Looking unto Jesus a view of the everlasting gospel, or, the souls eying of…

1. That Christ rose again as a common Person, he stood in our stead, and therefore when he rose from death, we and all the Church of Christ rose together with him, and in him. We have formerly observed that Christ took upon him the Person of no man, he took only the nature of man into the union of the second Person, that so he might dye and rise again, not as a Particular but a common Person; that he might be as a representative in our room and stead; that he might be as a Spiritual head, and as the second Adam, who could infuse life into all his members. In this respect the Apostle makes comparison betwixt Adam, and Christ; now Adam, we know, was reckoned before his fall as, a common public Person, not standing singly or alone for himself, but as representing all mankind to come of him; so Jesus Christ is reckoned to us, both before his death, and in his death and after his death, as a common public Person; not living, dying, or rising again, singly, or alone for himself, but as representing all the believers in the world; and hence it is that Adam is called the first man, ¹and Jesus Christ is called the second man; as if there never had been, nor ever should be any more men in the world, save only these two; and why? but because these two between them had all the rest of the Sons of men hanging at their girdles: Adam had all the Sons of men born into this world called earthly men, included in him; and Christ had all his elect, whose names are written in heaven, and therefore called Heavenly men, included in him; so that now whatsoever Christ did, it is reckoned by God as if done by us and for us. When Christ arose, he arose as our head, and as a common Person, and in God's account we arose with him, and in him. As among all the sheaves in the Field, there was some one sheaf, that in the name and room of all the rest was lift up, and waved before the Lord; so when all were dead, Christ as the first-fruits rose again from the dead, and by this act of his resurrection all the Elect from the beginning of the World to the end, are risen with him and in him. He is the first fruits of them that sleep, ²though the Saints are a sleep, yet are they virtually risen already with Christ, because he is their first-fruits. Let this ever be remembered, that Christ rose again as the first-fruits, as the second man, as an head, as a common Person.