Book Description

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1854 edition. Excerpt: ... her, " This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh." And by this condescension of Christ, saith the apostle, we are "members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones," Eph. v. 30; whence he infers that he loves and nourisheth his church, as a man doth his own flesh. And how should this inexpressible love of Christ constrain us to love him and to live unto him, 2 Cor. v. 14; as also to labour to be like unto him, wherein all our blessedness consisteth, seeing for that end he was willing to be like unto us, whence all his troubles and sufferings arose! Here also we see that, -- V. It was only in flesh and blood, the substance and essence of human nature, and not in our personal infirmities, that th# Lord Christ was made like unto lis. He took to himself the nature of all men, and not the person of any man. We have not only human nature in common, but we have every one particular infirmities and weaknesses following that nature, as existing in our sinful persons. Such are the sicknesses and pains of our bodies from inward distempers, and the disorder of the passions of our minds. Of these the Lord Christ did not partake. It was not needful, it was not possible that he should do so; --not needful, because he could provide for their cure without assuming them; not possible, for they can have no place in a nature innocent and holy. And therefore he took our nature, not by an immediate new creation out of nothing, or of the dust of the earth, like Adam; for if so, though he might have been like unto us, yet he would have been no kin to us, and so could not have been our Goel, to whom the right of redemption did belong: nor by natural generation, which would have rendered our nature in him obnoxious to the sin and punishment of Adam: ...