"rit," they fhall have fellowship together, not an ly in love to God for what he is, and hath done, but in fervent love toward all his children, and hearty concern that finners, by genuine converfion, may speedily be numbered with them.

Gentile finners, under the influence of this promife, fhall come to heaven itself. They fhall come, by a fcriptural perfeverance in the gracious state, temper, and practice condefcended upon, until their connections with mortality be loofed-That they should perfevere, appears from the exhortation to be "fedfaft and unmoveable, always abound"ing in the work of the Lord," 1 Cor. xv. 58That they may perfevere, is evident from the example of those who drew not "back to perdition, "but" believed "to the faving of the foul," Heb. x. 39.-That they mufi perfevere, or come fhort of eternal life, cannot be difputed, "if he," only, "that endureth to the end, fhall be faved," Matth. X. 22-Nay, that they fhall perfevere, is put beyond doubt by the promise in our text; provifion being made for their acceffion to the kingdom, every intermediate pre-requifite must neceffarily be included.

They shall come by progrefs and advancement. The life of grace is progreffive in its own nature; thofe who are animated with it fit not ftill, as if they had attained, or were already perfect;" Philip. iii. 12.-they advance really, though they fhould not always be fenfible of it, toward "the "measure of the ftature of the fulness of Christ," Eph. iv. 13. in which their conviction, converfion, and Chriftian fellowship, fhall finally iffue.-The propriety of afpiring after fuch holy progrefs, is afcertained by the exhortation to "grow in grace," 2 Pet. iii. 18.—The possibility of it is fully vouch ed by the experience of Paul and the believing Ro

mans,

mans, whofe "falvation," at every after period, was proportionally "nearer than when" they first "believed," Rom. xiii. 11.-And the certainty of it manifeftly declared in the words of grace under confideration ;-where a term expreffive of progrefs, is emphatically made ufe of;-they fhall come *, i. e. from one stage to another, until they arrive at the kingdom.

They fhall come, not only by perfeverance and progrefs in the paths of righteoufnefs, but by the tranflation of their pardoned, ranfomed fouls, at the hour of death, into the palaces of falvation. They will be escorted "by angels, into Abraham's "bofom;" Luke xvi. 22.an entrance fhall be "miniftred unto" them "abundantly into the e"verlafting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Je"fus Chrift :" 2 Pet. i. 11.- And the very "day” that the taper of life is extinguished, their fouls shall be with him "in paradife," Luke xxiii. 43.

In a word, they shall come, by the tranflation of their bodies, alfo, at the refurrection of the just. -All, all, without exception, who, in this life, have come to themfelves, to Chrift, and to a vital communion with his ranfomed church; all who have perfevered and advanced in thefe fteps until death; and, all whofe fouls reached the kingdom, upon the diffolution of their clay-tabernacles ;-all fuch,-foul and body both, fhall come to the kingdom of heaven, as foon as the business of the refurrection, and grand affair of judgment are intirely over. In the spirited language of prophecy, "The ranfomed of the Lord shall return, and "come to Zion, with fongs, and everlafting joy upon their heads: they fhall obtain joy and gladnefs, and forrow and fighing fhall fly away," lf. xxxv. 10. And in the words of our apostle,

"They

* Efoufi.

"They who fleep in Jefus, will God bring with "him; the dead in Chrift fhall rife firft; and fo "fhall they ever be with the Lord," 1 Theff. iv. 14, 16, 17.

Befides the defigns of grace which God has upon the Gentiles, and the leading bleffings wherewith they are pregnant to the heirs of promife,-from the firft dawn of converfion, to the full meridianof glory, there is ftill another part of the argument to be illuftrated, which is equally calculated "to roufe your ambition, and invigorate your "endeavours toward the propagation of Chrifti"an knowlege," namely, "the qualites of that happiness to which the subjects of this grace fhall "be raised," emphatically expreffed by fitting down with Abraham, and Ifaac, and Jacob, and, according to the parallel paffage, all the prophets, in the kingdom of heaven, or of God, as the other evangelift expreffeth it, Luke. xiii. 28.

What! A kingdom?-The kingdom?—The kingdom of heaven?-The kingdom of God?--Are not thefe-terms emphatical beyond the powers of language to exprefs,-of the more eloquent pencil to defcribe,-or the ftill more fertile imagination to conceive?

If the glory referved for Gentile finners be a kingdom, they will not only be intrufted with the fervices, and interested in the privileges of it; but,-how amazing the thought!-how tranfporting the view!-they, as heirs, fhall be put in poffeffion of the kingdom itself, and prefented with all the enfigns of royalty, as-not only priests, but kings unto God.

Their right to the kingdom is recorded by infpired writers with the utmost precifion.-" I appoint unto you a kingdom, (faid the Heir of all things,) as my Father hath appointed unto me,"

Luke

Luke xxii. 29. and "if children, (faid the apoftle "to Gentile converts) then heirs, and joint heirs "with Chrift," Rom. viii. 17. With refpect to the regalia, which fhall be prefented to them on the threshold of glory, the facred writings are no lefs explicit. They tell us of a crown prepared, 2 Tim. iv. 8. a throne erected, Matth. xix. 28. a robe of ftate finifhed, Rev. vi. 11. of royal apartments fitted up, John xiv. 2. of minifters in waiting; Heb. i. 14. and what can we fay more?

In our Lord's description of future blifs, it is not only called a kingdom, but, to point out the peculiar excellency of it, the kingdom. Kingdoms, upon earth, deserve not the name; and the regal office is meannefs itself, compared with this.-It is the kingdom,in which all that can be enjoyed is comprehended, to which no acquifition can be made, from which nothing can be taken by fraud or force,- -upon which no revolution can pafs And the kingdom, because the enjoyment and administration of it will be attended with no fatigue or anxiety, no diftrefs or danger, for ever.

The bleffednefs in referve for Gentile finners, is farther diftinguished by our Lord's calling it "the kingdom of heaven;" the "third heavens,” to which Paul was " caught up," 2 Cor. xii, 2, 4. the "paradife" of God, Luke xxiii. 43. to which the penitent thief was tranflated; "the fanctuary "and true tabernacle," Heb. viii. 1, 2. into which Chrift hath entered," where neither moth nor "ruft doth corrupt, nor thieves break through and "steal," Matth. vi. 20.-shall be the feat of their happiness, the theatre of their triumph.

The glory under view will be altogether pure and spiritual, that it may fuit the taste and capacities of fuch holy ones. This feems to be chiefly intended by giving their kingdom the epithet of

heavenly:

heavenly; a heavenly country, Heb. xi, 16. and heavenly places, Eph. i. 20. divefted of all that is grofs and perishing, inriched with all that is divine and incorruptible. According to this view, God himself, as an expreffion of his effential holiness, is frequently called, heavenly Father, Matth. xv. 13. Luke xi. 13. The angels of light, to distinguish them from the powers of darkness, are called the heavenly hoft, Luke ii. 13. The Lord Jefus, to point out his pre-eminence, compared with the firft Adam, is called the heavenly man; 1 Cor. xv. 49. and the gracious change, which makes the difference between faints and finners, is denominated their heavenly calling, Heb. iii. 1.

Agrecable, however, to the parallel paffage, the glory promised to Gentile converts, is the kingdom of God, Luke xiii. 28. It bears that denomination with undoubted propriety, as the heirs "were "chofen," Eph. i. 4. and the "kingdom prepar "ed," by him "before the foundation of the "world" Matth. xxv. 34.-as they are kept by his almighty power, through faith unto this falva tion; 1 Pet. i. 5.-as he, having the whole adminiftration delivered up to him by the Mediator, 1 Cor. xv. 24. will be the everlafting guarantee of their happiness; and as, in the inimitable language of fcripture, "Every good gift, and every perfect,” the crowning gift of heaven by no means excepted, "cometh from the Father of lights," Jam. i. 17.

But the view of future glory, which this epithet exhibits to us, will rife, and greatly fwell, in our eye, if it is added, that God himfelf will be the fum and substance, the "all in all" of their inheritance. The apostle of the Gentiles, who learned his divinity immediately at the feet of Chrift, is very bold, when he faith, that the children of grace are heirs of what !-of pardon?-holinefs? -happiness?