, Consider,

FIRST, What a stock he was originally. He was a vine of the Lord's planting, a choice vine, a noble vine, wholly a right seed. There was a consultation of the Trinity, at the planting of this vine, Gen. i. 26, "Let us make man in our own image after our own likeness." There was no rottenness at the heart of it. There was sap and juice enough in it, to have nourished all the branches, to bring forth fruit unto God. My meaning is, Adam was made able perfectly to keep the commandments of God, which would have procured eternal life to himself and to all his posterity: for seeing all die by Adam's disobedience, all should have had life, by his obedience, if he had stood. Consider,

SECONDLY, What that stock now is: Ah! most unlike to what it was, when planted by the Author and Fountain of all Good. A blast from hell, and a bite with the venomous teeth of the old serpent, have made it a degenerate stock, a dead stock, nay, a killing stock.

First, It is a degenerate naughty stock. Therefore the Lord God said to Adam, in that dismal day, "Where art thou?” Gen. iii. 9. In what condition art thou now? How art thou turned into the degenerate plant of a strange vine unto me? Or, where wast thou? Why not in the place of meeting with me? Why so long a coming? What meaneth this fearful change, this hiding of thyself from me? Alas! the stock is degenerate, quite spoiled, become altogether naught and brings forth wild grapes. Converse with the devil is preferred to communion with God. Satan is believed; and God, who is truth itself, disbelieved. He who was the friend of God is now in conspiracy against him. Darkness is come into the room of light; ignorance prevails in the mind, where divine knowledge shone; the will sometime righteous and regular, is now turned rebel against its Lord; and the whole man is in dreadful disorder.

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Before I go further, let me stop and observe, Here is a mirror both for saints and sinners. Sinners stand here and consider, what you are: and saints learn ye, what once ye were. sinners are branches of a degenerate stock. Fruit ye may bear indeed; but now that your vine is the vine of Sodom, your grapes must of course be grapes of gall, Deut. xxxii. 32. The

Scripture speaks of two sorts of fruit, which grow on the branches upon the natural stock; and it is plain enough, they are of the nature of their degenerate stock. (1.) The wild grapes of wickedness, Isa. v. 2. These grow in abundance by influence from hell. See Gal. v. 19, 20, 21. At their gates are all manner of these fruits both new and old. Storms come from heaven to put them back; but still they grow. They are struck at with the sword of the Spirit, the word of God; conscience gives them many a secret blow, yet they thrive. (2) "Fruit to themselves," Hos. x. 1. What else are all the unrenewed man's acts of obedience, his reformation, sober deportment, his prayers, and good works? They are all done, chiefly, for himself, not for the glory of God. These fruits are like the apples of Sodom, fair to look at, but fall to ashes, when handled and tried. Ye think ye have not only the leaves of a profession, but the fruits of a holy practice too; but, if ye be not broken off from the old stock, and ingrafted in Christ Jesus, God accepts not, nor regards your fruits.

Here I must take occasion to tell you, there are five faults will be found in heaven with your best fruits. (1.) Their bitterness: "Your clusters are bitter," Deut. xxxii. 32. There is a spirit of bitterness, wherewith some come before the Lord, in religious duties, living in malice and envy, and which some professors entertain against others, because they out-shine them, by holiness of life, or because they are not of their opinion or way. This, wheresoever it reigns, is a fearful symptom of an unregenerate state. But I do not so much mean this, as that which is common to all the branches of the old stock, namely the leaven of hypocrisy, Luke xii. 1, which sours and embitters every duty they perform. The wisdom that is full of good fruits, is without hypocrisy, James, iii. 17. (2.) Their ill savour. Their works are abominable, for themselves are corrupt, Psal. xiv. 1. They all savour of the old stock, not of the new: it is the peculiar privilege of the saints, that they "are unto God a sweet savour of Christ," 2 Cor. ii. 15. The unregenerate man's fruits savour not of love to Christ, nor of the blood of Christ, nor of the incense of his intercession; and therefore will never be accepted of in heaven. (3.) Their unripeness. Their grape is an unripe grape, Job xv. 33. There is no influence on them from the Sun of Righteoutness, to bring them to perfection. They have the shape of fruit, but no more. The matter of duty is in them, but they want right principles and ends; their works are not wrought in God, John iii. 21. Their prayers drop from their lips, before their hearts be impregnate with the vital sap of the spirit of supplication; their tears fall

from their eyes, ere their hearts be truly softened; their feet turn to new paths, and their way is altered; while yet their nature is not changed. (4.) Their lightness. Being weighed in the balance, they are found wanting, Dan. v. 27. For evidence whereof, you may observe, they do not humble the soul, but lift it up in pride. The good fruits of holiness bear down the branches they grow upon, making them to salute the ground. 1 Cor. xv. 10, "I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me." But the blasted fruits of unrenewed men's performances, hang lightly on branches towering up to heaven, Judges xvii. 13, "Now know I that the Lord will do me good, seeing I have a Levite to my priest." They look indeed so high, that God cannot behold them; "Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not?" Isa, lviii. 3. The more duties they do, and the better they seem to perform them, the less are they humbled, the more they are lifted up. This disposition of the sinner is the exact reverse of what is to be found in the saint. To men, who neither are in Christ, nor are solicitous to be found in him, their duties are like windy bladders, wherewith they think to swim ashore to IMMANUEL'S land: but these must needs break, and they consequently sink; because they take not Christ for the lifter of their head, Psal. iii. 3. Lastly, They are not all manner of pleasant fruits, Cant. vii. 13. Christ is a King that must be served with a variety. Where God makes the heart his garden, he plants it as Solomon did his, with trees of all kind of fruits, Eccles. ii. 5. And accordingly it brings forth the fruit of the Spirit"in all goodness," Eph. v. 6. But the ungodly are not so, their obedience is never universal; there is always some one thing or other excepted. In one word, their fruits are fruits of an ill tree, that cannot be accepted in heaven.

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Secondly, Our natural stock is a dead stock, according to the threatening, Gen. ii. 17, "In the day thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die." Our root now is rottenness, no marvel the blossom go up as dust. The stroke has gone to the heart; the sap is let out, and the tree is withered. The curse of the first covenant, like a hot thunder-bolt from heaven, has lighted on it, and ruined it. It is cursed now as the fig-tree, Matth. xxi. 19, "Let no fruit grow on thee, henceforward for ever. "Now it is good for nothing, but to cumber the ground, and furnish fuel for Tophet.

Let me enlarge a little here also. Every unrenewed man is a branch of a dead stock. When thou seest, O sinner, a dead stock of a tree, exhausted of all its sap, having branches on it in the same condition; look on it as a lively representation of