ing, God dealeth with you as with sons: for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards and not sons.' This kind of discipline, however, like the preceding, belongs to the government of the transition period, not to the final kingdom of God. The two may be regarded as of kindred nature, and of course appropriate during the same period; that is, so long as the church as a body endures providential chastening from the Lord, it may safely be regarded as needing verbal exhortation and reproof.

Thus we see that the abolishment of the Mosaic code is not the abolishment of all regulating influence. Though God reigns not by law in the kingdom of his Son, he has not therefore surrendered his supremacy, and abandoned his purpose of subjecting all things to his will. We are sure that the blood of the cross, the power of the Holy Ghost, the testimony and reproofs of the gospel, and the chastenings of God's providence, are elements of government incomparably more vigorous and effectual than any possible application of legal influence. We feel safe under the sceptre of grace and truth.

$29. TWO KINDS OF ANTINOMIANISM.

THE word antinomian is compounded of two Greek words, viz., anti, meaning against, and nomos, meaning law. An antinomian is an anti-law man. Now the law of God may be viewed in two aspects, viz:-first, as his will embodied in words; and secondly, as his will embodied in a spirit. The law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus' is the law of God, as truly as is the law of Moses. When God says, in the new covenant, I will put my laws in their hearts and write them in their minds'-he does not mean that he will put a verbal code of laws in men's hearts and minds, but that he will put a spirit within them which will secure the righteousness defined in his verbal code. We may say, then, there is a letter-law and there is a spirit-law. The letter-law was the glory of Judaism, but the spirit-law is the glory of the gospel. Both are expressions of the character and will of God; but the latter is as much more effectual and valuable than the former, as spiritual power is stronger than words. There are therefore two kinds of antinomianism. A man who discards or lightly esteems the law written and engraven on stones,' is an antinomian in one sense ;-he is against the letter-law. And the man who discards or lightly esteems the law of the spirit of life' written on the heart, is an antinomian in another sense ;-he is against the spirit-law. Which of these kinds of antinomianism is the worst?

A man who reverences the will of God as embodied in his Spirit, may turn away from the letter-law, without any sacrifice of loyalty. Nay, if he sees that the letter-law only causes the offense to abound, and that his actual fulfilment of the will of God depends on his turning to the spirit-law, loyalty

requires him to renounce the former for the sake of the latter. Paul was an antinomian in this sense. In his view, the law written and engraven on stones' had no glory in comparison with the law of the spirit of life.

6

But what shall we say of those who are jealous for the permanent authority of the letter-law, and are ever ready to cry down Paul's kind of antinomianism, while they lightly esteem and practically reject the law of the spirit of life'? There are many antinomians of this sort-men who are exceedingly indignant at any supposed attempt to lower the standard of the law,' while they disclaim all pretence of actual conformity to its demands,-law-extollers, and at the same time avowed law-breakers.These may be called friends of the law of God in the abstract, and enemies in the concrete. The law written and engraven on stones' is their idol; but the law written on the heart by the Spirit of the living God, i. e. actual holiness, (which is Perfectionism,) is their abomination. They are vigilant guardians of the abstract standard of holiness, (which is in fact no standard to them, since they do not profess or expect to live by it,) but incontinently lax in relation to the practical standard of Christ's holiness embodied in the Holy Ghost, and professed by the primitive saints. They are ready to rise in arms against any profane meddling with the statutes of the decalogue; but scruple not at all to lay violent hands on such gospel manifestos as these He that is born of God doth not commit sin;' He that sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.' The standard of God's requirements they extol and magnify; but the standard of gospel experience answering to those requirements, they level down to their own carnality, and that of their favorite sinful saints. It is as if a merchant should be religiously solicitious that his yard-stick should be of the full length, but free and easy as to cheating his customers of a hand-breadth in the actual measurement of every yard of cloth. We call this the worst kind of antinomianism.

§ 30. THE SECOND BIRTH.

THE object of this article is to show by an examination of Scripture, that none except Christ were born of God, previous to the day of Pentecost. In the first place, let the reader take his concordance and look at the references under all the principal phrases which designate the second birth-such as, born of God, born again,' 'children of God,' 'sons of God,' &c. He will find that this sort of language is confined almost exclusively to the New Testament. Sons of God are spoken of in a few instances in the Old Testament, as in Gen. 6: 2, Job 1: 6, 2: 1, 38: 7; but it is evident that in these instances the expression refers to angels. In Psalm 82: 6, magistrates are spoken of as children of the Most High;' but simply with reference to their office, not to their character, as appears by the preceding context. God calls himself the Father of Israel, (Mal. 1: 6,) but only in a

6

sense similar to that in which he is the Father of all his creatures, viz., as a benefactor. He speaks of the Jews as his children, (Ezek. 16: 21,) not as intimating that they were born again, but that they owed their being and blessings to him. There are also, in the Psalms and prophets, predictions relating to the second birth-such as those concerning the new heart,' the resurrection,' the new heavens and the new earth,' &c. From these a wise man, even under the Jewish economy, might have learned that men would be born again' at some future time, i. e. when the promised reign of heaven should begin; so that Jesus justly reproved the ignorance of Nicodemus. John 3: 10. But there is no evidence that the second birth, in the peculiar sense which that expression has under the economy of the new covenant, was ever professed, preached, or alluded to, otherwise than by prediction, till Christ came into the world.

The great idea of a conjunction of the divine with human nature-which is the true idea of the second birth-evidently took its rise, so far as its development in the Bible is concerned, from the peculiar conception of Jesus Christ. The angel said to Mary-The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee; therefore that holy thing which shall be born of thee, shall be called THE SON OF GOD.' Luke 1: 35. Here for the first time a human being took the name of a Son of God.Jesus, not merely as the Everlasting Word, but as a man, was the firstborn among many brethren.' And it is evident that he was called the Son of God in a higher than figurative sense, and for a stronger reason than because he was a righteous man. The father-part of his compound nature was literally the life of God; and for this reason he was called tho Son of God. In this we have the original Bible idea of the sonship-a definition of the divine birth; and we must apply this definition to Christ's brethren as well as to himself. We say then, that none were born of God, till the life of God took the place of the father-part of the natural life; and there is no reason to believe that this took place until after the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Ghost came upon the church, and the power of the Highest overshadowed it.' Without denying that men had received a measure of the Holy Ghost, and were servants of God, in previous ages, we still affirm that Jesus Christ was the first who had the divine nature; and that he did not enter upon his office as the second Adam, and commence the work of communicating his divine nature, until he had ascended up on high, and sent forth the Holy Ghost.

This general view of the subject will be confirmed, if we consider that the Christian church is the body of Christ, (Eph. 1: 23,) and that this body is formed by the baptism of the Holy Ghost. 1 Cor. 12: 13. Christ is called theonly begotten' Son of God. John 1: 18. If then God has but one Son, all others are sons only by being members of him. But the formation of his spiritual body did not begin till he arose from the dead, and bestowed on believers the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Therefore believers did not begin to be members of him, i. e. sons of God, till after the day of Pentecost. We will now proceed to examine the more direct testimony which we have in Scripture, on the point in question, under several propositions.

10

I. The second birth is described as the effect of the faith that came into the world by Jesus Christ. 'As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.' John 1: 12. If it is said that the saints received' Christ and believed on his name' before he came into the world, and so received power to become the sons of God: in reply we cite a parallel passage, which clearly determines when the faith that is the foundation of the sonship came :-Gal. 3: 23, &c. 'Before faith came [i. e. during the ages before the coming of Christ, see the previous context] we were kept under the law, shut up [or kept in ward] unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster: for ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.' It is here plainly implied that while they were under the law, they were not the children of God; and it is explicitly stated that they became children of God by God by faith which was not in the world before the coming of Christ.

II. The second birth is described as the effect of faith in the RESURRECTION OF CHRIST. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a [living] hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. 1 Peter 1: 3. The sons of God are begotten by the word of the gospel. 1 Peter 1: 23-25. What is the gospel? Paul answers-the death, and especially the RESURRECTION of Christ. 1 Cor. 15: 1, &c. Remember,' says he to Timothy, "that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead according to my gospel.' 2 Tim. 2: 8. "If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in. thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.' Rom. 10: 9. The reader may discover the reason for the efficiency of faith in the resurrection of Christ, in causing the new birth, by reflecting on the following texts. (1.) 'Whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world.' 1 John 5: 4. (2.) Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?' 1 John 5: 5. (3.) 'Christ was declared to be the Son of God with power, by the resurrection from the dead.' Rom. 1: 4. Christ's resurrection was the proof of his sonship, and faith in that proof was the power of the second birth. The second birth, then, did not commence till after Christ's resurrection.*

* It should be observed that in respect to his natural body, Jesus Christ himself was not born of God, till after his resurrection. The mother-part of his nature previous to that change was the fallen nature of Adam. The father-part only was divine. Hence Paul applies Ps. 2: 7,- Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee,' to Christ's res urrection; so that in an important sense Christ himself was born again,' when he rose from the dead. In this sense, none of the saints of the primitive church, were born o God until the second Coming. We have a complete definition of the sonship, as pertaining to the whole man, in Luke 20: 35, 36.-' They which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, BEING THE CHILDREN OF THE RESURRECTION.' This was the adoption' for which Paul was waiting. Rom. 8; 23. See also Phil.3: 11. The second birth, in its most extensive sense is nothing more nor less than the resurrection of soul and body. When this is attained, the child is ushered into the world where his father and mother dwell. See Gal. 4: 26.

III. The second birth is described as the effect of that power of the Holy Ghost, which was given after Christ's death and resurrection. John says, (7: 89,) 'The Holy Ghost was not yet given, because that Jesus was not yet glorified.' But the Holy Ghost in some form of power had been given in all ages before. What then was the power of the Holy Ghost which was not given till Jesus was glorified? We answer, 'the power of his resurrection' was not given, and could not be given till he had died and risen again. And it is the power of Christ's resurrection' that fulfills in believers that word, 'Out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water'-that works in them that believe,' and 'quickens them with him,' (see Eph. 1: 19,)-that saves from sin.' See Rom. 6: 1, &c. This power-the quickening and uniting element of Christ's spiritual body, the church- was given on the day of Pentecost, and was called the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Then Christ's body began to be formed, and then his members began to receive the sonship in him. Accordingly, when Paul says, as before quoted, 'Ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus,' he adds this reason: 'FOR as many of you as have been baptized into Christ, have put on Christ;' (Gal. 3: 27;) i. e., 'Ye are the children of God by putting on Christ, who is the only begotten, and ye put on Christ by being baptized into his body by the Holy Ghost.' See 1 Cor. 12: 13. Hence, the Spirit which was given to the primitive church is called the Spirit of adoption, (uiothesias-sonship.) Rom. 8: 15. It is spoken of in Gal. 4: 6, as being given after Christ was made under the law,' and is clearly distinguished from any power of the Spirit which was given under the Jewish dispensation. When the fullness of the time was come,' God sent forth his Son first, and then the Spirit of his Son into believers' hearts. The Comforter,' the baptism of the Holy Ghost,' and 'the Spirit of sonship' are only different names of the same peculiar bestowment of the Spirit which followed the death and resurrection of Christ. See especially 1 Peter. 1: 10-12.

IV. The second birth is described as a state of complete salvation from sin, which state no man ever attained before the day of Pentecost. 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. In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil.' 1 John 3: 9, 10. Whatsoever

is born of God overcometh the world.' 5: 4. "We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.' 5: 18. These texts are commonly regarded as exaggerated and unguarded statements which need to be qualified. The argument against them is this; The saints of the Jewish dispensation, the disciples of Christ while he was personally with them, many believers in the primitive church after the day of Pentecost, and all Christians in later ages, certainly were not free from sin; therefore it is not literally true that he that is born of God doth not commit sin.' It will be seen that this argument takes for granted what is no where stated in Scripture, and what our whole previous discussion contradicts, viz., that men were born of God before the day of Pentecost. It also takes for granted, that no higher attainments were set before the primitive church than had been made in pre