Before we can be united to Christ, we must go to him; 1and therefore Faith, which is the Instrument of this Union, is very luckily called, Coming to Christ: But this is not enough, we must receive Christ, Joh. 1.12. that Faith which serves us for Legs to go to Christ, must be an Hand to receive him; when we have received him, we must embrace him in our Arms, as old Simeon did, when he found him in the Temple, which is a little nearer Union, as plainly appears from the example of the Patriarchs, who embraced the Promises: And now we have Christ, we must trust and lean upon him, as we are often commanded; and, if leaning be not enough, we may make a little more bold, and roll on him, as appears from the Original: Gal. Psal. 37. We may discharge our load and cast it upon Christ, and having brought our Souls to Christ, we must commit them to his ⟨p. 119⟩charge, if they perish it will be his fault: Thus St. Paul did, 2 Tim. 1.12. And now we must hide our selves in Christ, as the Dove in the rock, Cant. 2.14. Christ's Wounds are the clefts of the rock, where the believing Soul hides it self: But this is not enough yet, we must put on Christ, Rom. 13.14. that is, his Righteousness, which is a most beautiful Robe to cover our nakedness; if we would get the blessing, we must go to God, as Jacob did, in the Robes of our elder Brother; though this resemblance doth not very well please me: For though Jacob was a good man, yet this looks like a cunning trick, to rob his elder Brother, and cheat his blind Father; and men must not think, that God is thus to be imposed upon; when we are united to Christ, and made one with him, all is ours, as the Apostle tells us. And now what better proof can you desire for all this, if you will be contented with express words? No man would have dreamed of such Interpretations of Scripture, who had not been prepossessed with the mysterious Notion of a fanciful Union to Christ, and Application of Christ to us; for here is no other proof of this, but words and phrases separated from the body of the Text, and the design of the Discourse, and like stragglers picked up and ⟨p. 120⟩listed into the service of their Hypothesis. The whole mystery of this and a great deal more stuff of this nature consists, in wresting Metaphorical expressions to a proper sense:
Before we can be united to Christ, we must go to him; 1and therefore Faith, which is the Instrument of this Ʋnion, is very luckily called, Coming to Christ: But this is not enough, we must receive Christ, Joh. 1.12. that Faith which serves us for Legs to go to Christ, must be an Hand to receive him; when we have received him, we must embrace him in our Arms, as old Simeon did, when he found him in the Temple, which is a little nearer Ʋnion, as plainly appears from the example of the Patriarchs, who embraced the Promises: And now we have Christ, we must trust and lean upon him, as we are often commanded; and, if leaning be not enough, we may make a little more bold, and rowl on him, as appears from the Original: Gal. Psal. 37. We may discharge our load and cast it upon Christ, and having brought our Souls to Christ, we must commit them to his ⟨p. 119⟩charge, if they perish it will be his fault: Thus St. Paul did, 2 Tim. 1.12. And now we must hide our selves in Christ, as the Dove in the rock, Cant. 2.14. Christ's Wounds are the clefts of the rock, where the believing Soul hides it self: But this is not enough yet, we must put on Christ, Rom. 13.14. that is, his Righteousness, which is a most beautiful Robe to cover our nakedness; if we would get the blessing, we must go to God, as Jacob did, in the Robes of our elder Brother; though this resemblance doth not very well please me: For though Jacob was a good man, yet this looks like a cunning trick, to rob his elder Brother, and cheat his blind Father; and men must not think, that God is thus to be imposed upon; when we are united to Christ, and made one with him, all is ours, as the Apostle tells us. And now what better proof can you desire for all this, if you will be contented with express words? No man would have dream'd of such Interpretations of Scripture, who had not been prepossest with the mysterious Notion of a fanciful Ʋnion to Christ, and Application of Christ to us; for here is no other proof of this, but words and phrases separated from the body of the Text, and the design of the Discourse, and like straglers picked up and ⟨p. 120⟩listed into the service of their Hypothesis. The whole mystery of this and a great deal more stuff of this nature consists, in wresting Metaphorical expressions to a proper sence:
- 1Mr. Sherlock.
