in general; it spreads over the whole earth, and embraces the whole race of man. But as the righteous are the more excellent ones of the earth, it terminates upon them in a peculiar degree: and the reafon is obvious; they are, in a peculiar fenfe, the faints brethren, the children of the fame heavenly Father; and they bear a resemblance to him and if he loves the Original, he must also love the Copy. Thus, fays St. John, Every one that loveth him that begat, loveth him alfo that is begotten of him. 1 John v. 1. Another character of regeneration the fame apoftle gives you, I John v. 4, 5. and that is, victory over the world by faith. Every one that is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. That is, Whatever temptations may arise from the riches, honours, or pleasures of the world, or from the fociety of mankind, the man that is born of God has fuch believing views of eternal things, as constrains him to conflict with them, and overcome them. He has not fuch a mean, daftardly foul, as to yield to oppofition. He is enabled, by divine grace, to brave dangers, and encounter difficulties in fo good a caufe: he dares to be wife and happy, though all the world should turn against him. O what a change is this from his former temper! Another diftinguishing characteristic of the new birth, is, univerfal holiness of practice, or a confcientious obfervance of every known duty, and an honeft, zealous refiftance of every known fin. There is no known duty, however unfashionable, difagreeable, or dangerous, but what the true convert honeftly endeavours to perform; and there is no known fin, however cuftomary, pleasing, or gainful, but what he honeftly refifts, and from which he labours to abftain. This neceffarily follows from what has been faid; for when the principles of action are changed within, the course of action will be changed too. When the heart is made holy, it will infallibly produce habitual holinefs of practice. A good tree must bring forth good good fruit. This St. John afferts in the strongest manner, and in various forms. We know, fays he, that every one that doth righteoufnefs; that is, that habitually practiseth righteousness, is born of God, 1 John ii. 29. We know that whofoever is born of God finneth not; that is, he finneth not habitually, fo as he may be denominated a finner by way of distinction; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself; that is, keepeth himfelf from the infection of fin; and that wicked one toucheth him not. 1 John v. 18. Little children, fays he, let no man deceive you: he that doth righteoufness is righteous -But he that committeth fin is of the devil. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit fin; i. e. as I explained it before, he does not habitually fin in the general tenor of his practice, fo as to make fin his distinguishing character; for his feed remaineth in him; that is, the principles of grace, implanted in him in regeneration, are immortal, and will never fuffer him to give himself up to fin, as formerly; and he cannot fin because he is born of God: his being born of God happily difables him for ever from abandoning himself to fin again.— In this the children of God are manifeft; and the children of the devil; that is, this is the grand diftinguishing characteristic exifting between them, Whosoever doth not righteousness, is not of God. 1 John iii. 7-10. You fee then a holy practice is one of the most certain figns of regeneration; and, therefore, in vain do fuch pretend to it, or boast of high attainments in inward experimental religion, who are not holy in all manner of converfation, and do not live righteously, foberly, and godly in the world. By this time, I hope, my brethren, you understand what it is to be born again. And now, upon a review of the fubject, there are feveral things of importance, which I would fubmit to your 'confideration. First, I leave you now to confider, whether baptifm be the fame thing with regeneration, or the new birth, in the fcripture fenfe. I grant that baptism is a facramental fign of regeneration, just as the Lord's Supper is a facramental fign of the body and blood of Chrift; and, therefore, baptifm may be called regeneration, by the fame figure which Chrift ufes when he fays of the bread, This is my body. In this metonymical fenfe, this method of speaking has been used by many great and good men ; and when they call baptifm regeneration, they only mean, that it is an outward fign of it, juft as the facramental bread, for the fame reafon, is called the body of Chrift. Were it always used in this fenfe, it would hardly be worth while to take notice of it as an impropriety; though, I must confefs, I cannot find the fame form of fpeech indifputably used concerning baptifm in the Bible. But when men are taught that the whole of that regeneration, or new birth, which the scripture requires as abfolutely neceffary to falvation, means no more than just being baptized; and when they that have been baptized, begin to think that they have no more to do with the new birth, the error is too dangerous to be paffed over in filence. I fhall juft lead you into a track of thought, by which you may eafily make yourselves judges in this controverfy. If baptifm be regeneration in the fcripture fenfe, then, whatever the fcripture fays concerning perfons regenerated, born again, or created anew, will alfo hold true concerning perfons baptized. This is fo plain a principle, that it is hard to make it plainer; for if baptifm be the fame with regeneration, the new birth, or the new creation, then the fame things may be faid of it. Proceeding upon this obvious principle, let us make the trial in a few inftances. It may be truly faid of him that is born of God, in the fcripture fenfe, that he does not habitually fin, &c. Now fubftitute baptized, instead of born of God, and confider how it will read, "Every one that is baptized finneth not; but he that is baptized keepeth himself and the evil one toucheth him not." Has this the appearance of truth? Do not all of you know fo much of the conduct of many who have been baptized, as to fee this is most notoriously false? for where can we find more audacious finners upon earth, than many who have been baptized! Let us make another trial. Whofoever is born of God, in the fcripture fenfe, overcometh the world. But will it hold true, that whofoever is baptized, overcometh the world? If any man be in Chrift, in the fcripture fenfe, he is a new creature; old things are past away, and all things are become new. But how will it found if you read, If any man be baptized, he is a new creature; old things are paft away, and all things are become new? Does baptifm univerfally make fuch a change in the fubject, as that it may, with any tolerable propriety, be called a new creation?-I might eafily make the fame experiment with many other paffages of fcripture; but these may fuffice as a specimen. And now, muft it not be as evident as any mathematical demonftration, that regeneration, or the new birth, in the fcripture-fenfe, is fomething else, fomething more divine, more intrinsical, more transformative of the whole man, than baptifm? That man muft labour to be deceived, who can work up himself to believe, after fuch a reprefentation of the cafe, that if he has been baptized, he has all that regeneration which is neceffary to his admiffion into the kingdom of heaven. I know no abfurdity parallel to it, except the doctrine of tranfubftantiation, the characteristical abfurdity of the church of Rome. Because Chrift, in the diftribution of the elements in the Eucharift, faid of the bread, This is my body, putting the fign for the thing fignified, therefore Papifts conclude, the bread is fubftantially the very fame with the body of Chrift fignified by it, though it still retains all the fenfible properties of bread. Some Proteftants have fallen into the fame error as to the other facrament of baptifm, and that with lefs plaufibility. I can find no fcripture that fays of baptism, "This is regeneration:" and yet, they infift upon it, that it is the very thing; and make the fign and the thing fignified one and the fame. Let me borrow a very plain and popular, and yet fubftantial argument from Limborch. "The great defign defign of Chrift's coming into the world was to renew and regenerate men: this is a work worthy of his own immediate hand." And yet we are told Jefus baptized not, but his difciples, John iv. 2. "A plain evidence that he made a diftinction between baptism and regeneration. St. Paul, writing to the Corinthians, fays, I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crifpus and Gaius. I Cor. i. 14. "But if baptifm be regeneration, his meaning muft be, I thank God that I regenerated none of you.-But is this caufe of thanksgiving? Could he give thanks to God that he had not regenerated any of them? Chrift, fays he, fent me not to baptize :-" but can we think Chrift did not fend the chief of the apoftles to promote the great work of regeneration? He, elsewhere, calls himself their fpiritual father," for, fays he, in Chrift Jefus I have begotten you through the gospel. 1 Cor. iv. 15. "But if baptifm be the new birth, he could not have been their father, or begotten them, unless he had baptized them. From which it is evident, that St. Paul made a great difference between baptifm and regeneration." Therefore, let no man deceive you with vain words. Baptifm is an ordinance of Jefus Chrift, which you fhould think highly of; but do not put it out of its place, by fubftituting it for quite another thing. Believe it, this is not that kind of regeneration which you must be the subjects of, if you would enter into the kingdom of God. Another thing which I would now leave to your confideration, is, Whether regeneration, or the new birth, in the fense I have explained it, be not a rational, noble thing? And whether fo great a change in a man's temper and conduct may not emphatically be called a new birth? When a man is born again, the ruins of his nature are repaired, and every noble and divine grace and virtue are implanted in his heart. His heart is made capable of generous fenfations; his understanding has fuitable views of the most interesting and fublime objects; and his temper and behaviour are |