and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom, but by the grace of God, we have had our conversation in the world.62 It is declared that, If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature, old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new; and all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ. To be in Christ, is to be united to Him by the faith of the operation of God,63 or to believe what is recorded in the word of God respecting Him and His great salvation. It is to believe that the Son of God was manifested to take away our sins, and to destroy the works of the devil,64 that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; that by His obedience unto death, "He made a full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice, oblation, and satisfaction for the sins of the whole world," whereby He magnified the law, and made it honourable; and therefore in Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, and are reconciled to God by the death of His Son,65 so that being justified by faith we have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ; and are the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. This is the record of the word of God, to the truth of which the spirit of the believer in Christ bears testimony. He has ascertained that such is the record of Divine truth. He relies He relies upon it therefore as the foundation of his hope towards God.

62 2Cor. i. 12; v.17,18. 63Col. ii. 12. 641Johniii. 5,8. 65 Rom.v.10.

He looks up to the God of heaven as his reconciled Father, through the propitiation of His beloved Son; he accounts himself one of the children of God through faith in his Redeemer ; not for any merit of his own, but solely and entirely for Christ's sake. He believes the record of the word of God, and he has joy and peace in believing. His spirit bears testimony that he is a child of God; because the word of God has declared that those who believe in Christ are His children. He cannot but have a consciousness that he believes the record of the word of God on these important subjects.

His belief of the word of God is, however, not merely the result of his understanding being exercised, or his mind being informed by means of searching the holy scriptures; and being convinced in his judgment of the reasonableness of the doctrines contained in them. He believes not merely from the impulse of his own mind, but in consequence of being influenced by the Spirit of God; by whose operation faith is wrought in his heart, so that he receives the word of God with pure affection; his heart is won to embrace the truths of the gospel; he receives the truth in the love of it; his whole soul is engaged in the service of God, and all that he has and is, is given up to Him, to glorify God in his body and in his spirit, which are God's. The Spirit of God applies the word of God to his heart and con

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science, so that the gospel comes not unto him in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance of its truth; and therefore his faith stands not in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. He receives it in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that the word of God worketh effectually in him; and the fruit of the Spirit, which is in all goodness and righteousness and truth, is produced by him, to the praise and glory of God. This is the evidence which is afforded of his partaking of Divine influence. Unless this fruit of the Spirit be produced in the life and conduct, there can be no evidence given of our being the children of God; for where it is not produced, the influence of the Spirit cannot be experienced. But "godly persons," according to the language of the seventeenth Article of our church, "feel in themselves the working of the Spirit of Christ, mortifying the works of the flesh and their earthly members, and drawing up their mind to high and heavenly things:" and by this means the Spirit Himself beareth witness with their spirit, that they are the children of God. By His grace He "fervently kindles their love towards God, and establishes and confirms their faith of eternal salvation to be enjoyed through Christ;" and enables them to abound in every good word and work. Let it be

66 1 Thess. i. 5; ii. 13.

67 1 Cor. ii. 5, 4.

68 Eph. v. 9.

our earnest prayer that the Spirit of God would work in us to will and do that which is pleasing in His sight; that we may be manifestly the children of our Father which is in heaven; not only bearing the name of Christians, but serving the Lord Christ, and living in obedience to the holy will and commandments of our God. The apostle speaks in the text,

Secondly, Of the future blessedness connected with being numbered among the children of God. He says, And if children, then heirs ; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ. The contemplation of the future blessedness of the children of God, led the apostle Peter, at the beginning of his first epistle to the churches of Christ, to exclaim, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which, according to His abundant mercy, hath begotten us again unto a lively hope, by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time. All the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus, all who are born of the Spirit, are begotten to this inheritance. It is reserved for them, and therefore they shall assuredly be put in possession of it. And in order that they may not fail of obtaining it, they are kept by the power of God, which no enemy can effectually oppose. He has promised His people

that, lest any hurt them, He will keep them night and day. For the exercise of this power on their behalf in the time of their need, they are to depend upon Him; they are to make Him their refuge by faith; and then they may be assured that no enemy shall prevail against them; but they shall receive the inheritance which is reserved for them in heaven. They are heirs of God; heirs according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus,70 for this is the promise that He hath promised us, even eternal life." While the believer in Christ is in this world, he is like an heir during his minority; but when he shall have done with all things here below, his minority will come to an end; and he will be put in possession of his heavenly inheritance, which God has promised to give Him for Christ's sake. Of this inheritance the Holy Spirit is to him the earnest or pledge; so that as surely as he is made a partaker of the Divine influences of His grace here on earth, so surely shall he receive the blessing of eternal life, which is the gift of God, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

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In order to show more fully what the blessedness is of which the children of God are heirs, they are said to be joint heirs with Christ. The blessedness which Christ is gone into heaven to partake of in human nature, shall be their por

69 Isa. xxvii. 3. 702 Tim.i.1. 71 1 John ii. 25. 72 Eph. i. 14; ii. 6.