Quest. Why are good teachers and good hearers said to be of God?
Answ. 1. They are of God, because they are of a divine Originall, they are born from on high, from the seed of the eternall God, John 8.23. I am from above, saith Christ; and such are those that are regenerate, they are descended from God: whereas those that have no higher off-spring then flesh and blood are of the world.
2. They both savour and relish that doctrine, Rom. 8.15. They that are of the Spirit of God, savour the things of God, such as hold forth the mighty po∣wer of God veiled in humane frailties, they are of God.
3. He that is of God, hath a place in the Church of God, 1 Cor. 12.28. God sets the members of Christ in the Church, this is a work of God, ver. 18. not any member of Christ, but the Lord hath set him in that place, as all men in the world cannot fit one member to the body, but it would be both unpro∣fitable and burthensome, except God joyn it to the body; so all the men in the world cannot put one member into the spirituall body, except God put it in; indeed those that are of the world, they have a place in the Church too, but yet they are not of the Church, they are superfluous humors, as Christ speaks of the Pharisees, Mat, 15.13. As it is never well with the body till the noysome humors be purged out, so the Church will never be well till those superfluous humors are cut off.
Ʋse. This should teach us all, not to comfort our selves, because we are members of the Church, that we live under such a Minister, and are baptized, we must not here rest, as if we were of God, for all this while we go no further then flesh and bloud, and worldly respects lead us, we savour all this time of the world: we may live civilly and painfully in our Calling, and yet have no higher plantation in the Church, no higher Offices then worldly: but what are we the better for this? What doe noysome humors in the Church, what though we be ornaments and supportants, we are not the better for this, we are not all this while members of the Church, but labour we to be so in the Church as we may be of the Church, that we be in that place in which God hath set us, that we doe daily derive sap and strength from the root Christ Jesus; we must thus try our hearts, and the spirits of others, and except this frame of spirit be in us, we are not true members of the Church.
And have overcome: They overcome, therefore there is a conflict.