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er beauty to be feen; and if you fay you believe the Bible, you must own it. Is not that word in the Bible, "All we beholding as in a glafs the glory of the Lord, are changed into the fame image; even as by the Spirit of the Lord?" 2 Cor. iii. 18. Is not that word in your Bible, "The word was made flefh; and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth?" John i. 14.

But may fome think, What do you talk of feeing Chrift! Is he not at the right-hand of God in heaven? It is true, we do not speak of seeing him with the bodily eye; "The heavens muft retain him, till the time of the reftitution of all things." It is not by any light like that of vifionaries, nor light within like that of the Quakers; but we see the God-man by the eye of faith, and fpiritual understanding, in the glafs of the word. We fee a God in Chrift, reconciling the world to himself. Wé fee his grace, his glory, his beauty; though yet we cannot exprefs what we fee, we cannot explain to the world what we fee: words cannot reprefent the beauty and glory that is in Chrift, or the fweetnefs and comfort that is felt in him, when difcovered. They that fee him, can fay no more but that they fee him all grace, all glory, all beauty, altogether lovely: and it is no fancy or imagination of him. It is no imaginary idea of Chrift as man; but it is, according to fcripture, an intellectual apprehenfion of him as God-man: witness Paul's experience, Gal. i. 16. "He revealed his Son in me:" and David's experience, Pfal. Ixiii. 2. "O to fee thy power and thy glory, as I have feen it in the fanctu ary!" In a word, it is jull fuch a difcovery of Chrift as he was pleafed to give of himfelf to Zaccheus here, ver. 10. "This day, faid Chrift, is falvation come to this houfe. For the Son of man is come to feek and to fave that which was loft." It is a view of Chrift as the Seek

the Saviour, and Salvation, of the poor loft finner. So much concerning the day of effectual calling.

*This important diftinction is elaborately handled, and fatisfyingly cleared up by our Author in his treatife, intitled, Faith no Fancy; or, A Treatife of Mental Images. See Vol. VII. 369. 419. 437. Vol. VIII. p. 43, 187.

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IV. The fourth thing propofed was, To give the reafons why the Lord calls them to come down, and that with hafte, in the day when he calls effectually; Zec. cheus, make hafte, and come down. And,

It, Why he calls them to come down. He doth fo, for the fix following reafons, amongst others.

1. We are called to come down, because it is God's great end, in the dispensation of the gofpel of his grace, that felf may be abafed, and Chrift may be exalted. See Ifa. ii. 11. 17. "The lofty looks of man fhall be humbled, and the haughtinefs of man fhall be bowed down; and the Lord alone fhall be exalted in that day. And the loftinefs of man fhall be bowed down, and the haughtinefs of man fhall be made low, and the Lord alone fhall be exalted in that day." The high and lofty One, who inhabits eternity, cannot bear with high and lofty men, who inhabit houfes of clay, whofe foundation is in the duft. Men mult come down either in a way of judgment or mercy, that the Lord alone may be exalted.

2. The Lord calls men to come down, because, while they afcend too high, they are in a dangerous ftate. Before they be effectually called down, they are in danger of falling down and deftroying themselves. If they come not down at God's call, and with his help, they will be brought down with fhame and difgrace; for, "God refifteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble:" whereas, they that come down, and humble themselves under his mighty hand, they shall be exalted, Pet. v. 5.9.

3. He calls us to come down, because the farther down we come, in a state of due humiliation and abafement, the higher fhall we be set up in a way of exaltation and advancement. As it was with the glorious head of the body, the church, his humiliation to the lowest, made way for his exaltation to the highest honour; "No man hath afcended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven; even the Son of man, which is in heaven," "John iii. 13. Where, by the bye, we may obferve what a wonderful perfon our Redeemer is. In

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one respect he was never out of heaven: for, when he was on earth, he calls himfelf the Son of man, which is in heaven; and yet, in another refpe&t he both defcended from heaven, and afcended to heaven: and both this low defcent, and high afcent, were neceflary for him as our Surety: "Qught not Chrift to have fuffered thefe things, and to enter into his glory?" John xxii. 26. And indeed, in fome conformity to him, all that afcend, mult in fome refpect defcend; and the lower they come down, the higher will they be raised up.

4. They are called to come down, that fo Chrift may have a footstool on which he may mount his throne, and that free grace may be exalted in their falvation. While men are proud and lofty, and ftanding upon their altitudes and eminences, boafting of their own ftrength, glorying in their awn abilities, refting on their own righ teoufnefs, and building their hope and confidence in their own excellency, induftry, endowments, natural or acquired, Chrift is put out of his throne, and free grace, reigning through his righteoufnefs, cannot be exalted. But when once a man begins to come down, he is con tent to be, as it were, a ftepping-ftone for Chrift to be mounted up; fatisfied to be a debtor to free grace reigning through the blood of Chrift to all eternity. "Where is boafting then? It is excluded." It is exe cluded!" By what law? Of works? Nay, but by the law of faith, Rom. iii. 27.-Christ is made,-wisdom, and righteousnefs," and all, that no flesh might glory in his prefence; but that he that glorieth, might glory in the Lord."

5. They are called to come down, that they may be valley ground for receiving the feed of the word, and being fruitful, which they cannot be, while they remain on their heights, no more than the tops of high rocks can be expected to prove a fruitful foil. "Chriß is the role of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys," Song ii. I. He loves to deck and beautify the low valleys, and make them fruitful and fragrant with his prefence..

6. They are called to come down, that they may meet with Chrift, and be houfed with him, who loves

to dwell and be houfed with the humble; "For thus faith the high and lofty One, that inhabiteth eternity, whofe name is holy, I'dwell in the high and holy place, with him alfo that is of a contrite and humble fpirit: to revive the fpirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones," Ifa. lvii. 15. This was the reason why Chrift called on Zaccheus to come down, that he might meet with Chrift, and that Chrift and he may be houfed together: "Make hafte, fays he, and come down; for to-day I muft fup at thy houfe" And this comprehends many more reafons, why, in a day of effectual calling, they are called to, come down. Why, they must come down to get a better look of Chrift, than they can have by climbing upon a tree. They must come down to embrace Chrift, and receive him in their arms. Down to entertain him in their houfe and in their heart. Down to worship at his feet, of whom the Father has faid, "And let all the angels of God worship him." They must come down to tread in his fteps, and keep the fame ground. And, in a word, they must come down to walk with him, Micah vi. 8. "Walk humbly with thy God.” Or, as it is in the Hebrew, Humble thyfelf to walk with God,' Proud man fcorns to walk with a meek and lowly Jefus; yea, with the high and glorious God, but wants to be as gods, and above God: but you must come down and humble yourself to walk with God..

zdly, Why muft they make hafte and come down? What is the hafte, say you? Why, there is need of that hafte here which David fpeaks of, Pfalm cxix. 59, 60.

I thought on my ways, and turned my feet to thy teftimonies." Then it follows, "I made hafte, and delayed not, to keep thy commandments." There is need of anfwering the gospel-call in hafte.

1. Becaufe time is hafting away; the wings of time are flying with the utmost speed. O Sirs, time, time; fhort and precious: therefore, make hafte and clofe with Chrift, while it is the accepted time, and day of falvation.

2. Because the day of falvation is haftening away; gofpel offers, fermons, and facraments, minifters and

ordinances, all are in hafte. I have read of the birds of Norway, where the days are fhorteft, that the birds. are swifteft. The day of grace being a fhort day, there is need of hafte: "Now is the accepted time, now is the day of falvation."

3. Because death is making haste. That black scythe is mowing down old and young, like grafs, here and there; and death fhuts the door of gofpel-offers for ever: therefore there is need of hafte.

4. Becaufe judgments are making hafte; temporal judgments and fpiritual judgments: and the particular judgment at death, and the general judgment of the great day. All are making hafte, and crying to us to make hafte to get into the city of refuge before it be too late, and the avenger overtake us.

5. Eternity is making hafte. "The angel is about to cry, with his hand lift up to heaven, and to fwear by him that liveth for ever and ever, that time fhall be no

more," Rev. x. 5. What then will follow? Nothing but eternity; eternity of well or wo.

6: Because Chrift is calling on us in hafte, faying, Come, come; "Whofoever will, let him come." His language not only is, Come to me, poor foul; but also, Come with me: "Come with me from Lebanon." He is making hafte to put a close to his work of redemption by power, even as he was in a hafte to accomplish the work of redemption by price; and he will never rest, till he hath it to fay of this, as of the former, "It is

finished."

V. The fifth thing propofed, was; To deduce fome inferences for the application. Is it fo, That in the day of effectual calling, there are heights to which men are apt to climb, from which the Lord calls them to come. down, and haftily to come down? Then hence, I infer thefe following things.

1. See how high and haughty men are by nature; for, as mean and low as they are, yet they affect heights from whence they must come down. The heights to which they afpire are feveral ways expreffed

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