MR. EDITOR, FOR THE CHURCHMAN'S MAGAZINE. I send you a manuscript Sermon, which was well received when delivered. ST. JOHN, iii. 9. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin, for his seed remaineth in him; and he cannot sin because he is born of God. THE design of this epistle of St. John, seems evidently to have been to baffle the errors of some false disciples who boasted of being born of God; and, as it seems, grounded their confidence of salvation on what was past instead of what was present. In no part is his drift more apparent than in the words of the text. In this he evidently teaches, that to be born of God is to cease from sin. This cessation from sin is effected by the spirit of God. This is the seed which remaineth in him who is thus born. Every one who is thoroughly acquainted with the christian religion, knows that its intent is to purify the heart and perfect the human character. Every one acquainted with the human character, knows that in its own nature it is very imperfect; and with the highest attainments, the present state will admit of, subject to many errors, and attended with many blemishes. Thus unsullied purity can be attained only through Jesus Christ. Independent of him, there can be no reconciliation with God, who is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity. If you will keep in mind what has now been said, and strictly attend to what I am going to say, it will let you into the meaning of this text, and it will strike you with that conviction which will be perfectly satisfactory. The apostle tells us, that whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin, for his seed remaineth in him; and he cannot sin because he is born of God. As our purity from sin depends upon our relation to Jesus Christ, we find that he has appointed a plain and easy method of forming this relation. Let others teach as they will, St. Paul tells us that as many of us as have been baptized into Jesus Christ have put on Christ. At this putting on of Christ, the seed of God is planted in us: we are adopted into God's family, and all the necessary graces for continuing in it are indulged us. This is clearly the case. If you doubt it, figure to yourself a man who adopts children into his family and then suffers them to perish for want of attention, and see if you are willing to apply it to him whose tender mercies are over all his works. Thus the christian life commences at baptism; a seed is then planted for its growth. In some this sced flourishes, in others it does not. A continuation of this seed St. John mentions as the preservation against sin, and the preservation of it depends on the culture of him in whom it is planted. He in whom this seed is preserved, is truly born of God, and therefore cannot sin. Here recollect, that righteousness, obedience to God's commandments is the proper growth of this seed: it is the sum of christianity when founded upon gospel motives. He who undertakes the christian life, knows this to be the case; he knows that he is to obey God's commandments. While he is fixed in this persuasion, and practices accordingly, the seed of christianity remaineth in him. While he continues under this impression, to obey appears for his interest; from his love to God, it is his pleasure. He cannot, therefore, whilst thus situated, knowingly and wilfully disobey him; his seed remaineth in him; he cherishes and continues those impulses to goodness which he feels, and suppresses every thing to the contrary. It is the most earnest desire, it is the fixed principle of his heart to obey God in all things. For assistance to do this, he most earnestly solicits the throne of grace; and with the most hearty contrition, confesses and laments his failings. This disposition of mind is without doubt, what the apostle means, when he says, that he who is born of God doth not commit sin. He cannot mean that he does in no sense sin; because he says in another place, that if we say we have no sin we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. Without doubt if this text was in the Prayer Book and no where else, it would be as much objected to as are the demands in our baptismal office, for they are evidently constructed upon the same principle. He who says who can fulfil them, may as well say, who can be a christian? if what St. John says is true, that whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin. Is it not now plain to you, that by following the dictates of conscience, and living in obedience to God's commandments, is what St. John means by being born of God. But you wish to know how this explanation of these words agrees with many other passages of scripture, when you are taught that you must be born again, that you must be regenerated and become new creatures. I likewise wish that you should know it, for it would be the best preservation against imposition upon the subject of religion, that you could possibly possess. You would never then leave the substance of christianity and grasp at phantoms; shadows would not divert you from that holy faith which is intended to make you fruitful in every good work, and induce you to live soberly, righteously and godly in this present world. Now let me seriously ask you whether you can conceive of a greater change in the human mind than to have it brought to act in opposition to all its evil cravings and desires; brought into subjection to the will of God, and acting in conformity to that, in spite of the inclinations of the flesh. Is not this change sufficient? can you think of any other that would do any good? Do any of your acquaintance who profess more perfectly exhibit so much? More, I am confident they cannot do. Let this then be the criterion to judge both yourselves and them. Whoever professes to give you any other mark of being born of God may deceive you. Infallible truth cannot mislead us. By that we are informed, that whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; that he that duth righteousness is righteous; and that this is the love of God that we keep his commandments. It is my most earnest wish that you should be informed of the true meaning of the offices of the church, that you may see their connection and agreement with the holy scriptures. What I have now said has been to lead you on to this, to show you how perfectly St. John and the church agree. Here I shall, if you will attend to it, clear up all your doubts with regard to St. John's differing with the other parts of the New Testament respecting being born of God. You will recollect that the first intimation we have in the gospel of the necessity of a new birth, was taught by our Savior to Nicodemus. He told him he must be born of water and the spirit. This you will find that the church considers as spoken of his baptism, by using it previous to its celebration.; and on the authority of which she exhorts her members to call upon God the Father through our Lord Jesus Christ, that the child or person about to receive this holy sacrament may be baptized with water and the Holy Ghost, and received into Christ's holy church and be made a living member of the same. But you are ready to wonder how St. John could be right when he teaches that to be born of God is to be without sin, if the birth spoken of by our Savior was the admission into his church by baptism. I will explain this to you, and show you how perfectly our Savior, St. John and the church all agree. You will recollect that the qualifications which Christ requires in order for the reception of his baptism, are sincere repentance and faith; a sorrow for past sins, with a resolution to forsake them; and a belief that Jesus Christ is the Son of God; that all he hath taught is true, and that through him God will pardon the penitent and receive him to his favor. These are the qualifications which Christ requires; these must always be professed and consequently supposed at baptism. These qualifications are not to be transient, but abiding, not only to occupy the mind at baptism, but through the whole term of this mortal existence. I have observed to you that no qualifications we can possess, can reinstate us in the favor of God, only through the merits of Jesus Christ. This repentance and faith cannot do, because there isno merit in them But upon our becoming thus qualified, Christ proposes to adopt us into his family, and to stand mediator between us and our offended God. The mode he has appointed for this adoption is baptism. Now people are apt to mistake the qualifications for the adoption. In other cases it seems easy enough to show people the difference between qualification and membership. No man, in his right mind, ever supposes himself a justice of peace till he is properly appointed to that office, let him be ever so well qualified. It is just as absurd to suppose one a christian who is not made so by baptism, let his qualifications be ever so good. The reason is because the gospel has appointed no other way for admission to christian privileges but baptism; and God has certainly as good a right to appoint a form of admission into his family, as men have into theirs. How often he pleases to dispense with this form is none of our business; he has not told us that he ever will; and we have no reason to suppose that he will as to those who voluntary slight and contemn his mode of adoption. As this is the case, that baptism is the method pointed out in the gospel for admission into Christ's church, and repentance and faith the proper qualifica.ions for the recipient, when these are possessed the adoption is always made complete at baptism. God receives us into his favor, forgives us our sins, and affords us the necessary graces to continue his dutiful and obedient children. G & Thus we are born of God; we are in the state described by St. John; because we are dead unto sin we no longer live in it. At putting on Christ, which is the new man, we put off the body of sin, which is the old man. While we continue so, we are in a state of sonship. If at our baptism we do not thus put off the old man, we frustrate for the time being the whole design of it; and are guilty of a most horrible crime; for we profess both to God and man to do it. What St. John means by being born of God is, to be in a state of sonship. This sonship you see is first formed at our baptism, when we openly and solemnly profess to forsake sin. If we do not forsake it, we are not, in the true spirit of the gospel, born of God, because that is a component part of the new birth; and he who has been baptized, and is dead unto sin, is the only one who is truly born of God. I will show you this by a plain similitude; show you the propriety of calling baptism the new birth, as you see the church does, and likewise that he alone is truly born of God who doth not sin. We will suppose that a man from motives of compassion, agrees to adopt an infant into his family. The qualities of infancy are his first requirement; he asks no more than the infant possesses.When he takes this infant into his family, is he not completely adopted, is he not every way a complete member of that family? You must all of you certainly pronounce that he is. At the time of this adoption the master of the family shall require of him from whom he receives this child, certain rules of temperance and sobriety, in short, submission to the rules and regulations of his own family.— When he becomes capable of obedience, it shall then be the condition of his enjoying the privileges of an adopted state, should this child transgress these rules, would you while he continued his disobedience call him the son of him who had conditionally adopted him? Would he in that state be a proper member of that family? At one stage of his life, his sonship was complete; because he possessed all the qualifications required at that stage. But at a different stage, qualifications are required which he does not possess; so that he is not now a proper member of the family; but has only the privilege of restoring himself by repentance. Still his repentance alone is not his new birth; his first adoption, united with his repentance, constitutes that birth. His first adoption supposes the life he now sets out to live; and thus the intended sonship is answered; he is thus entitled to all the privileges of an adopted state. This similitude will explain to you the state of those who come to baptism unqualified. Their sonship, their adoption is incomplete till they possess repentance and faith. You see now that the true spirit and intent of baptism is to die unto sin and live unto righteousness. We then profess subjection to the laws of Christ. Upon this profession, if it be real, God receives us to his favor: if not, then whenever it becomes so, the intent of our baptism is answered, and we are born of God. This will lead you directly into the propriety of our office for baptism. Whoever is admitted to this sacrament either personally or by his sureties professes to believe all the articles of the christian faith; he likewise engages to keep God's holy will and commandments. This profession the minister must suppose is sincere. (I would here remark that A Sermon. the church goes upon the ground that infants are entitled to baptism, that their innocence from actual transgression is to them instead of repentance and faith; and that these engagements are entered into by sureties only that the child may early understand that his baptism obliges him to these things.) But faith and repentance you see are professed by all to whom the church dispenses baptism. As these are the qualifications which Christ requires, she supposes all who receive baptism to possess the benefits of it, forgiveness of sin and adoption into the church of Christ, which adoption can be effected only by the spirit of God. This is the ground the church must take unless she forms an office on purpose for hypocrites; and knowing them to be such, she would certainly have no right to admit them.This therefore is a matter which must be settled between God and the insincere professor. The church always (as she in charity is bound to do,) prays that he who is baptized, may be washed and sanctified with the Holy Ghost, and received into the ark of Christ's church. This is the first petition we put up to God. We afterwards pray that the old Adam may be so buried that the new man may be raised up in him. This is conformable to what the apostle says of being buriWe here profess to bury all our evil ed with Christ in baptism. propensities, to put off the body of sin; and Christ also engages to wash us from the guilt of what is past. As these are buried, new affections, new desires and pursuits are to be assumed. As we have put on Christ, our lives are to be conformable to his gospel: we are to rise with him, as the apostle by a beautiful metaphor expresses it," through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. After baptism, having full faith in its being God's appointed mode of admission into his church, and not doubting of his blessing and rendering effectual his own institution, we then thank him " that it hath pleased him to regenerate this infant, or person, with his holy spirit, to receive him for his own child by adoption, and to incorporate him into his holy church." Now observe the correspondence that still continues between St. John and the church. We then pray that he being dead unto sin and living unto righteousness, and being buried with Christ in his death may crucify the whole body of sin. This is what now belongs to him to do in order to maintain his relation to Christ, and without this the church no more flatters him with being burn of God than does St. John. The prayer proceeds upon the It considers baptism as first giving the very ground of the text. relation to Christ, rendering the person a partaker of his death; but to be a partaker of his resurrection, he must rise with him to a newness of life. This is further illustrated in the exhortation to the In that he is reminded that baptism doth newly baptized person. represent unto us our profession, which is to follow the example of our Savior Christ, and to be made like unto him, that as he died and rose again for us, so should we who are baptized die from sin and rise again unto righteousness, continually mortifying all our evil and corrupt af fections, and daily proceeding in all virtue and godliness of living. By this you see that the church as well as the bible considers the true regeneration of the human character consistent only with a constant habit of obedience. When this is professed and exercised |