creatures, crying out in a furprize, ‘Christ, have mercy on us;' but the thought that finks deep is like that of the publican fmiting on his breaft, and crying, "Lord, have mercy on me a finner." But there are learned fools in the world, as well as ignorant ones, that have nothing but fwimming thoughts, roving fpeculations; and yet, it may be, they can fpeak of Chrift to better purpose, you would think, than one that is exercifed to godlinefs: but yet thefe two forts differ as far as the pleading of an orator differs from the pleading of a malefactor; the one vents his great wit, but the other his heart-concern. Again, 6. Right thoughts of Chrift are trading and trafficking thoughts; the man hath it for his conftant trade, to think highly of Chrift, and give him the chief room in his heart and efteem. In this respect, his heart is fixed, trufting in the Lord. "The defire of our foul is to thy name, fays the church, and to the remembrance of thee. With my foul have I defired thee in the night, and with my fpirit within me will I feek thee early," Ifa. xxvi. 8, 9. There was a trading with heaven late at night, and early in the morning. Yea, David makes it morning, and evening, and mid-time of the day; yea more, feven times a day; and yet most of all, when he says, My foul breaks for the longing that it hath to thy righteous judgments at ALL TIMES." It is a conftant trading. True, indeed, there are innumerable intermiffions in the believer's Chriftian thoughts and defires: but as we fay, It is fuch a man's trade to buy and fell, while he follows that employment, tho' it is not every moment he is thus occupied: but tho' there be feveral intermiffions in the exercise of his employment, yet the bent of his mind goes that way: fo here, we may call this the believer's conftant trade; because, whatever intermiffions there are in this his mental trading with heaven, yet the bent of his foul is towards Chrift: yea, it is not only his bufinefs, but his pleafure: and that makes him go on. If a man thrive at his trade, he takes pleasure in it; and if not, he is in danger of giving it over. We go fometimes upon bufinefs to these we never faw, nor care for feeing again, and whom we take little pleasure to converfe with: they that never go to Chrift but merely upon bufinefs, and never find any pleasure in converfing with him, furely they are too great ftrangers to him. Certainly, believer, there' is too much strangenefs betwixt Chrift and you, if your business you have ado with Chrift be feldom your pleafure, or if it be merely business that takes you to him, faying, I want a pardon, I want a promife, I want this and that.' But, is there never a love-visit you make to him, faying, Lord, I have got a pardon, and I am come to blefs thee for it; I have got a promise, and I am come to praife thee for it; thy company is fweet, and I am come to get thee in my arms, that I may have more of thy embraces? O fweet trading? My meditation of him shall be fweet. Indeed, thefe thoughts of Christ that are right, are glad, joyful, fatisfying thoughts. 7. Right thoughts of Chrift are humbling thoughts, and yet emboldening thoughts. O but thefe that think highly of Chrift, cannot but think meanly of themselves, faying with Job, "Now, mine eye feeth thee; wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in duft and afhes." The believer, that thinks duly of Chrift, hath both the highest and lowest thoughts in the world; the highest thoughts of Chrift, and the loweft thoughts of himfelf: and yet this humility doth not hinder his boldness; for, he hath boldnefs to enter into the holieft by the blood of Jesus, Heb. x. 19. The more he thinks of Chrift, the more humble thoughts he has of himfelf; and yet, the more he thinks of Chrift, the more bold he is towards God. It is a bold humility, and a humble boldness; hence, when he is worshipping God in the Spirit, two other things concur, namely, a rejoicing in Chrift Jefus, and a having no confidence in the flesh, Phil. iii. 3. Oh! fays the foul, I have no ground of confidence in myself, but I have all ground of confidence in Chrift! Unworthy wretch am I, as ever was out of hell; but, behold, there is the worthy blood, the worthy righteousness of Christ, the Lord our righteoufnefs; therefore, unworthy as I am, I am warranted to be bold in claiming all thro' Christ. I fee the holy of holies is open to me through this blood of Chrift. 8. Right 8. Right thoughts of Chrift are affimulating thoughts, fanctifying and transforming thoughts; 2 Cor. iii. 18. "But we all with open face, beholding as in a glafs the glory of the Lord, are changed into the fame image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." They that fee Chrift, cannot but love him, and defire to be like him, for there is a fmitting favour in his face. They that are in heaven are like him, because they fee him as he is the beatifical vifion brings in full conformity to him. Now, a fpiritual thought, and a believing thought, is a mental fight; a fiducial vifion of him: and the more of this, the more conformity to him in holiness. The thought that endears Chrift, imbitters fin: a man cannot think duly of the lovelinefs of Chrift, without thinking of the lothfomenefs of fin. O! when the Sun of righteoufnefs arifeth, there is a heat that accompanies. the light, and warms the heart. And, indeed, high thoughts of Chrift do warm the heart, and make it burn within him; and heart-warming thoughts tend to burn up corruption; for, as Chrift comes into the heart, fin muft go out, according to the meafure and degree of his coming. As a talent of gold, or fome weighty metal, falling into a vessel of water, dashes out all that is in the veffel, to make room for itself; fo, Chrift coming in to the heart, dashes out fin to make room for himfelf. And, And, indeed, they that have honourable thoughts of Chrift in their hearts, cannot have favourable thoughts of fin; because, whenever Chrift comes into the thoughts, if he do not wafh out the life, yet he dafhes out the love of fin. What, man! will you fay that Chrift is in you, and that you have faith, and yet the love of fin as great as ever, and you can indulge yourself in whoredom, and drunkennefs, and lying, and fwearing, and Sabbath-breaking, or any other piece of wickedness and profanity. You will never make a good man believe that Chrift is in you, or that you have faith, even though you fhould fwear by your faith, as fome do, who even thereby teftify to the world, that they have no faith at all; being fo prodigal of it, as to fwear away the faith which they fay or think they have. So far as Chrift comes in, fin goes out. It is poffible, indeed, indeed, that a believer that hath Chrift in him, may think that he hath more fin than ever, and that fin is on the growing hand, instead of the decaying; but he is miftaken: it is in this cafe, as it is with a cup of water; put filver and gold in a cup, and the water fwells up; and the more you put in, the more will the water fwell and run over, that you would think there is ftill more water than before, the more gold is put in: Chrift is the tried gold; and the more the veffel of the believer's heart is filled with it, the more may fin appear to rife and fwell, and run over all its banks: this frightens and terrifies the poor foul, becaufe now he fees that which, it may be, was hid in the veffel of his heart before, and out of his fight. But it is not that there is more fin, more water than before, but more gold caft in; only every dash perhaps makes the water flee about, that he thinks he was never fo full of fin and corruption as now: yet ftill it holds good, Chrift's coming in makes fin flee out; and the more it feems to rife and fwell, the more does the foul's indignation rise and fwell against it. All right thoughts of Chrift are fanctifying thoughts. 9. High thoughts of Chrift are new thoughts; they that fuppofe they have thought well enough of Christ all their days, and have no better thoughts, no higher thoughts, no weightier thoughts, no clearer thoughts of him than ever they had, furely they are ftrangers to this esteem of Chrift that we are enquiring into: "If any man be in Chrift, he is a new creature; old things are done away, and all things are become new ;" and new thoughts among the reft. Where grace comes, there the wicked man forfakes his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; his carnal thoughts, his legal thoughts; they are changed into spiritual thoughts, evangelical thoughts, fuch as he never had before. And, 10. New thoughts of Chrift will bring in new words and new actions; the words follow the thoughts. You may then turn the question, What think ye of Chrift? to another, What speak ye of him? for, Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth Speaketh. If you think it ill-breeding, or ungenteel manners, as many do, to fpeak of Chrift and fpiritual things, and cannot drop a word for him from Sabbath to Sabbath, who can believe that you think highly of Christ. Nay, that which is most in the heart and thoughts, will be most in your lips. The actions alfo follow the thoughts: can you think highly of Christ, and yet do nothing for him? Nay, new and precious thoughts of Chrift will bring in new gofpel-obedience from a principle of love to him. Thus you may try yourselves now on this question, What think ye of Chrift? by the quality of your thoughts. Examination is the very defign of the question, namely, to discover what our thoughts of Chrift are; and therefor I infift mainly upon this.-But having tried yourfelves by the quality of your thoughts, 2dly, Try yourselves by the object thereof, namely, CHRIST: What think ye of CHRIST? And here fuch a large field prefents itself, that it is impoffible I can go through it all. Befides what was faid on the doctrinal part, I would afk fome further queftions concerning Christ, not only for examination, but for raising your efteem of him. 1. What think ye of his eminent ftation he is in, as Mediator betwixt God and you, and his relation to God and you; his relation to God by nature, as his eternal Son; and by office, as his righteous Servant? God calls you to wonder at him in this ftation; Ifa. xlii. 1. Behold my Servant, whom I uphold; mine Elect, in whom my foul delighteth. His Father called him forth to ferve him and you, and to ferve him for your fake; to serve him as a Redeemer, to ranfom you; to ferve him as a Surety, to pay your debt; to ferve him as a Phyfician, to heal your fouls; to ferve him in all the offices that your need requires: and what think ye of him? 2. What think ye of his travels, in order to acconiplish the work that belongs to that station and relation, wherein he stands to God and you? The travail of his eternal mind before time, when his delights were with the fons of men; the travail of his foul, and the travail of his body in time; his travel from heaven to earth, and from earth to heaven again; in all his mediatory a&tings ; his incarnation, birth, life, death, refurrection, afcenfion, and interceffion! O but the Lord can give a glance of |