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

2. Christ was sanctified in the Virgins Womb; so must we be sanctified in our selves, following the Commandment of God; Be ye holy as I am holy: Souls regenerate must be sanctified; Every man (saith the Apostle) that hath this hope in him, ¹purifieth himself even as he is pure. I know our hearts are (as it were) Seas of corruptions, yet we must daily cleanse our selves of them by little and little: Christ could not have been a fit Saviour for us, unless first he had been sanctified; neither can we be fit Members unto him, unless we be in some measure purged from our sins, and sanctified by his Spirit. To this purpose is that of the Apostle; I beseech you Brethren, by the Mercies of God, that ye present your Bodies a living Sacrifice, Holy, acceptable unto God. ²In the Old Testament they did after a corporal manner slay and kill Beasts, presenting them, and offering them unto the Lord; but now we are in a spiritual manner to crucify and ⟨p. 162⟩mortify the flesh with the affections and lusts, all our inordinate passions, all our evil affections of anger, love, joy, hatred, are to be crucified; and all that is ours must be given up to God; there must be no love in us but of God; and in reference to God; no Joy in us, but in God, and in reference to God; no fear in us, but of God, and in reference to God; and thus of all other the like passions. O that we would look to Jesus, and be like unto Jesus in this thing! if there be any Honour, any Happiness, any Excellency, it is in this, even in this; we are not fit for any holy duty, or any religious approach unto God without sanctification;³ this is the Will of God (saith the Apostle) even your Sanctification. All the commands of God tend to this; and for the comfort of us Christians, we have under the Gospel, promises of sanctification to be in a larger measure made out unto us:⁴ In that day there shall be upon the Bells of the Horses Holiness unto the Lord;—yea every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be Holiness unto the Lord; every Vessel under Christ and the Gospel, must have written upon it Holiness to the Lord; thus our spiritual services, figured by the Ancient Ceremonial services, are set out by a larger measure of holiness than was in old time: it is a sweet resemblance of Christ to be holy;