hope in him, that is, in Christ, to be faved by him, must purify himself, even as he is pure. We do not rightly and truly believe that Jefus Christ came into the world to fave finners, if we be not alfo thoroughly convinced, that it is as neceffary for us to leave our fins, as to believe this most faithful and credible faying.

:

The obedience and fufferings of our bleffed Saviour are indeed accounted to us for righteousness, and will most certainly redound to our unfpeakable benefit and advantage, upon our performance of the condition which the gofpel doth require on our part, namely, that every man that names the name of Chrift, depart from iniquity and the grace of God's Holy Spirit is ready to enable us to perform this condition, if we earnestly ask it, and do fincerely co-operate with it: provided we do what, we can on our part, God will not be wanting to us on his. But if we receive the grace of God in vain, and take no care to perform the condition, and do neglect to implore the grace and affiftance of God's Holy Spirit to that purpofe, we have none to blame but ourselves; because it is then wholly our own fault, if we fall fhort of that happinefs which Chrift hath purchased and promised to us upon fuch eafy and reasonable conditions as the gospel proposeth.

But I no where find that God hath promised to force happiness upon the negligent, and a reward upon the wicked and flothful fervant. A gift may be given for nothing, but furely a reward does in the very nature of it always fuppofe fome fervice. None but a righteous man is capable of a righteous man's reward: and St. John hath fufficiently cautioned us not to think ourselves righteous, unless we be doers of righteousness: Little children, (fays he, 1 John iii. 7.), let no man deceive you: he that doth righteoufnefs, is righteous, even as he is righteous. This is fo very plain a text, that if men were not either very eafy to be deceived by others, or very willing to deceive themselves, they could not poffibly mistake the meaning of it; and therefore I will repeat it once more: Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doth righteoufnefs, is righteous, even as he is righteous.

2. The other inference which I would make from the precedent discourse, is this, That with all poffible thankfulness

fulness we should acknowledge and adore the wonderful goodness and condefcenfion of almighty God, in fending his only begotten Son into the world in our nature to be made flesh, and to dwell amongst us, in order to our recovery and falvation: A method and difpenfation, not only full of mercy and goodness, but of great condefcenfion to our meannefs, and of mighty virtue and efficacy for our redemption, and deliverance from the guilt and dominion of fin; and upon all accounts every way fo much for our benefit and advantage: fo that well may we fay, with St. Paul, This is a faithful faying, ISTIS λoyos, a credible word, and worthy of all acceptation, (that is, fit to be embraced and entertained with all poffible joy and thankfulness), that Jefus Chrift came into the world to fave finners.

What an everlasting fountain of the most invaluable bleffings and benefits to mankind is the incarnation of the Son of God; his vouchfafing to affume our nature, and to refide and converse so long with us? And what are we, that the eternal and only begotten Son of God fhould condefcend to do all this for us? That the high and glorious Majefty of heaven fhould ftoop down to the earth, and be contented to be clothed with mifery and mortality that he fhould fubmit to fo poor and low a condition, to fuch dreadful and disgraceful fufferings for our fakes? For what are we? vile and defpicable creatures, guilty and unworthy offenders and apoftates, enemies and rebels. Bleffed God! how great is thy goodnefs? how infinite are thy tender mercies and compaffions to mankind? that thou fhouldst regard us whilst we neglected thee, and remember us in our low condition, when we had forgotten thee days without number; and shouldst take fuch pity on us, when we fhewed none to ourselves; and whilft we were thy declared and implacable enemies, fhouldft exprefs more kindness and good-will to us, than the best of men ever did to their best friends?

When we reflect feriously upon thofe great things which God hath done in our behalf, and confider that mighty falvation which God hath wrought for us; what thanks can we poffibly render? what acknowledgments fall we ever be able to make, I do not fay equal, but VOL. III.

I

in

in any ways meet and becoming, to this great benefactor of mankind; who when we had fo highly offended and provoked him, and fo foolishly and fo fatally undone ourfelves; when we were become fo guilty and fo miserable, and fo much fitter to have eternally been the objects of his wrath and indignation, than of his pity and compaffion, was pleased to fend his own, his only Son into the world to feek and fave us; and by him to repair all our ruins, to forgive all our iniquities, to heal all our fpiritual difeafes, and to crown us with loving-kindness and tender mercies?

And what facrifices of praise and thanksgiving should we also offer up to this gracious and most merciful Redeemer of ours, the everlasting Son of the Father, who debafed himself fo infinitely for our fakes, and when he took upon him to deliver man did not abhor the virgin's womb; who was contented to be born fo obfcurely, and to live all his life in a poor and perfecuted condition; and was pleafed both to undergo and to overcome the fharpnefs of death, that he might open the kingdom of heaven to all believers ?

Every time we have occafion to meditate upon this, especially when we are communicating at his holy table, and receiving the bleffed fymbols and pledges of his precious death and paffion; how fhould our hearts burn within us, and leap for joy? How fhould the remembrance of it revive and raise our spirits, and put us into an ecftafy of love and gratitude to this great friend and lover of fouls? and, with the bleffed mother of our Lord, how fhould our fouls, upon that bleffed occafion, magnify the Lord, and our fpirits rejoice in God our Savi

Our ?

The holy men of old were tranfported with joy at the obfcure and confused apprehension and remote forefight of fo great a bleffing, at fo great a distance. It is faid of Abraham, the father of the faithful, that he faw his day afar off, and was glad. How fhould we then be affected with joy and thankfulness, to whom the Son of God and bleffed Saviour of men is actually come? He is come many ages ago, and hath enlightened a great part of the world with his glory. Yea, he is come to us, who were in a manner feparated from the rest of the

world.

world. To us is this great light come, who had fo long fat in darkness, and in the fhadow of death; and this mighty falvation which he hath wrought for us, is near to every one of us that is willing to lay hold of it, and to accept it upon thofe gracious terms and conditions upon which it is offered to us in his holy gofpel.

And by his coming he hath delivered mankind from that grofs ignorance and thick darkness which covered the nations. And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding to know him that is true: and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jefus Chrift. This is the true God and eternal life, 1 John v. 20. 21.; and then it immediately follows, Little children, keep yourfelves from idols. What can be the meaning of this caution? and what is the connexion of it with the foregoing difcourfe? It is plainly this, That the Son of God, by his coming, had refcued mankind from the fottish worship of idols; and therefore he cautions Christians to take great heed of relapfing into idolatry by worshiping a creature, or the image and likenefs of any creature, inftead of God. And because he forefaw that it might be objected to Chriftians, as in fact it was afterwards by the Heathen, that the worship of Christ, who was a man, was as much idolatry as that which the Chriftians charged the Heathen withal; therefore St. John, effectually to prevent the force of this plaufible objection, though he perpetually, throughout his gofpel, declares Chrift to be really a man, yet he exprefsly alfo affirms him to be God, and the true God; and confequently, Chriftians might fafely pay divine worship to him without fear or danger of idolatry: We are in him that is true, even in his Son Jefus Chrift. This is the true God and eternal life. Little children, keep your felves from idols.

But this I am fenfible is a digreffion, yet fuch a one as may not be altogether ufelefs.

To proceed then in the recital of thofe great bleffings which the coming of the Son of God hath brought to mankind: He hath rescued us from the bondage of fin, and from the flavery of Satan: he hath openly proclaimed pardon and reconciliation to the world: he hath clearly revealed eternal life to us, which was but obfcure

ly made known before, both to Jews and Gentiles; but is now made manifeft by the appearance of our Lord and Saviour Jefus Chrift, who hath abolished death, and brought life and immortality to light by the gospel. He hath purchafed this great bleffing for us, and is ready to confer it upon us, if we will be contented to leave our fins, and to be faved by him: a condition, without which as falvation is not to be had, fo if it were, it would not be defirable, it could not make us happy; becaufe our fins would ftill feparate between God and us, and the guilt and horror of our own minds would make us eternally miferable.

And now, furely, we cannot but thus judge, that all the praises and acknowledgments, all the fervice and obedience which we can poffibly render to him, are infinitely beneath thofe infinite obligations which the Son of God hath laid upon the fons of men by his coming into the world to fave finners.

What then remains, but that at all times, and more efpecially at this feafon, we gratefully acknowledge and joyfully commemorate this great and amazing goodness of God to us, in the incarnation of his Son for the redemption and falvation of the finful and miferable race of mankind? A method and difpenfation of the divine grace and wifdom, not only full of mercy and condefcenfion, but of great power and virtue to purify our hearts and to reform our lives; to beget in us a fervent love of God our Saviour, and a perfect hatred and deteftation of our fins, and a ftedfaft purpose and refolution to lead a new life, following the commandments of God, and walking in his ways all the days of our life in a word, a method that is every way calculated for our unfpeakable benefit and comfort.

Since then the Son of God hath fo graciously condefcended to be made in all things like unto us, fin only excepted, let us afpire to be as like to him as is poffible in the exemplary holinefs and virtues of his life. We cannot be like him in his miracles, but we may in his mercy and compaffion : we cannot imitate his divine power, but we may refemble him in his innocency and humility, in his meeknefs and patience. And as he af fumed human nature, fo let us reaffume humanity, which

we