which others would take at his Perfon and Doctrine, and to obferve how the Rulers and Chief of the Jews would be exafperated against him, they would, notwithstanding their prefent applauding his mighty Works, quickly fall off and be ready to betray him; For this Reafon, I fay, Jefus did not think fit to converfe freely, and to truft himself fe curely with all thefe Perfons, who acknowledged themselves convinced, and pretended to be his Difciples; but he withdrew himself from them. 25. For he knew entirely all their Hearts and Thoughts, long before they difcovered them; not needing any information, either from themselves or others, to know what Men were, and what they would do ; but understanding all Things by his own immediate and Divine Knowledge. 25 And needed teftifie of man: for not that any fhould he knew what was in man. CHA P. III. Jefus's Difcourfe with Nicodemus, ver. 1. The true Notion of Regeneration, ver. 3, 5, 6. Of the Nature and End of Chrift's Death, and of Faith in Him, ver. 14. Of God's Love to Mankind, ver. 16. The Condemnation of Impenitency, ver. 18. Wickedness the Caufe of Men's Infidelity, ver. 20. John Baptift's Office, ver. 27. The Conditions of eternal Life, ver. 36. 2. This Man, though for fear of the fews he durft not openly own the Perfwafion he had entertained concerning Jefus; yet defiring to be further inftructed in the Nature and Certainty of that Doctrine, which he faw accompanied with fuch wonderful and undeniable Evidence; he went privately to Jefus in the Night, and defired to confer with him himself about the Matters of Religion, faying: Sir, we are fully fatisfied that you are not an ordinary Teacher, but a Prophet fent immediately from God with fome particular Meffage; For the Things which you do, appear evidently to be the Effects of nothing less than a Supernatural and Divine Power. I defire therefore you would be pleased to inftruct me more fully and particularly, what that Doctrine is, which you are fent into the World to teach, and which you confirm and prove by fuch mighty Works. 3. Jefus replied: The Doctrine which I teach, is in fhort this; That whofoever will inherit Eternal Life, must, in order to qualify himself for that happy State, be BORN AGAIN. Signifying by an eafy comparison, that a wicked Man, before he can be capable of entring into the Kingdom of Heaven, muft of neceffity make fo great a change and alteration in the whole courfe of his Life, as may fitly be called a New Birth. 4. But Nicodemus, grossly misunderstanding Jefus's Words, as if he had meant literally a natural and carnal Birth, anfwered; How can a Man of full Age, be born again? Is it poffible that fuch a one fhould enter the fecond time into his Mother's Womb, and be born anew, as a Child? 5. Jefus faid: No; How can you put fo abfurd a meaning upon my Expreffions? I did not mean a New Birth in a natural, but in a moral Sense; that a Man must be entirely changed from all the corrupt Opinions he has before entertained, and from whatever wicked Practices he has formerly been guilty of, and enter upon a perfectly new Course of Life: That he must be baptized into the Profeffion of the true Religion, which God is about to reveal to Mankind; and that, fuitably to this Obligation, he must be throughly purified from all worldly and carnal Lufts, and muft univerfally conform himself in Mind and Life, to obey all the Holy Precepts of that Religion, under the Guidance and Affiftance of the Divine Spirit, which God will be always ready to bestow on those who fincerely defire to obey his Commandments. This, I fay, is neceffary in order to a Man's attaining eternal Life; and without this, he can never enter into the Kingdom of God. 6. Were it poffible that a Man could ever so often be born again in that grofs Senfe wherein you understand me, do you think that this could avail any thing towards qualifying him to have an Inheritance in the Kingdom of Heaven? No: The Effect can be but anfwerable to the Caufe: A natural Birth can give a Man no other Title, than only to this natural, mortal Life; and if he was thus to be born again a thousand times, yet he would not be thereby at all the nearer to Immortality. But if a Man be renewed in the Spirit of his Mind: if he be delivered from the Dominion of fleshly Lufts; if he governs his Life, not by the motions of Senfe, but by the Dictates and Rules of Reason, and the 5 Jefus anfwered, Verily, verily I fay unto thee, Except a man be born of wa ter, and of the Spiinto the kingdom of rit, he cannot enter God. 6 That which is born of the flesh, is flesh: and that which is fpirit. is born of the fpirit, 7 Marvel 7 Marvel not that I faid unto thee, Ye must be born again. 8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou heareft the found thereof, but canft not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: fo is that is every one born of the Spirit. 9 Nicodemus anfwered and faid unto him, How can these things be? Laws of God; hereby he is become indeed a Spiritual Man, entituled to Immortality, and fitly prepared to be an Inheritour of the Kingdom of God. 7. And do not wonder, that I called this fecret and invifible Renewal of the Life and Mind, by a Name which feems to fignifie fo very great and fenfible a Change, as that of a New-Birth. 8. For though it is not indeed a fenfible and visible change, yet it is really and properly as great and true a change, and is attended with more confiderable and more lafting Effects, than is the natural Birth of a Child into the World. Neither is there any thing incredible in all this, nor contrary to Reason. For even in the natural World, there are many things in themselves fo fubtle, that we cannot at all difcern them with our Eyes, which yet are very manifeft and very great in their Effects. The Wind is a thing altogether invifible, and no Man can behold its Motion, even when it blows with the greatest Violence : Yet that there is fuch a Thing, is evident enough; and the Effects of it are fufficiently known. Thus therefore That Regeneration or Renewal of the Heart and Manners, which is worked in a Man by the Efficacy of true Religion and the Operation of the Spirit of God; though in itself it be invifible, and not at all difcerned by Senfe, yet in its Effects it is a very great and plain thing, and really as manifeft and confiderable a Change, to all the Purposes of Eternal Life and Happiness, as the Birth of a Man is in respect of this mortal Life. 9. Nicodemus, ufed to the outward Pomp of Ceremonies, and the formal Obfervation of Jewish Rites, so that he could not presently raife his mind above his *The Paraphrafe on this Verse is get's. his ftrong Prejudices, to the appréhension 10. Jefus answered; * What is there in all that I have yet faid, which an ordinary few, much more one of the great Council, might not well underDr. Cla- ftand? Do you not your felves make Profelytes by washing them with Water, and count them New-born Perfons? And as for that inward Holinefs and Purity I fpeak of, have not the Prophets foretold that God will plentifully communicate his Spirit in the Days of the Meffias for that purpose ? 11. Affuredly I tell you, though your Prejudices are fuch that ye will not understand and embrace my Doctrine, yet the things which I have fpoken, are both in themselves eafie to be underftood, and reasonable to be practifed; and moreover the Miracles which ye have seen me work, are abundant Demonftrations, that what I fay, is most certainly and infallibly true, and delivered with fufficient Evidence and Authority to convince you. 12. But if, notwithstanding all this, ve believe me not even in these plain obvious Things, which I have fuited to your Capacities, and delivered in eafie Comparisons, drawn from the most natural and common Things here on Earth; how much lefs will ye believe me, when I tell you more Sublime and Heavenly Myfteries? when I declare to you the Divinity of my Perfon, and the Dignity of my Office; the Spiritual Nature of my Kingdom, and the Sufferings which I muft firft undergo for the Redemption and Salvation of Mankind? |