gall son, upholding all things by the word of his power; and, when he had by himself purged our sins," he sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high, being made so much better than the Angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they? This generation of the Son of God is confessedly a great mystery without controversy great is the mystery of godliness."+ I pretend not to explain what is above comprehension. Scripture is the Word of God, and must, therefore, be true in all its doctrines. Herein Christ is declared to be higher than the Angels, to be the Only-begotten Son of God, to be equal to the Father, and to be "the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person."Either, therefore, we must receive these doctrines with all their mystery as perfect truth, or reject the Scriptures altogether as a Divine Revelation. And to the latter decision we are of necessity driven, the moment we take offence at * Hebrews, i. 2, 3, 4. +1 Timothy, iii. 16. not being able to search and comprehend the deep things of God. As Christ is mysteriously related to the Father, so is he peculiarly related to us. He is our Lord, having by what he has done for us, acquired a right to our persons and our service. We are his by Creation; we are his in an especial manner by Redemption. We were by disobedience made subject to wrath. We were in bondage to Satan. We were fast bound in prison, whence we had no power to escape. By shedding his precious blood upon the Cross, as a propitiation and ransom, he turned away from us the indignation of Heaven; overcame for us our mortal enemy, broke the chains of our captivity, and, having set us free from our former subjection and slavery, made us his own property and servants; the one by purchase, the other by conquest. To him, therefore, as our Maker and Preserver, our obedience is due. Not to love the Redeemer, who has saved us from death; not to be grateful to the Deliverer, who has rescued us from misery; and not to pay the tribute of fidelity to the Lord, D who has bought us with his blood, is to betray a coldness and obduracy of heart, greater even than that which the Jews evinced in the wilderness, immediately after they had witnessed and felt the merciful miracles of their God. Happy, thrice happy they! who deeply impressed with the benefits of their Saviour's death and conquest, enlist under his banner, and go on their way rejoicing in the fight of faith against sin, the world, and the devil. Theirs will be the crown of glory; theirs the Resurrection unto life; theirs the songs of joy, the sacred Hallelujahs, in the courts of Heaven: "for to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living,"* and that he might exalt his faithful servants to the throne and happiness of God. Thus have I given you the whole sense of the second Article of our Creed. Herein you see, why our Saviour was called Jesus Christ,-how he filled the three sacred offices of King, Priest, and *Romans, xiv. 9. JJ Prophet-and in what manner he stands related to God the Father and to us. In conclusion, let me exhort you to put your unfeigned faith in Jesus the Saviour of your souls, in Christ the Anointed of God; for through him only can you obtain the pardon of your sins, through him only inherit the promise of eternal life. He is your King. Receive him as such, with all the submission and allegiance of your hearts; acknowledge the power of his sceptre and the authority of his government, bow down before the throne of his majesty, and with a willing and thankful spirit consent that he should reign over you. And when earthly glories shall have passed away, and all the glittering ensigns of human royalty shall have become as nothing, he " will grant you to sit with him in his throne,"* and 66 an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into" his "everlasting kingdom,"† He is your High Priest, who made * Revelations, iii. 21. † 2 Peter, i. 11. atonement for your sins upon the Cross, who is now interceding for you at the throne of mercy, and who is ready to bless you, if you will turn unto him in penitence and faith. "Draw near" unto him "with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having" your "hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience;"* and, as he is faithful, he will fulfil his promises, and procure for you an access to the Father; for " he is able to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them."+ He is, likewise, that Holy Prophet sent by the Father to teach you the truth, and reveal things to come. "To this end was" he "born, and for this cause came" he "into the world, that" he "might bear witness unto the truth;" and " every one that is of the truth heareth his voice."‡ He is "the light of the world ;" follow him, and you "shall have the light of life."§ He is "the good shepherd," that laid "down his life for the sheep" hear his John, xviii. 37. *Heb. x. 22. + Heb. vii. 25. |