a discovery of the nature and glory of God, as the foundation of all that is afterwards to follow.

This will be further evident, if we reflect upon the account formerly given, and fufficiently fupported from the holy fcriptures, of the nature of this change, That it confifts in a fupreme regard to the glory of God, and an habitual prevailing defire of his favor. To this it is abfolutely neceffary, as a preliminary, that there be a difcovery of the real nature and tranfcendent glory of God. How, can any man have that as the chief and leading motive of action which he doth not understand? How can any man have that as the fupreme object of defire, which he doth not know? Neither of thefe is poffible; there muft, therefore, be fome fuch difcovery as I have mentioned above. It is true, this is but imperfect at firft; there will be in the truly regenerate a growing difcovery of the glory of God, as well as a growing delight in hini, as its confequence: yet there must be fome view of his nature, as the beginning of the change, and the ground-work of every holy difpofition.

This difcovery of God implies two things, which, as they are both neceffary, fo they deferve our particular attention; and it is not improper to diftinguifh carefully the one from the other. 1. It must be a difcovery of his real, nature. 2. A difcovery of the worth and excellence of his nature, which is, properly fpeaking, the glory of God.

1. It must be a difcovery of the real nature of God. He must be seen to be just such a Being as he really is, and no falfe or adulterated image muft be placed in his room, or adored in his ftead. He must be feen in his fpiritual nature, as almighty in his power, unfearchable in his wif dom, inviolable in his truth; but, above all, he must be feen as infinite in his holinefs and hatred of fin, as impar tial in his justice, and determined to punish it. Such is the fcripture reprefentation of God, as "glorious in his ho"linefs.-Evil cannot dwell with him, and finners can"not ftand in his prefence." It is the error of the wicked to fuppofe the contrary; and, indeed, it is the very

fource of wickednefs to deny the being, or to deny the holinefs of God; and these amount much to the fame thing. "Wherefore doth the wicked contemn God; he hath faid "in his heart thou wilt not require it.*-The fool hath "faid in his heart there is no God.t-These things thou "haft done, and I kept filence; thou thoughteft that I was "altogether fuch an one as thyfelf, but I will reprove thee, "and fet them in order before thine eyes."

God must be seen as he is reprefented in his own word, which is the only rule of faith, the pillar and ground of truth. This is a matter of the greatest importance, which, I am forry to fay, is in this age very feldom attended to, but which is most manifeftly and undeniably juft. If God is not seen in his real nature, as he is in truth, he can never be acceptably ferved. If a wrong or falfe character of God is formed, no worship we can offer to him, no love or respect we can bear to him is genuine; or rather, to speak more properly, our fervice and attachment is, in that cafe, wholly mifplaced, and not directed to him at all, but fomething else is loved, honored, and ferved in his room. I befeech the ferious reader to obferve, what an unspeakable jealoufy God difcovered under the Old Teftament difpenfation, as to the purity of his worship, and what a heinous crime all idolatry was efteemed. How great was the divine displeasure at the making and worshipping the golden calf, although it is very probable Aaron only intended to represent the true God, by the fame fymbol they had seen in Egypt? Did not this belong to the fubftance, and not only to the circumftances of religion? Is it not then equally interefting under the New Teftament as under the Öld? Was the unchangeable God fo much difpleafed at giving him a falfe name, and will he not be equally difpleafed with those who attribute to him a falfe nature?

As this truth ferves to explain the nature and rife of regeneration, fo it alfo receives particular light and evidence itfelf from what has been faid in the preceding parts of this fubject. Regeneration confifts in having the image of God again drawn upon the heart; that is, its being car

密

Ffal. x. 13 † Pfal. xiv. 1.

Pfal. 1. 21.

riel out to the fupreme love of God, and delight in him or, in other words, brought to the fupreme love of, and delight in, perfect goodnefs and immaculate holiness. When this is the cafe, the finner is renewed, he again bears the image of God, which he had loft, he is again fitted for the prefence of God, from which he had been expelled. But if he has wrong notions of God, if he takes him to be effentially different from what he really is, he ferves not the true God at all, he bears not his image, he delights not in his fellowship, he is unfit for his prefence. If religion confifts in a divine nature, fuch a perfon does not poffefs it, unless there are more Gods than one. There may, indeed, be an alteration in him, he may have transferred his allegiance, and changed his master,for idols are many, but he is not brought unto God; and, fo long as God is immutable, his happiness is impoffible.

I can recollect nothing that is worth notice as an ob jection against this, but that our knowledge of God, at any rate, is extremely imperfe&t and defective. It is fo to be fure, while we are in this world; nay, probably, it will be fo to all eternity: for "who can by fearching find out "God? Who can find out the Almighty unto perfection? "It is high as heaven, what can we do? deeper than hell, "what can we know? The measure thereof is longer than "the earth, and broader than the fea."* But there is a great difference between the imperfection of our knowledge of God, and forming conceptions of him that are fundamentally wrong. There is a great difference between having weak and inadequate ideas of the truth, and believing or acting upon the oppofite falfhood. Unless this is admitted, we fhall never fee the unspeakable advantage which the Jews enjoyed over the Gentiles, "because to "them were committed the oracles of God;" nor indeed fhall we fee the worth and beauty of the ancient difpenfation in general. It was one uniform difplay of this great and important truth, which is delivered with fo much majefty by God himfelf: "I am the Lord, that is my name, "and my glory will I not give to another, neither my

Job xi. 7, 8, 9.

"praife to graven images." Neither is this at all relaxed under the New Teftament. The importance of "holding "the truth as it is in Jefus"-of "holding faft the form "of found words" and "keeping the truth," is often declared, as well as that "no lie is of the truth." And no wonder that in this pure and fpiritual conftitution, it fhould be neceffary to have clear and diftinct views of him who is "the Father of fpirits."

Thus I hope it appears, that, in order to a faving change, there must be a discovery of the real nature of the one only, the living and true God. Before we proceed further, let me obferve that hence may be feen, in the clearest light, the danger both of ignorance, and error.

1. Of ignorance. It is plain that those who are grofsly ignorant must be unrenewed. Thofe who do not know God, cannot poffibly love him. Do you not now see the meaning and weight of the ftrong language of fcripture, where we are told the heathen nations were fitting "in "darknefs, and in the region and fhadow of death?" What force fhould this give to the prayers fo often offered up, both in public and in private, that the "name" of God may be "hallowed," and his kingdom come? How much fhould it add to the zeal and diligence, efpecially of those who are appointed to watch for the fouls of others? What concern fhould it give them, left any under their immediate inspection" should perish for lack of knowledge." is indeed furprising to think, what grofs ignorance prevails at present among many, notwithstanding the excellent opportunities of inftruction which they have in their offer. Nay, even among those who are inftructed in feveral branches of human fcience, it is aftonishing to think what ig. norance there is of every thing that relates to religion.

It

If accident or curiofity has brought this difcourfe into the hands of any fuch, let me intreat their attention for a little. I befeech you to think upon, and tremble at your ftate. You may have fome fort of a nominal belief of an - unfeen, unintelligible being, called God, while you know neither" what you speak, nor whereof you affirm." You may perhaps have heard, or rather in our happy native country you cannot but have heard of Chrift Jefus, the Son

of God, ftiled often the Savior of finners; but you "know "neither the Father nor the Son." You know not God as Creator, nor, by confequence, your obligations and duty to him, or your apoftacy and departure from both. You know not what fin is, and therefore, you cannot know a Saviour. If ever you come to true religion at all, light will break in upon you in your darkness, you will no more be able to forget God, he will follow you into your fecret chambers, he will come home upon you, and affault you, as it were, with the reality of his prefence, with the fanctity and purity of his nature, and the terrible majefty of his power. O how great is the effect of a real difcovery of the divine glory, whether in the word, or by the providence of God; to a faint or to a finner. Hear how Job expreffes himself, "I have heard of thee by the hearing "of the ear, but now mine eye feeth thee, wherefore I ab"hor myself, and repent in duft and afhes."* We have

the fame thing well defcribed by the prophet Isaiah, as the effect of divine power in defolating judgments. "Enter "into the rock, and hide thee in the duft, for the fear of "the Lord, and for the glory of his majefty. The lofty "looks of man fhall be humbled, and the haughtiness of "men fhall be bowed down, and the Lord alone fhall be "exalted in that day.-And they fhall go into the holes "of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the “Lord, and for the glory of his majesty, when he arifeth to "shake terribly the earth. In that day a man fhall caft his "idols of filver, and his idols of gold, which they made "each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the "bats, to go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops "of the ragged rocks, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of "his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth."† "So foon as it pleases God to open your eyes upon himfelf, with whom you have to do, it will humble you in the duft, it will discover your danger, it will make redemption precious to you, and the name of a Saviour unfpeakably dear.

*Job xlii. 5, 6. Ifaiah ii. 10, 15, 19, 20, 21.