A80611:83
Christ the fountain of lifeChrist the fountaine of life
Christ the fountain of life: or, Sundry choice sermons on part of the fifth chapter of the first Epistle of St. John. Preached by that learned judicious divine, and faithful minister of Jesus Christ, Mr. John Cotton B.D. now preacher at Boston in New-England. Published according to Order.Christ the fountaine of life: or, Sundry choyce sermons on part of the fift chapter of the first Epistle of St. John. Preached by that learned judicious divine, and faithfull minister of Jesus Christ, Mr. John Cotton B.D. now preacher at Boston in New-England. Published according to Order.
London: printed by Robert Ibbitson, 1651
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
WE now come to speak of the third way of having Christ,1 and that is by way of Covenant, Esa. 49.8. I will give thee for a Covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages, Psal. 50.5. Gather my Saints together unto me, those that have made a Covenant with me by Sacrifice; so that would you know to whom God is a God, and to whom it may be said, He is my God? Any of us that have made a Covenant with God by Sacrifice; no man hath him unless by way of covenant, for all these ways, though divers in explication, yet all co-incident to this having of Christ. And such as have made a covenant with God by Sacrifice, they are his people; of them it is said, I am thy God, vers. 7. according to the tenor of the Covenant, Gen. 17.7. Behold, I make a Covenant with thee this day, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed. God becomes a God to me, and to my seed by way of covenant; so Deut. 29.10. to 13. both your Children of understanding, and your little ones of no understanding, you are all here before God this day, to enter into a Covenant with him, to keep his Commandments for ever; you and yours enter into a Covenant with God, and this is the way of having him for our God, Deut. 26.17.18 This day thou hast avouched the Lord to be thy God, and he hath avouched thee to be his people; Junius translates the word. Thou hast required by way of Covenant, and he hath promised that he will be thy God: ⟨p. 32⟩in the original it is, he hath made thee to speak, thou hast made God to speak this, as men that make promises one to another, so that when people give up themselves to be the Lords, and offer themselves up to him, and when God requires it of us, we yield our selves to him, and desire God to be a God to us, then he is our God, and we are his people by way of Covenant, 2 Cor. 8.5. They gave themselves first to the Lord, and then unto us by the will of God, when we have bestowed our selves upon God, he is not wanting to receive us, to be his people.