I

of the parties to whom the epistle is directed; and they are described two ways: 1st, As to their condition before the world: they were strangers, and strangers scattered abroad; and here are no less than five different countries named, that they were scattered in, Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia; and Bithynia. Never a word of England here, no, there was nothing but darkness in this land at that time: we should reckon it a great comfort and honour, if the name of the land that we were born and live in, was found in the holy scriptures. There is not the name of any country, that hath the gospel in any measure flourishing in it at this day, that is named in all the New Testament. There is Italy named there, and Rome, that is now the seat of the beast; there is Spain named there, that is now the darkest kingdom in all the world that bears the name of Christian Greece and Illyricum are named in the New Testament, and many other places that are now under the dominion of the Turks. Those strangers that the apostle writes to were scattered through the countries here. showed you how they were strangers, and how they were scattered strangers; all believers are strangers whilst they are here, and generally they are scattered through several parts of the world; but there is a day coming, when they shall all be gathered together into one. Thus far I have gone. 2dly, The persons that he writes to, though they are described as strangers in the world, yet they were not so with relation to God: They were strangers scattered; but were they strangers to God too? no, far from it. For they are said here to be "elect according to the fore-knowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, "unto obedience, and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus "Christ." There are several things that I would first take notice of in general from the view of these words, before I enter on any of the three particulars in them. We find in this description, a plain hint of that divine truth, the Trinity of persons in one God: the blessed three are all here named, God the Father, God the Son Jesus Christ, and God the Holy Ghost, the Spirit, with a distinct regard to poor sinners; the Father electing, the Son redeeming, and the Spirit sancti

fying. This is a mystery of faith plainly revealed in the word, but is plainly knowable by no man: for always the nearer that a divine mystery lies to the being of God, the greater depth it is. The will of God about our duty is not without a mystery; his will about the lot of men, according to his own sovereign counsel (of which we shall have occasion to speak), is yet a deeper mystery; but revelations about himself, are yet a great deal deeper than any of them. The word reveals them, There are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one, 1 John v. 7. A place of scripture, that the devil's diligence hath not been small to weaken, and to beat out of the Bible, though in vain. When our Lord was going to heaven, he charged his disciples to baptize men in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; these are three names; but these three names have but one name; the great name of God is ascribed to them all. There has been a great deal of disturbance given to the church of Christ in several ages, on account of the faith of this truth; the wisdom of corrupt men is a very fertile soil in objections and quarrellings, with divine unsearchable truths; the plain course of a Christian is to believe and adore what is plainly revealed, though it cannot be perfectly known.

II. I would note from these words in general, that these three have a distinct part about man's salvation; I say these three, they have each of them a distinct part about man's salvation, and thence they come to be known best to us, as their power is felt and experienced by us: I make no doubt but there were undeniable proofs in the Old Testament of a trinity of persons. Divine power and godhead is ascribed to one, and to another, and to a third; frequently it is so in the Old Testament, but this is plain, that the light about this great doctrine of the Trinity, broke forth more especially when Christ came into the world. The Son of God came from the Father, and the Son as from the Father sends the Spirit. This is Christ's own testimony of himself; I come forth from the Father, John xvi. 26. "You call him "your God; he sent me; and I as his Son, send the "Spirit." The church of God, in the Old Testament times,

had but small light about the doctrine of the Trinity, in comparison of what came into the world with Jesus Christ; and therefore we find this broke forth in his conception, and yet more at his baptism, when the Father from heaven owned him to be his Son, and the Holy Ghost descended like a dove and lighted upon him, Matth. iii. 16, 17. This doctrine of the Trinity appears in the threefold share that they have in man's salvation; election is ascribed to the Father, redemption to the Son, and sanctification to the Holy Ghost. Not only did this doctrine appear more brightly when Christ came into the world, but it appears most of all to people when salvation comes to them. A great many persons think that this doctrine of the Trinity is a vast deep, and so it is, and they think it is not a subject to be preached on, and that there is danger of unsavoury, unwarrantable, and presumptuous thoughts about it; I do acknowledge something of all this to be true, that there is danger in it, and that it should be warily handled; but when is it that poor souls begin to find the doctrine of the Trinity true, and believe it, and know their concern in it, but only when the salvation of Christ is begun to be applied to them? whensoever this salvation is applied to the poor soul, then immediately the believer begins to be concerned about all the Three; then he begins to be concerned about the Father's electing love, and to be concerned about the redeeming grace of the Son, for an interest therein; then he begins to be concerned about the sanctification of the Spirit, and the influences of his grace; there is never a believer in all the world, but his daily exercise lies about all these three. As the "blessed Three in the Godhead have a distinct part in the work of our salvation, so every believer has a distinct exercise about each of these distinct persons.

. III. These distinct parts that the blessed Three have about man's salvation, are always towards the same persons: the same that are elected according to the fore-knowledge of the Father, the same are sanctified by the Spirit, and sprinkled with the blood of Jesus Christ. There is no difference in these things; there is not one man sprinkled by the blood of

Jesus Christ, and another man sanctified by the Spirit, and a third man elected according to the fore-knowledge of God the Father, but all that have either have all; all the elect are jus tified and sanctified.

IV. These distinct parts that the blessed Three have in our salvation, each of them is a divine act, and proves the person that acts it, to be a divine person. This I gather from the running of the words; these three things, election, justification, and sanctification, are distinct acts of distinct Persons in the Godhead, and the very acts prove that they are acts of God. Election is an act of a God of infinite

divine sovereignty (of which I shall speak more by and by). The sprinkling of blood is an act of God (of the God) Jesus Christ the Son; for there is no other person in the Godhead that hath the blood of a man: For he took part of flesh and blood, that in all things he might be made like unto his brethren, Heb. ii. 14, 17. And his blood was the blood of God, because it was the blood of that man, that was personally united to the Son of God. Feed the church of God, saith the apostle, which he hath purchased with his own blood, Acts xx. 28. So sanctification is a divine act, and it is only a divine person that can effect it; for wheresoever omnipotent power is put forth in an act, the agent must be God: for omnipotency belongs to God only. Now the sanctifying a creature that is all over so filthy, so foul, and so defiled, is a work that craves no less than creating power, and creating power belongs to God only. Eph. ii. 5, 10. and 24. Col. iii. 10.

V. The distinct parts that these Three in the Godhead have in our salvation, have their order and their dependence ; they have their order and their dependence one upon another; this is plainly asserted here by the apostle. Election is the spring; sanctification of the Spirit, and the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus, are the streams. The first spring of our salvation lies in the good-will of the Father in election, and this flow down to us through the r.demption of the Son,

and this redemption is applied by the sanctification of the Spirit.

VI. and last, These acts of God thus passing upon men, are their great distinguishing glory and dignity, and therefore doth the apostle name them here: You are indeed strangers, scattered throughout many places of the world; but here is your honour, you are elected according to the fore-knowledge of God the Father, sprinkled by the blood of Jesus, and sanctified by the Spirit; and whosoever are partakers of these three blessed acts of the blessed Three, and yet but One, about their salvation, they are honourably distinguished thereby, let their circumstances be what they will; and therefore, saith the Psalmist, Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee, Psal. lxv. 4. So much in general from the words.

It now follows, to enter a little on the first particular in them: Elect according to the fore-knowledge of God the Father. I am well aware, that this business of election is a great deep of God, and a great many poor creatures have been drowned in this deep, for want of light and knowledge about it, and about the right guiding it. I would therefore speak a few things concerning it, as they lie before us in the word of God.

1st, Election always passes upon persons; it is never spoken of, either in the New Testament or the Old, but as an act of grace falling upon persons: Election, I say, is of persons, and not of qualifications and conditions. There is an Arminian notion drank in by a great many ignorant people, that God hath chosen them to salvation, who he foresees shall believe and persevere in faith and holiness; they will own that all such are chosen, but this is to choose nobody: Election falls on persons, that they may believe, and that they may persevere. Faith and holiness are not the causes but the fruits of election.

2dly, Election not only falls on persons, but it always falls on them with a distinction, with a discrimination and diffrence; election, I say, always makes a difference: If any are elected, then surely all are not elected; if some are elected, then some are surely passed by; the apostle calls