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poffible abatement; nor acquit the offender, without fuffering the penalty due to the offence. Should the finner, deprived of the light and comforts of God's fpirit, be for ever banished from his blifsful prefence, and fhut up in the dark and difinal regions of the bottomlefs pit; he would fuffer no more than what the law he had violated fentenced him to; and as it is impoffible that he could for ever lie in hell, and yet be faved; fo it is equally impoffible, that a guilty finner, obnoxious to eternal death by the righteous fentence of the law, fhould do any thing to procure, or merit his own falvation. In fhort, our cafe and condition is this, we are guilty creatures, and no kind of punishment, how ever exquifite; no duration of that punishment however long, can make us otherwife; for as eternity knows no bound, and infinity has nolimitations; fo that holy and inflexible law, which condemns the offender toeternal fufferings, can never fayit is enough.

Again, could it be fuppofed, (which is abfurd,) yet I fay, could it be fuppofed, that a finner was justly exempt from fuffering, as the defert of fin; and that he stood on a like footing with Adam, in respect to a covenant do (or do not) and live, (which I muft again obferve is abfurd to fuppofe, for the fcripture knows of no covenant existing fince Adam finned in paradife, but the covenant of grace) yet one might venture to affirm, that on fuch condition no flesh would be faved. These following reasons will make it plain. Adam had many advantages of ftanding in his perfect ftate, and of obeying the law of God, whch we have not, for firft, He had a perfect nature, all the powers and faculties of his foul, and all the members and organs of his body, like a curious and well

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well wrought machine, when firft coming from the hands of the artift; were in perfect regularity, and fubferved each other in pleafing harmony, and fweet concord. This is alluded to in those fcripture paffages, wherein the perfection of that nature is begun to be reftored by the power of renovating grace; if any man be in Chrift he is a new creature, put on the new man which after God is created in righteoufnefs and true boliness, the fruit of the fpirit is in all goodness and truth. 2. Cor. v. 17. Eph. iv. 24. &c. But with us it is the very reverfe, the œconomical state of our fouls and bodies, is fomewhat like the anarchical ftate of Ifrael, when every man did that which was right in his own eyes; our paffions are stiff and unruly, the understanding dark, the will obftinate, and the affections vitiated. The ftreams of corruption which proceed from the depraved and corrupt nature, and flow with greater, or lefs rapidity from every unrenewed heart are awfully defcribed by the great apostle in these words, the works of the flesh are thefe, adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lascivioufnefs, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, ftrife, feditions, berefes, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and fuch like; on which defcription, it will be fufficient to ob. ferve, that the fruit makes fully manifeft the quality of the tree. 2d. Adam lived under the fimiles of his maker; the light of whofe counte.. nance fills the heart with gladnefs, and animates the foul to chearful obedience; but we are estranged from the womb, the intervening clouds of fin, have hid from us the light of his bleffed countenance, and left us to droop under the most defponding difcouragements; the law, with unabat

ing rigor as the egyptian task-masters, exacts the full tale of perfect obedience, yet gives us no trength to perform it; this is alluded to Rom. viii. 3. what the law could not do, namely, give life and falvation, in that it was weak through the flesh, through the imperfection, and impotency of nature; that did Jefus Chrift by the facrifice of himself. 3d. When Adam first came from the hands of God, he naturally loved God, this was the law of his nature written and engraven on his heart; but we, conceived in fin, and fhapen in iniquity, have an enmity against God; and if not in words, yet in our ways and actions fay with the haughty prince, who is the Lord, that I fhould obey his voice. Now as the fubftance of that law, by which we could have any claim to falvation, confists in love to God, with all the foul, mind, and ftrength, the task is equally eafy for us, to change our nature, as fulfill this righteous law. 4th, When Adam was placed in. the garden of Eden, although he had a fecret enemy, that was contriving his ruin; yet was he exempt from that innumerable multitude of fnares. and temptations, that his pofterity have to cope with. He had none of thofe deadly struggles, with a hard and unbelieving heart, foolish and hurtful defires, which often make the christian hero groan, and greatly agonize for victory; and before which, the unrenewed by grace are impetuously driven as before a swell of mighty waters. In our lapfed condition, we are each confidered apart as a leaky veffel at fea in a storm, whofe affrighted mariners are every moment expecting to fink like lead into the bottom of the raging deep; but when confidered, as in fociety, our condition

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is much more dangerous, by the additional danger of being dashed to pieces one against another. 5th, The fame law that was given to Adam in his perfect state, and on which the foederal law was founded; continues to us, as extenfive in it's demands, as rigorous in it's exactions, and as inflexible in it's nature, under all our weakneffes, wants, and difficulties, as it was to him when fraught with every qualification adequate to the extenfive precept.

And is it poffible we fhould yet imagine that we can do something to deserve the divine favour? Can we yet think to build a Babel whose top fhall reach to heaven? No, we are empty pitchers; we are enfeebled treatures; yea we are guilty hell-deferving creatures. May we have an ear open to inftruction, and an heart made wife to understand, what the evangelical prophet would have us learn in those words; wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread, and your labour for that which fatisfieth not? He here, would call our attention from the broken cifterns of creature-comfort, to the full and overflowing fountain of uncreated goodness; and from liftening to the delufive overtures of flesh and blood, to lend our willing ears to the infallible teachings of his bleffed fpirit.

Seeing therefore, that falvation is not attainable, no nor even damnation avoidable, by our own works, what abundant reafon have we to bless God for Jefus Chrift our redeemer, furety, and Saviour! What hopes could our guilty parents entertain, when arraigned at God's impartial bar, that the fentence fhould not be executed in it'sutmoft feverity? How unexpected therefore must

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that mercy be, that was manifested in the ferpent's curfe, and how full of confolation, the promise couched in the deceiver's doom! it, (hu,) he the, redeemer of his people from the curfe and death their fin deferved; the everlafting Son of the Father, the first and laft, Jehovah, bleffed for ever; in the fullness of time fhall lay afide his glory, and affuming the human nature fhall be born, the feed of the woman, whom thou haft feduced, and fall bruife thy head, fhall deliver his lambs from thy voracious jaws, defpoil thee of the power thou art permitted to poffefs, and drag thee conquered at his chariot wheels.

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But it is now time for me to draw towards a conclufion, left I fhould intrude too much upon your time, and weary out your patience. we then by nature children of wrath, guilty and obnoxious finners? Let us then as fuch, humble ourselves under the mighty hand of our justly offended maker. Let us take to ourselves the fhame that our fins have deferved, and let us give to the justice of God, the glory that is due in punishing the offender; and to his mercy and grace, the glory that is due in justifying, and faving the guilty.

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The confequence of this doctrine is, that our falvation is left wholly in the hands of God, and none can be faved if this doctrine be true, but they must owe their falvation intirely to him," And who needs be afhamed of this confequence? Good old Jacob was not, when he said, I have waited for thy falvation, O Lord, emphatically thine; nor was the king of Ifrael when in like words, he said, I have longed for thy falvation. For the power to fave poor hell deferving finners, is

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