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preffed in my text, every part of the divine procedure appears perfectly wife, confiftent, and gracious. God and man are reprefented in their proper characters: God, infinitely good, and independently happy; showing mercy to the miferable who derived their existence from him, and have nothing to give but what his own bounty hath bestowed upon them: Man, on the other hand, in his fallen ftate, a guilty, and, of confequence, a fearful, fufpicious creature; confcious that he deferves punishment, and hard to be perfuaded that there is fo much goodnefs with God, as freely to pardon his offences, and receive him again into favour. Thefe fears beget and cherish that enmity against God, which is the distinguishing characteristic of the carnal mind. We feel the effects of injuries upon our own hearts, and we are apt to judge of God by what we feel in ourselves.

It was to vanquish this diftruft, that God hath condescended to deal with us in the manner I have reprefented; that by giving us every kind of assurance that jealousy itfelf can devise, we may be reduced to this

neceffity,

neceffity, either to give God the lie ;—or, being convinced that he is love, to rely upon his faithful word of promife; belie ving that he who bestowed life at first, by a free act of the pureft bounty, hath good nefs enough to restore life after it hath been forfeited, by another act of as free mercy and grace. This is the plain account which the Scriptures give us of faith in Christ. "If we receive the witness of man," faith our Apostle in the 9th verse of this chapter, "the witnefs of God is greater :" and, John iii. 33. receiving the divine teftimony is faid to be a fetting to our feal that God is true. Accordingly, in the verse preceding my text, unbelief is reprefented as deriving its chief malignity from this very circumftance, that it denies the truth of God: For thus it is written, " He that believeth not "God, maketh him a liar; because he be"lieveth not the record that God gave of "his Son." And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life; and this life is in bis Son

You fee, then, upon the whole, one great end of the holy facrament of our N 2

Lord's

Lord's Supper, and the use we ought to make of it.Here Chrift is reprefented to us as the propitiation for our fins; "fuf«fering, the just for the unjuft, that he

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might bring us to God." And we are affured, that in confequence of his obedience unto death, whereby the unchangeable righteousness of God was fully displayed, and infinitely glorified, he is now exalted to the throne, and hath eternal life committed to his difpofal, that he may impart it to all who are made willing to receive it as the gift of his Father, through the merit of his blood. Now, it is the exprefs command of God, that we believe on the name of his Son Jefus Chrift: and it is the no lefs exprefs declaration of the Son, that he will in no wife caft out fuch as come unto him. Nay, in this condefcending ordinance, he cometh to us; and under the visible symbols of bread and wine, gives himself, with all the fulness of life that dwelleth in him, to every believing foul.What then is the counterpart that belongs to us? Is it not to behold and admire the amazing love of God, that we may be no more faithlefs,

but

but believing? Is it not to do what the Ifraelite was directed to do, when he brought the appointed facrifice to the high priest? He laid his hand upon the head of the victim; and confeffing his fin over it, acknowledged, that he was dead in law; and that what remained of life, was to be held by him purely in virtue of that pardon which God had gracioufly annexed to the sacrifice.

In like manner, let us go to the altar of God; and over the memorials of that infinite facrifice, chofen and accepted by the Father, in which his own dear Son is both the priest and the victim, let us acknowledge our forfeiture of life, and justify the fentence whereby we were condemned to die; explicitly declaring, in the fight of God, angels, and men that, renouncing every other claim, we thankfully accept eternal life, as the gift of God through Jefus Chrift; and confent to hold it folely by his right, who died that we might live through him. Amen.

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190

SERMON VIII.

HEBREWS X. 19.-22.

Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holieft by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which he hath confecrated for us through the vail, that is to fay, bis flesh; and having an high priest over the boufe of God: let us draw near with a true heart, in full assurance of faith, having our bearts Sprinkled from an evil confcience, and our bodies washed with pure water.

to

VERY thinking perfon, whofe mind
hath been enlightened to
form just ap-

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prehenfions of God, and of himself, will be anxious to obtain a fatisfying answer to the following questions:

1. What encouragement hath a finner to draw near to God? and,

2. After what manner fhall he draw near

to him, fo as to find acceptance?

Some,

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