ment owns; but was conveyed into the World by the Spirit of Antichrift. For God doth not now make any People, or Kindred, or Nation his Church; but gathers his Church out of every People, and Kindred, and Nation; and none can be ftones of this Building, but thofe that are firit Elect, and after made precious, through a new Birth, and the gift of the Spirit. And this Dotrine, the Word will justifie against the World; for Paul writing to the Churches of Ephefits and Corinth, &c. doth he mean all the People that lived at Ephefus or Corinth? No, but the Faithful and Elect, Children by adoption, Saints by calling; and faith, So it was meet for him to judge of them all. And if any were mistaken for a Saint that was none, furely he carried himself very like one; he was outwardly in fheeps cloathing, or he had not been reckoned among the flock; and fo, if a stone be taken into this Building, that is not truly precious, yet it is fo like one, in fhew and colour, that it can hardly be difcerned to be the other, but by a very skilful Lapidary. And indeed, fuch a mistake there may be in Chrift's Kingdom here, that a few counterfeit ftones may be taken up among many precious ones; but that is the mistake of a falfe Church, where a thoufand counterfeit ones are taken in for one truly precious; wherein for one faithful Christian,there are many Formalifts, and many more prophane. This is not fuch a Building the Prophet fpeaks of, for this is all of Elect and Precious ftones. But I cannot enlarge on these things, because this Exercife, I intend chiefly as an Expofition; only I will add one or two things more, touching this particular, and fo go on.

1. If the Church of the New Teftament, is to be built all of precious ftones, what a Building is that, where the only care is, to keep thefe

G4

ftones

The Builder of the Spiritual

God.

ftones out of the Building, left by their glory and luftre, they should darken the rest.

2. Confider, when the Church fhall be built up all of fuch precious ftones, what a glorious Church will that be, when the glory of the Lord fhall fhine forth in every ftone of this Building? How will there be then glory upon glory, till the glory of the Church, firft darken, and then put out all the glory of the World?

3. Confider, what great Enemies they are to the true and native glory of the Church, that would have every man in a Kingdom, a member of the Church, and would have thofe taken into the flock, that are none of Christs sheep; and those taken into the Church of God, that are not of God; and would gather up any ftones, to make up this Temple of God. These are the Men, that would keep off thofe glorious things from being fulfilled in the Church, which are fpoken of it, in the Word.

4. We are to take notice, who is the Builder of fuch a Structure as this, all made up of precious Stones; Church is and you fhall find in the word, that the builder and maker of it, is God. I will do it, faith the Lord; behold, I will lay thy ftones with fair colours, and I will lay thy foundations with Saphires, and I will make thy windows of Aggates. It is all God's Work, from the beginning to the end; for who can build unto God, a living Temple to dwell in, but himself? This the Prophet speaks plainly, where he faith, The man whose name is the branch, he fhall build the Temple of the Lord, even he shall build it. It lies in the power of no man, to make fuch a building as this is: What wild and woful work do men make, when they will undertake to be building the Church, by their own humane Wisdom, and Prudence and Counfel? when they think, we will have the Church of God, thus and thus; and we

will make it up, of fuch and fuch Men, and we will govern it, by fuch and fuch Laws, and we will get the Power of the Magistrate to back ours; and then, what we cannot do by the Power of the Word and Spirit, we will do by the Power of Flesh and Blood: Poor men! that think that these new Heavens, wherein the Lord will dwell, must be the Work of their own Fingers; or that the New Jerufalem muft of neceffity come out of the Affembly, which is to come down from God out of Heaven; or that they can build the House of God, all of precious ftones, whereas this muft be God's own work, and his own doing; and no State or Counsel in the World, can bring this about; and after much Trial, and Pains and Wearinefs, the Lord will at last teach his own, that the gathering, and laying these precious stones together, must be the Lord's own doing, even his own doing.

When the Building of the Church is left to men, how wofully is it managed? why faith one, we must needs admit fuch an one, he is the chief Man in the Parish, or he is a Man of good Esteem in the world, or he is a Noble Man, or he is my near Kinsman, or is thus and thus related to me, or he is a good civil fair dealing man, and we must needs admit him; and thus will Flesh and Blood be ever making a Carnal Temple for God to dwell in; but God's true Habitation can never be framed but by the Spirit.

And therefore, for the building of the Church, let us look higher than the highest Inftruments; for it must be the Lord's own work, by the Word and Spirit: And though every man be against it, and oppofe it, yet the Lord will do it; when there are no hands to build it up, he will build it up without hands. I will lay thy ftones with, &c. It follows.

Ver. 13. And thy Children shall be taught of the Lord, and great shall be the peace of thy Children.

The Teach See here, how the Prophet by the Spirit, carer of the ries up the Saints above all visible and fenfible Spiritual things, even as high as God himself; God (faith Church is he to the Church) fhall build thee, and God fhall

God.

teach thee; all thy children shall be taught of the Lord, The Note is this, That all the true and genuine children of the Church, have God's own teaching, in all the things of God; they have the Father and the Son to teach them by the Spirit. This Truth, Christ himfelf confirms, where he faith, It is written, that they fhall be all taught of God; he therefore that heard and learned of my Father, cometh to me. And again, The Spirit when he is come, he shall lead you into all truth: Which Doctrine John after preached thus, 1 Joh. 2. 27. The anointing, which ye have received of him, abideth in you; and ye need not that any man fhould teach you, but as the fame anointing teacheth you all things..

Hereby now we perceive, how few true Children of the Church there be, among those who are commonly called Chriftians; for among all thefe, how few are there who have the teaching of God? but most have their teaching only from men, and no higher.

Confider therefore I pray, whether the Knowledge you have, be from the teaching of God, or the teaching of Man; you all pretend to know, that Chrift is the Son of the living God, and that Redemption and Salvation is by him alone; buɛ how came he by this knowledge? did you read it in the letter? or did fome body tell you fo? or hath God himself taught you this? For no man knows the Son but the Father, and he to whom the Father will reveal him; and therefore when Peter faid, thou art Chrift the Son of the living God, Chrift aufwered, flesh and blood hath not taught thee this,

but

but my Father which is in heaven. And fo, though all of you profefs your felves Chriftians, yet none of you know Chrift truly, but only fuch as are taught of the Father. And this holds in all other points, as touching Calling, and Faith, and Union, and Juftification, and Sanctification, and the Gift and Sealing of the Spirit, touching the Spiritual Kingdom of Chrift, and the Government of it; oh confider, whether you have the teaching of God in these things or no; and if you have not the teaching of God, you are none of the Children of the Church; whatever Truth thou knoweft from the letter, if thou haft not the teaching of the Spirit, it will do thee no good; thou knoweft not any thing Spiritually and Savingly, wherein thou haft not the teaching of God. All thy Children fhall be taught of the Lord.

And therefore, what a fad thing is it, when Men look for their teaching no farther than men? they only look to the Minister, or to fuch an able learned, Orthodox Man, as they phrafe it; or at the highest, to the Affembly; and what they fhall teach them, they are refolved to ftand by it, and build upon it, for their Foundation; in the mean time, never regarding in truth, the teaching of God: But fay, what can fo many grave, learned, godly men err? and fhall not we believe what they determine? why now thefe are none of the Children of the Spiritual Church; for they neither have Gods teaching, nor care for it; but the Spiritual Church is all taught of God.

Objection. But you will fay, doth God teach, without means?

Answer. I Anfwer, no; God teacheth, but it is by the Word, and that chiefly in the Miniftry of it; and he that pretends to be taught of God without the Word, is not taught of God. And therefore no Man is to defpife

the