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have nothing to do with the fubje&t. Impreffions are not believing. There is great power accompanying the word to the foul when God is pleased to make it effectual; but this is more perceived by what it produces in the foul, than by what is then felt. I fear there are very few, and confefs, I very rarely find of God's dear people, who derive all their healing, cleanfing, pardon, and confolation from Chrift alone, by fimple faith and : yet the Holy Spirit directs us to Christ crucified, as the grand subject for us to feed upon, and rejoice in. There is a strong and lasting foundation in the blood of Chrift for our comfort and encouragement. The blood of Chrift hath in it all the efficacy of eternal Godhead: and what wounds are fo deep, that they cannot be healed by the fovereign balfam of fo rich a blood? What fins are too great to be expiated; and what diseases too bad to be cured by the blood of him that created the world? How rich is that blood, fince it is the blood of the Son of God, and must therefore have infinitely more of value in it than all fins can have of guilt, fince they are the fins of the fons of men. The blood of Chrift is as much above the guilt of our fins, as the excellency of his perfon is above the meanness of ours. It is in experience a matter of infinite moment to know Christ, our interest in him, and to partake by faith of God's pardoning mercy. And here I would be as honeft as day-light: I do not doubt of my interest in Chrift; but I profefs before you, that it is not my believing my personal interest in Jefus, that fupports and ftrengthens my faith: no; but this, what I know from

the word and spirit concerning the perfon, and perfect, finifhed work of Chrift: the Father's delight in the Mediator, and in his work of mediation, is the rock on which I ftand, and the object from whence I derive ftrength and fuccour. I fay it again; my knowledge of Chrift, as to what I am fpiritually taught of him from the word, proceeds from the divine anointings of the Holy Spirit, who gives me a fpiritual knowledge of Chrift; of his perfon and falvation; and his prefenting him to the mind, fpiritually, illuminates the understanding; draws the affections; fanctifies the will; purges the confcience; comforts the heart; and produces a fenfe and an enjoyment of that peace which paffeth all understanding. It is a fpiritual knowledge of Chrift which produces the actings of spiritual faith on him; and all true joy and peace in God are the fruits and effects of believing. Hear the apoftle, who, in his prayer for the believing Romans, expreffes himfelf thus: Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing. It is in believing in Chrift he fills the foul with all joy and peace.

I conclude with faying, God's called ones have cause to fing aloud for joy. Hear a faint of old expreffing himself thus: Lord, thou hast been favourable to thy land: thou haft brought back the captivity of Facob: thou haft forgiven the iniquity of thy people: thou hast covered all their fin. Believers, if your fins are hidden and covered; if Chrift's blood be your atonement, why then do ye not rejoice in God? And if your fins are not taken away by Chrift already, how are ye to be discharged from them? Ye fay, ye are not with

out fin in yourselves, truly it is fo,-but Chrift's blood is your eternal purity, and ye are now in Christ as one with him, and as feen by the Father in him, as pure and perfectly cleansed from fin, and as confummately righteous as ye will be when in heaven: and that, inasmuch as God hath freely forgiven you all trefpaffes. The excellent Charnock fays: "All tranfgreffions to Chrift's blood," are like a grain of fand, or a drop of "a bucket to the ocean, no more feen or diftinguished "when it is fwallowed up by the mass of waters.". It is a plenteous redemption, fince it redeems Ifrael, and all the Ifrael of God, from all their iniquities. His blood can cleanse as many fins as his Godhead can create millions of worlds, and those are numberless: fince there are no limits to his power, there can be none to his blood. That blood which hath cleansed fo many from fin, and from fuch multitudes of fins in their various heinousness, can cleanse from all your fins, were they as great as all thofe jointly that have been cleanfed by it from the beginning of the world. May the Lord's words be precious to your fouls; he fpeaks from off the mercy-feat, and declares in his own promife, I will be merciful to your unrighteoufnefs; and your fins and your iniquities will I remember no more. The Lord grant his bleffing on what has been delivered. Amen.

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SERMON XII.

CHRIST, THE SON OF GOD, CONSECRATED A PRIEST FOR EVER.

HEBREWS, Chap. vii. Ver. 28.

For the La maketh men high Priefs which have infirmity; but the word of the Oath, which was fince the Law, maketh the Son, who is confecrated for evermore.

IT is the great defign of the writer of this moft

excellent epiftle, to exhibit and fet forth the Lord Jefus Chrift in his effential, perfonal, and mediatorial glory, with an intent to illuftrate and aggrandize the tranfcendent excellency of our Lord's prieftly work and office which exceeds Aaron's and his fucceffors, as much as the glory of the meridian fun does that of the stars and which was typified by one who far exceeded Aaron, even by Melchifedec, who was a type of Chrift, and his only type as it refpected the eternity of his perfon, and the unchangeable nature of his priefsthood. The apoftle treats of the greatness and dignity of Chrift's perfon, and of his extraordinary call to the office of priesthood. Chrift took not this office upon him, without his Father's call and divine appointment:

Christ, the Son of God, confecrated a Priest for ever. 241

speaking of the prieftly office, he faith, And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron: fo alfo, Christ glorified not himself, to be made an high Priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee; which leads him to obferve the preeminency of the order, according to which he was a prieft, which was beyond that of Aaron, Christ being a prieft after the order of Melchifedec: this is the grand fubject of the chapter from whence my text is taken, which treats principally of our Lord's onenefs and finglenefs in this office; his folemn inauguration into it, together with its perpetuity and everlasting duration. These things the writer most largely insists upon, to prove the excellency of Chrift's priesthood: and which leads him to expatiate moft admirably upon the excellency of Chrift's facrifice, which exceeded all the facrifices of the law in refpect to the matter, virtue, efficacy, and benefits arifing from it. They were but fhadows-Chrift was the fubftance of them all; they could not make the comers thereunto perfect: Chrift's offering perfects, and that for ever, all his people. His body and foul offered up as a facrifice, in union with his Deity, contain an everlafting virtue and efficacy: thereby fin is expiated, and the eternal worth of this facrifice muft continue for ever: all the fins of his people are thereby abolished; upon the foot of it they are freely forgiven; peace is established; and we are brought nigh unto God. Though this is one principal fubject here treated of-the dignity and fufficiency of our Lord's facrifice, to take away, remove, and abolish, out of the fight of law

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