a man is dead without the Lord Jesus, and the graces of his Spirit, Without me you can do nothing, saith our Saviour: but look as it is with the graft which is out of the Stock, it prospereth not, nor bringeth forth fruit, but withereth away; So those that are not engrafted into Christ, which have not the power of Christ to assist them, they are dead in trespasses and sins; but when this grace and Spirit comes, it is a lively grace, and a quickening Spirit; it begets life in the soul of a man. In the 47 of Ezech. vers. 9. the Prophet there discovering the time of the Gospel, and the offer of salvation therein, he saith there, Every thing shall live whithersoever this river cometh: The rivers there are nothing else but the rivers of grace and salvation; when Christ shall come, abundance of grace shall be offered and wrought in the souls of Gods people, and wheresoever this grace cometh, those that be dead shall be quickened. Secondly, they are said to be waters of life, in regard of the continuance of them, for wheresoever this grace is truly wrought, it never ceaseth; so saith our Saviour, Joh. 4.14. Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him, shall never thirst. This water is not like a pit or standing pool, that in the heat of summer is dried up, but it runneth amain continually. So that the frame of the words run thus; Whosoever will, let him come and take living water, living and quickening grace from Jesus Christ freely, whereby a soul may be quickened and saved: here ⟨p. 6⟩is a proclamation, Whoever will, let him come, and take the Lord Christ, and grace and salvation by him freely, he will not repine at the favour he vouchsafes unto us; take more hope, more faith, more sanctification; come, and come freely, and the more oftener ye come, the more welcome shall you be: This is the substance of the words in the text; wherein we have these three points formerly spoken of. First, here we have the freeness of Gods mercy, Whoever will, let him take of the water of life freely: as who should say, shall any man bring money with him and buy grace? no, no, let him take the Spirit freely. Secondly, A man must will Christ, before he can receive Christ and grace from him, and this is the second thing in the text. The third is, That every man that doth truly will Christ and grace, shall have Christ and grace from him.
a man is dead without the Lord Iesus, and the graces of his Spirit, Without me you can doe nothing, saith our Saviour: but looke as it is with the graft which is out of the Stocke, it prospereth not, nor bringeth forth fruite, but withereth away; So those that are not engrafted into Christ, which have not the power of Christ to assist them, they are dead in trespasses and sinnes; but when this grace and Spirit comes, it is a lively grace, and a quickning Spirit; it begets life in the soule of a man. In the 47 of Ezech. vers. 9. the Prophet there discovering the time of the Gospell, and the offer of salvation therein, he saith there, Every thing shall live whithersoever this river commeth: The rivers there are nothing else but the rivers of grace and salvation; when Christ shall come, abundance of grace shall be offered and wrought in the soules of Gods people, and wheresoever this grace commeth, those that be dead shall be quickned. Secondly, they are said to bee waters of life, in regard of the continuance of them, for wheresoever this grace is truly wrought, it never ceaseth; so saith our Saviour, Ioh. 4.14. Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him, shall never thirst. This water is not like a pit or standing poole, that in the heate of summer is dryed up, but it runneth amaine continually. So that the frame of the words runne thus; Whosoever will, let him come and take living water, living and quickning grace from Iesus Christ freely, whereby a soule may be quickned and saved: here ⟨p. 6⟩is a proclamation, Whoever will, let him come, and take the Lord Christ, and grace and salvation by him freely, he will not repine at the favour he vouchsafes unto us; take more hope, more faith, more sanctification; come, and come freely, and the more oftener ye come, the more welcome shal you be: This is the substance of the words in the text; wherein wee have these three points formerly spoken of. First, here wee have the freenesse of Gods mercy, Whoever will, let him take of the water of life freely: as who should say, shall any man bring money with him and buy grace? no, no, let him take the Spirit freely. Secondly, A man must will Christ, before he can receive Christ and grace from him, and this is the second thing in the text. The third is, That every man that doth truly will Christ and grace, shall have Christ and grace from him.
