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he is at particular pains to deftroy every foundation of boafting or glorying in ourselves: Rom. iii. 24-28. Being juftified freely by his grace, through the redemp"tion that is in Jefus Chrift: whom God hath fet forth "to be a propitiation, through faith in his blood, to declare "his righteousness for the remiffion of fins that are past, through the forbearance of God; to declare, I fay, at this "time his righteousness; that he might be juft, and the juftifier of him which believeth in Jefus. Where is boafting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay; but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude, "that a man is juftified by faith, without the deeds of the "law." Nay, we find that all his public fervices he confiders as quite unfit fubjects of boafting, even when he is obliged to mention them for his own vindication: 1 Cor. xv. 9, 10. "For I am the leaft of the apoftles, that "am not meet to be called an apoftle, because I perfecuted "the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what "I am and his grace which was bestowed upon me, was "not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they "all yet not I, but the grace of God which was with "me."

I am perfuaded that thofe who, from really Chriftian principles, serve God in their generation with the greatest zeal, will be moft ready to renounce all plea of merit upon that account. I have read with pleafure the following account of the temper expreffed by John Knox, that eminent inftrument in the reformation, when he was drawing near to his diffolution. Some perfon prefent mentioned to him, what confort he might now have in his extraordinary labor and great usefulness in the church: to whom he answered, "Forbear to puff up the flesh with vanity, to "which it is of itfelf fufficiently prone. The port I "would be in at, is that of the free grace of God, through "the merits of my blessed Saviour." The truth is, these are but the fentiments which fhall not only go with us to death, but continue with us to eternity. A deep sense of redeeming love, and grateful celebration of the Redeemer's glory, is not only the language of the church on earth, but the delightful worship of the church triumphant in

heaven: Rev. V. II, 12, 13. "And I beheld, and I heard "the voice of many angels round about the throne, and "the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was "ten thousand times ten thoufand, and thousands of thou"fands; faying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb "that was flain, to receive power, and riches, and wif"dom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and bleffing. "And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and fuch as are in the sea, "and all that are in them, heard I, faying, Bleffing, and "honor, and glory, and power be unto him that fitteth up"on the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever."

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II. We proceed now to the second general head of difcourse, viz. To confider what reafon every real Chrif tian hath to glory in the crofs. This indeed opens to us a fubject of the most amazing compafs and extent. Though there is nothing here but what is vile and contemptible to an unbelieving worldly mind; by the eye of faith, every thing that is wonderful, amiable, and valuable, is difcovered in the highest perfection. I cannot particularly enumerate every fubject of glorying in the crofs; and therefore fhall juft point out to you the three following fubjects of meditation, which though they often run into one another, may be confidered in diftinct and separate lights. 1. The glory of divine perfection fhines in it in the brightest manner. 2. The riches of divine grace are manifested in it to the most astonishing degree. 3. The fanctifying efficacy of it is fo tranfcendently fuperior to that of any other mean, as fhews it to have been the appointment of infinite wisdom.

1. The glory of divine perfection fhines in it in the brightest manner. Would we directly contemplate the glory of the invifible God, as it fhines in his works and ways? let us look upon the crofs. It hath been fometimes, and very juftly, faid of the works of God, that they have ufually in them fomething much more wanderful and excellent than appears at firft view. It hath alfo been further obferved, that, in this refpect, there is a complete contraft and oppofition between the works of the Creator

and those of the creature. Every thing that flows from God, the more strictly we examine it, and the more perfectly we know it, the more we fhall admire it; but every work of the creature, the more perfectly it is known, the more its inherent weakness always appears. This difcovers itself, even in comparing the produce of the field with the effects of human art. Naturalifts obferve, that the finest and moft admirable human manufactures, when feen, as by a finer fenfe, with the affiftance of a microfcope, appears quite coarse and irregular; but that if you look at a pile of grass, or any thing natural, with the fame affistance, you will fee ftill more exquifite and delicate ftrokes of the almighty operator.

If this is the cafe even in the material productions of natural power, how much more muft it be fo in the unfearchable myfteries of God's fpiritual kingdom? In none will it hold more than in this chief of the works of God, this glorious though defpifed object, the crofs of Chrift. Here indeed the glory of God appears in all its luftre. It appears in fo ftrong and fo various lights, that the highest angels are employed, delighted, and loft in the contemplation of it: I Pet. i. 12. "Which things the angels defire to look into." Eph. iii. 10. "To the intent that "now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly

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places, might be known by the church the manifold "wifdom of God." O what a difplay of power in the union of God and man! What an almighty arm was required to make these things meet, which were infinitely diftant! The Creator of the ends of the earth born of a woman! the Self-existent become a feeble infant! the Lord of glory covered with fhame! The Judge of all condemned to fuffer! The Author of life giving up the ghoft!

What unfearchable wisdom appears in finding a victim able to bear almighty vengeance! in finding a way by which fin might be at once punished and pardoned, juftice fully fatisfied, even where mercy is extended! Little wonder indeed that the angels defire to look into this mystery. They had tafted the fruits of divine benignity in the happiness of innocent creatures; they had feen the VOL. I. 3 D

glory of divine juftice in the perdition of the rebel-angels; but the cross of Chrift was the first thing that discovered to them the glory of divine mercy, in pardoning the chief of finners, without in the leaft obfcuring the brightnefs either of juftice or holinefs, nay to the illuftration of both. In the crofs of Chrift there is a more awful and penetrating view of the juftice and holinefs of God, than could have been given by the irreparable deftruction of the whole race of Adam. And at the fame time, his not "fparing his "own Son," but " delivering him up for us all," is a more aftonishing effect of love, than pardon without fatisfaction could have been, had that been a thing in itfelf poflible. There is no end or measure to our views of this fubje&t; but I hope many of you will now fay, with the apoftle Paul, what I dare fay he has not yet done repeating in heaven, Rom. xi. 33, "O the depth of the riches both of "the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unfearchable "are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!"

2. The riches of divine grace are manifefted in the crofs of Chrift to the most aftonishing degree. It is not merely a wonderful work of God, which all his intelligent creatures may behold with admiration, but it is a defign in which we ourselves have an immediate and an infinite concern: For, Ifa. liii. 5. "He was wounded for our "tranfgreflions, he was bruifed for our iniquities; the "chaftifement of our peace was upon him, and with "his ftripes we are healed." O what an amazing display of unmerited love! Every divine perfection indeed appears in it very clearly, but chiefly love. The tender mercy of our God predominates, actuates, and reigns. through the whole. Chrift's undertaking, in general, is the fruit and evidence of the everlasting love of God: John iii. 16. "For God fo loved the world, that he gave "his only begotten Son, that whofoever believeth in him, "fhould not perish, but have everlasting life." Salvation, in the whole of its purchafe and effect, was the fruit and expreflion of the infinite love of Chrift: Rev. i. 5, 6. "Unto him that loved us, and wafhed us from our fins "in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests "unto God, and his Father; to him be glory and domi

"nion for ever and ever. Amen." The believing foul is never more at a lofs than when attempting to confefs its obligations to redeeming love. The human mind never feels its weakness more than when it attempts to conceive, or to illustrate, this truly incomprehenfible fubject.

The grace of redemption may be confidered and illuf trated in a great variety of lights: From the greatness of the mifery from which we are delivered; for "we are "faved from wrath through him;" From the greatness of the happiness to which we are entitled; for we are made "heirs of God, and joint heirs with Chrift:" From the guilt and unworthiness of the objects of this love; for it was" when we were enemies" that "we were reconci"led to God by the death of his Son." But befides these confiderations, there is more than enough of divine mercy to excite our wonder in the crofs of Chrift, the price paid for our redemption.

Great fufferings ufually melt the heart to fympathy and tenderness, though we have no immediate concern in them at all but how much more must every fource of tendernefs be opened, when we confider the sufferer as an innocent perfon, and as fuffering in our room! Remember the perfon, remember the nature, remember the greatness, remember the end, of his fuffering; the eternal Son of God, the great Immanuel, covered with fhame, dragged to an unrighteous tribunal, not to abide the decrees of juftice, but to bear the effects of blinded rage! See him, O fhocking fight! blind-folded, buffeted, and fpit upon, feverely fcourged, crowned with thorns, arrayed in purple, adored in derifion! See him nailed to the crofs! O fhameful, O tormenting, O most accurfed manner of death! Is it poffible to conceive the grace of this amazing humiliation, this infinite condefcenfion? I would even call it incredible condefcenfion, but that happily it carries upon it this great truth, That God's ways are not as our ways, nor his thoughts as our thoughts. Apply it therefore, O finner! and fee how it magnifies the love of God. Was all this abasement, all this fhame, all this fuffering for me? and fhall I not glory in the crofs? Shall I even glory in any thing but the cross? As it magnifies the divine power, as

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