of faith, and rejoiced in hope of the glory to be revealed in us; and by faith have looked forward to the reality. This, however, would not have made our birth any more certain, because it must have been an absolute truth before we could have, with any propriety, believed it. Suppose, further, that some of us had rejected it; would this circumstance have prevented our being born? Certainly not. All of us, who believed, would have been born of faith, having an earnest of the reality, and the unbelievers would have come short of that enjoyment by faith; but their unbelief could in no sense make the truth of none effect. The moment we were born, belief and unbelief would be lost in certainty.

Now suppose, that some of us had said, the Son of God has declared, "except we are born of the flesh, we cannot see the natural world." This must mean some great change we are to experience in the womb; we must be born some number of days before we enter the natural world, as a preparation, otherwise we can never see it.

We now ask the reader, whether it would not be folly to give to the word birth, such an explanation ? The conclusion is unavoidable. We then ask, whether it does not involve the same folly to contend, in view of our text, ("except a man be born again, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God,") that it means, he must be

born again in this world, as a preparation for another? It certainly does.

We once more repeat it, that as natural birth was the very thing that introduced us all into this world of imperfection, sorrow, and pain; so the spiritual birth will be the very thing that shall introduce us all into another, where imperfection, sorrow, and pain shall be no more.

The poor heathen, and infants, and all, will therefore be born again into the kingdom of God, and "be equal unto the angels, die no more, and be the children of God, being the children of the resurrection." The only advantage we enjoy above them is, that we have heard the good news, believed it, are "born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God which liveth and abideth forever," and "have entered into rest." We are rejoicing in hope of the glory of God to be revealed in us, while they are groping in darkness, inasmuch as they cannot believe in him of whom they have not heard.

SERMON IX.

THE NEW BIRTH.

[Concluded.]

In our last three discourses we have endeavoured to lay our views of the new birth, thus far, plainly before the reader, and wish him to bear in mind, that the three sermons preceding those on the new birth, are also to be read, and carefully kept in view, so that, from the whole connexion, the Gospel doctrine of salvation by faith may be made clear to his understanding. We have dwelt so long, and laid so much stress upon faith, because it is the first Christian grace we are exhorted to put on, and is the first assent of the mind, to the great and interesting truth revealed in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is life and immortality for the human family.

We have shown, that the new birth has a higher signification, than simply to be converted from the evil of our doings, as was required under the first dispensation. The new birth, so far as it concerns the present existence, embraces not only conversion, but the whole spiritual life of the Christian's soul, denominated the kingdom of heaven within. This mental felicity, this "weight of glory," cannot be enjoyed, but by the exercise

of a living faith in Christ. Such a faith begets a sincere obedience in our life and conversation. It is a faith that works by love, purifies the heart, and overcomes the world." The great apostle to the Gentiles exclaims, "The life that I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." We, therefore, "walk by faith, not by sight."

We have shown, that Christ was the "firstborn from the dead," to show light to the people and to the Gentiles, and that the whole creation is groaning in travail-pains, and that it shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God, and that we shall then be as the angels of God in heaven. We have shown, that all mankind, infants, idiots, and heathen, shall be brought to realize this birth, and that the believer, only, can enjoy it in this state of existence through faith in the truth, and that this faith has a most powerful influence on his life and conversation, "being born of incorruptible seed, by the word of God, that liveth and abideth forever." We have shown, that neither this birth, nor any of the spiritual changes, can be experienced in this life only through faith in their correspondent truths, even as they are revealed to us in the Gospel of Christ. We have shown, that by the phrase, "kingdom of heaven,"

we were to understand, first, a holy, happy, and immortal existence beyond the grave," incorruptible, undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved for us in heaven," and which, with all its perfections and joys, was revealed to us by Jesus Christ; and, second, a sincere and living faith in this interesting reality, produced that divine enjoyment, called "the kingdom of heaven within us," the kingdom of heaven among men, &c. This kingdom the Pharisees "shut up," they neither entered it themselves, nor suffered those that were entering to go in." That is, they prevented the people from believing those interesting realities, those sublime doctrines of a future world, that their Messiah had brought to light through the Gospel, for the present happiness of

men.

We have shown, that water baptism is but a figure, a shadow of our death and resurrection, or of the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, and that this figure is important to us even in this present day. In fine, we have shown, that if there were no future existence, if nought were held up to man, but the dreary prospect of a beamless eternity, he could not be justified, sanctified, born again, pass from death to life, or enter the kingdom of God through faith, because in such case the objects of his faith and hope would be annihilated, his faith would be