God, whether read or preached unto him; and receives it not as the word of man, but as it is in truth the word of God, working effectually in them that believe, and inducing them to order their conversation according to all holiness and godliness of living. He is sound, orthodox, and steadfast in the faith, not tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine, but adhering firmly to that which was once delivered to the saints, and has ever since been professed by the Catholic Church. He is sincerely devout and pious towards God, ever solicitous to serve and honour and please him. He is meek and lowly in his own eyes; modest, sober and temperate in all things; true and faithful to his word, just and righteous in his dealings, kind and charitable to the poor, as far as his circumstances will allow. He honours all men, loves the brotherhood, fears God, and submits conscientiously to lawful authority. In short, he endeavours all he can to walk in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless: and if he chance to stumble or fall, he rises again immediately, and walks more circumspectly in future; for which purpose he omits no opportunity of renewing his resolutions at the Lord's table, and drawing from that sacred institution, fresh supplies of grace to strengthen his weakness and reanimate his zeal. This is the life, the new life, which he constantly leads, and therefore he may well be termed a new creature. Having thus briefly explained what it is to be in Christ, and to be a new creature, let us consider, in the next place, how these two ideas are connected together, so as to establish the truth of this proposition. "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature;" and this more especially because it may seem to contradict the yet common observation, that Christians are generally as bad as other men, and the moral state of Christendom, as depraved as that of any heathen nations whatever. For it must be confessed, to our shame and sorrow, that the observation is not more commonly made than it is generally true,-the greater portion of those who are called Christians, deserving as little to be called new and holy creatures, as if the name of Christ had never been heard among them. They embrace and profess the Chris tian religion, much in the same manner as the Turks do that of Mahomet, merely because it is the religion of their country, transmitted to them from their ancestors, and professed by those with whom they daily converse. What wonder, then, that like other men, who take up their religion as an accidental thing, they neither examine its merits nor calculate its advantages, nor feel its power to convert them into new moral creatures. But the fact is, as the Apostle assures us," they are not all Israel, that are of Israel."* "Neither is he a Jew which is one outwardly... but he is a Jew which is one inwardly. . . whose praise is not of men, but of God." And so is it with nominal Christians. He only is a true Christian, who by an inward and lively faith in Christ, partakes of his Spirit, and to this is indebted for his justification and sanctification before God, for being taken out, as it were, of the first Adam, and united by faith to the second. This, as I have shown, is the true meaning of the phrase, to be in Christ, and the person to whom it applies, must be be a new creature. “He is created in Christ Jesus unto good works." The end, therefore, of this new creation, is the performance of good works, which unless he be in Christ, no man can perform. And this leading truth of our religion, Christ himself expressly teaches us. He says, in the first place, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh away. And every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit."§ Here he speaks, we may observe, of the very subject of our discussion, viz. of our being in him. "Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, my Father, (as the husbandman,) taketh it away." By which words, how. * Rom. ix. 6. + Ibid. ii. 28, 29. + Eph. ii. 10. John, xv. 12. ever, we must not understand, that any fruitless branches can be really in him, for such can only appear to be so. This difficulty is cleared up, by our Saviour himself, in another passage very similar to this. "Whoever hath not," says he, "from him shall be taken away, even that he hath."* It may be asked, how can this be? How can a man both have and not have? Or, how can any thing be taken from him who has nothing? But, in another place, the sentiment is expressed in the clearest manner. “Whoever hath not," says he,† "from him shall be taken even that which he seemeth to have." These graces, therefore, were merely apparent,-they existed not in reality,-and, in the same manner, the branches which are said to be in Christ, and yet remain fruitless, are united to him merely by a seeming and nominal union. And that this is the meaning of the passage appears, further, from the following words : “I am the vine," says he, " and ye are the branches. He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit; for without me, ye can do nothing." It is evident, therefore, that as no man can do any thing available to salvation without Christ, so neither can any person abide really in him, without producing much fruit, and, of course, without becoming a new creature. The beloved disciple,§ speaking of Christ, confirms explicitly this important tenet. "Whosoever abideth in him, sinneth not." And the reason is, because "they who are Christ's have crucified the flesh, with the affections and lusts."|| Their “old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed; that henceforth they should not serve sin." Now, if the old man be crucified with Christ, they must become new men in him. If the body of sin be destroyed, the body of grace must be formed in them. If they cease to serve sin, they must serve God, as it is a sin not * Matt. xiii. 12. Gal. v. 24, + Luke, viii. 18. Rom. vi. 6. + Ibid. v. 5. § 1 John, iii. 6. to serve him. If they dwell in him, they must receive of his fulness and be fortified by his power. "I can do all things through Christ, which strengtheneth me,' says St. Paul; and surely he who can do this, must, of course, be a new creature. But to make this still more plain and evident, let us consider, that Christ being the eternal and only begotten Son of God, they who abide in him by a quick and lively faith, must also become in him the sons of God. And, indeed, it is written, "As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe in his name."+ Now, if they be the sons of God, they are born again of God himself; if born again, they are new men; and if born again of God the Creator, they must be new creatures, and lead new lives actuated by his holy Spirit, now become the principle of a new life in them, and enabling them to support the glorious character of new creatures in Christ. Well, therefore, may we conclude, with the Apostle, that "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature." And now, my brethren, from this short explanation of one of the leading doctrines of our religion, among many remarkable things we may observe, first, that no man can be a new creature, except he be in Christ, for the Apostle lays down this as the very foundation of this new moral creation. He does not say, if a man be of the Church of Rome, or of the Church of England, a Lutheran, or a Calvinist, he is therefore a new creature. But, "if a man be in Christ, he is a new creature." Hence it evidently follows, that if without being a new creature, by regeneration and adoption, no man can inherit eternal life, so no person can attain to it without being really in Christ, or, in other words, a true Christian; for it must be evident that no man can receive an inheritance among them who are sanctified by faith in Christ, unless he himself be sanctified also. Let presumptuous men, therefore, extol as much as they please, the light of human reason, and the power of natural religion, they will find at last, that they may as well undertake to create a new physical world, as to make these instrumental to a new moral creation. They may eulogize virtue, and exclaim against vice, and with some plausibility apply the principles of moral philosophy to enforce the one and discountenance the other; but as well may they attempt to produce something out of nothing, as to turn a man from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, by these principles. This can only be done by the Almighty power of God, who never exerts this power, but through Him, by whom in the beginning he made heaven and earth. Wherefore, unless a man be in Christ Jesus, he may rest assured that he is not a new creature. Again, we may observe, from hence, that as he who is not in Christ, is not a new creature; so, on the other hand, he who is not a new creature, is not in Christ. A man, therefore, may make what pretensions he pleases, he may be baptized in his name, he may be a member of his Church,he may confess him to be his Saviour, and profess to honour him as his Lord and Master,-he may discountenance and abhor the enemies of his name, and proclaim them, as they are, the pests of society. He may admire his sayings, and listen attentively to his Word; and yet, after all, unless he becomes a new creature, his faith is fallacious, and he bas no interest in him. He abides not in Christ, and therefore has no reason to expect any thing at his hands. Has not he himself expressly said, "Not every one, that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doth the will of my Father, which is in heaven."* Now this holy will can be accomplished only by those who abide in Christ, and of course they only can |