:

and the defects which at present attend every grace. It is owing to his intercession, and the abiding efficacy of his atonement, that sin does not again separate us wholly from God. The graces of true Christians in the present state, are in some degree mixed with their opposites, or with their counterfeits, or with that which is simply natural or constitutional so that all is not gold, which glitters in our eyes: their gold is mixed with much alloy. Our Lord therefore tries every grace, that we may not think more highly of ourselves than we ought to think. So Abraham's faith, Job's patience, Moses's meekness, Peter's courage, were tried; and the genuine were found imperfect. Yet he will not let his people be tried above measure. He sits as a refiner : and the trial of their faith is more precious than that of gold that perisheth, and will be found unto praise and honor at his appearing. He knows our defects, and will make us know them; and will then impart the supplies we need. Our graces are defective, both in degree and relative proportion. He lets us feel our wants, that we may live more on his fulness; makes us know our weakness, that we may depend on his strength; causes us to be acquainted with our ignorance and folly, that we may look to him for wisdom; makes us more deeply sensible of our guilt, that we may see the more need of his righteousness; leads us into the knowledge of our sinfulness, that we may look to him for sanctification; and causes us to know how insufficient we are to emancipate ourselves from thraldom, that we may seek to him for redemption from our spiritual enemies. But while he teaches us experimentally, that without him we can do nothing, he assures us that we can do all things through his strengthening us. His grace is sufficient for us. His strength is made perfect in our weakness. He takes gracious notice of every genuine exercise of grace, and sincere opposition to sin. He insures the victory, though he will have the praise. He sees the love that makes the believer mourn his want of faith, and greater measures of holiness.

CXXXVII.

THE EFFICACY OF THE DEATH OF CHRIST.

HEB. ix. 14.

How much more shall the blood of Christ, who, through the eternal Spirit, offered himself without spot unto God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God.

THE great design of this Epistle was to guard the believing Hebrews against temptations to apostasy, to which they were much exposed from two sources. First, the peculiar virulence of their countrymen against the profession of the Christian faith. Secondly, the consideration that the Jewish religion was really instituted by God. This latter temptation is refuted by showing, that though the Mosaic economy was indeed of divine institution, yet it was intended only for a time, to be subservient and introductory to the gospel of Christ. It could do nothing of itself for the final salvation of the soul; and they who renounced the gospel to return to it, especially as abused by the modern Jews, would ruin their own souls. To this end he shows that all their principal appointments had a typical reference, and that the gospel of Christ reveals that method of salvation which alone has a spiritual and permanent efficacy. In verses 11th and 12th, he contrasts the high priest's entrance into the holy of holies on the day of atonement, with Christ's entrance into heaven. Lev. xvi. 34. In the 13th verse, he alludes to the sacrifices in general, and to the ashes of the red heifer in particular. Numb. xix. These were kept for the constant use of purifying from ceremonial defilement, especially by touching a dead body. Many offices of humanity and mercy would require such coming in contact, which could not morally defile; but, death being the wages of sin, and in itself a part of the curse of the law, God established this regulation, to enhance their conviction of this awful truth, and prescribed this purification to be an emblem of a more spiritual cleansing. They that were ceremonially defiled, were prohibited from the solemnities of public worship till duly purified. The efficacy of these purifications depended

altogether on divine appointment; but on that footing they were efficacious as to their proper end, which was to purify the unclean as to the flesh; but they could not make perfect as touching the conscience.

But what the whole system of the Levitical appointments could not do, Christ has done effectually and completely, as the Apostle here argues from the less to the greater. If the sacrifices of the law, and these purifications, which owed all their efficacy to arbitrary appointments, answered the end for which they were instituted, how much more shall the great propriatory sacrifice, which is not only equally of divine appointment, but full of intrinsic worth, accomplish fully the end for which it was designed. Let us then con

sider,

FIRST, The sources from whence the blood of Christ derives its efficacy?

The blood which was once shed without the gates of Jerusalem, when Jesus was crucified there, cannot be supposed to have this effect of purging the consciences of all them that believe in him, but from the consideration of a number of important circumstances. Blood is the very means and seat of animal life, and the exhausting of the blood from the body is a certain cause of death. In the punishment of crucifixion, the great discharge of blood, united with extreme pain, was, I suppose, the direct cause of death. In the slaughter of animals offered in sacrifice to God, the blood of the victim was not only shed, but was sprinkled upon the altar; and on the great day of atonement was carried into the holy of holies, and sprinkled before the mercy-seat. Therefore, the blood of Christ is of the same import with the sufferings of Christ, or with the death of Christ, or with his obedience unto death: and it is on this account that his blood is said to cleanse from all sin. 1 John i. 7. "In him we have redemption, through his blood," &c. That he shed his blood for us, is the same as to say, he laid down his life for us, or suffered for us, or gave himself for us. Now the efficacy of the blood of Christ must principally consist in this, viz. in its being a sufficient demonstration of God's infinite abhorrence of sin; and thus being

suited to show, notwithstanding the exemption of the original offenders from punishment, that God is as much an enemy to sin as ever he professed to be, or as he could have shown himself by inflicting the penalty of the law on them. To the accomplishment of this end, divine appointment was necessary. No sinner could warrantably suppose, 'I can plan a way myself, by which God shall demonstrate his hatred of sin sufficiently, and yet exempt me from personal suffering.' But if God himself should say, I have found a ransom, I have provided a lamb; here is ground on which faith may rest: what he has chosen for this very end will do, assuredly. Yet this is not to be so understood, as if the bare appointment seemed to be sufficient. Else the burning of a waxen image, or shedding the blood of an animal, might have sufficed: whereas the latter is declared to have been impossible, and the reason is plain. This would not be an expression of displeasure equivalent to the original penalty of the law.

But here we are led to consider whose blood it was. The blood of Christ: of him who was promised to the Oldtestament church, to be the high priest, who should put away sin by the sacrifice of himself; and who is the incarnate Son of God. The Lamb of God is the Son of God. The efficacy of his sacrifice, and of all his offices, depends on the dignity of his person. It is not requisite that whatever he does must be the immediate act of the divine, as well as the human nature; it is only needful that the person whose acts they are, should be God as well as man. This will justify saying, God purchased the church with his own blood. And this renders the death of Christ so complete a demonstration of God's just abhorrence of sin, and so a satisfaction to justice. No more need be done to impress the saved, or any intelligent being who duly considers the plan of salvation, with a conviction of this. The end for which his blood

was shed. Herein he offered himself to God. He gave up himself, as an act of the most profound obedience, to do and suffer all that the law and justice of God could require to the expiation of sin; which was expressed by shedding his blood, answerably to all the typical representations of the

former economy.

The immaculacy of his sacrifice. It was without spot. One sinner pleading or suffering for another would be of no avail. But Christ was infinitely dear to his Father, and always did what pleased him. He who knew no sin became an offering for sin. And indeed his death itself was the highest act of obedience; the greatest display of zeal for God, and of disinterested love to man. It was offered through the eternal Spirit. This may be understood in two senses; both are true and important. His own divine nature certainly gave efficacy to his atonement. The human nature could not have endured such sufferings, but as thus supported; nor could they have had sufficient dignity and excellence. Others understand it of the Holy Spirit; and so some ancient copies read; though it is generally "eternal Spirit." This, however, is true of the Holy Spirit, as well as of our Lord's divine nature; and I rather think it is most suitable to the form of a servant, which he then sustained, thus to understand it.

SECONDLY: The blessed effects which it is suited to produce, immediate and remote.

First: To purge the conscience from dead works. The ashes of the heifer purged men from that defilement by a dead body, through which they would have been debarred from access to the sanctuary of God. Now, if death, which came in by sin, was so polluting as to prevent access to outward ordinances, much more must sin itself so defile the soul as to prevent all acceptable approach to God. The works of unbelievers are dead works. They have no vital principle of holiness in them; they proceed from a principle of spiritual death; are useless and fruitless; yea, merit death as their wages; are generally done against God's glory and command; never done for his glory, nor agreeably to his will; as to manner, motive, and end. They defile the conscience; fill it with an awful sense of guilt, unless it be for a season stupified; which is indeed often the case; so that the soul either will not, or dare not draw near to God. God is either forgotten, neglected, or contemned, or treated as an object of dread. But the application of Christ's blood to the conscience, both pacifies it and purifies it. It both frees it from