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CHA P. III.

The Excellencies of the Saint's Reft.

1. The Excellencies of the Saint's Reft are enumerated. $2. (1) It is the purchafed Poffeffion. § 3, 4. (2) A free Gift. $5. (3) Peculiar to Saints. § 6. (4) An Affociation with Saints and Angels. § 7. (5) It derives its foys immediately from God himself. § 8. (6) It will be fealonable. §9. (7) Suitable. $10-12. (8) Perfect, without Sin and Suffering. § 13. (9) And everlasting. §14. The Chapter concludes with a Serious Addrefs to the Reader.

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ET us draw a little nearer, and fee what further Excellencies this Rest affordeth, The Lord hide us in the Clefts of the Rock, and cover us with the Hands of indulgent Grace, while we approach to take this View! This Reft is excellent for being a purchafed Poffeffion-a free Gift; peculiar to Saints;an Affociation with Saints and Angels ; -yet deriving its Joys immediately from God;-and because it will be a seasonable,fuitables perfect,→ and eternal Reft.

$2. (1) IT is a moft fingular Honour of the Saint's Reft, to be called the purchased Poffeffion (a). That is, the Fruit of the Blood of the Son of God; yea, the chief Fruit, the End and Perfection of all the Fruits and Efficacy of that Blood. Greater Love than this there is not, to lay down the Life of the C 6 Lover.

(a) Ephef.i. 14p

Lover. And to have this our Redeemer ever before our Eyes, and the livelieft Sense and freshest Remembrance of that dying bleeding Love ftill upon our Souls: How will it fill our Souls with perpetual Joy, to think that in the Streams of this Blood we have fwam thro' the Violence of the World, the Snares of Satan, the Seducements of Flefh, the Curfe of the Law, the Wrath of an offended God, the Accufations of a guilty Confcience, and the vexing Doubts and Fears of an unbelieving Heart, and are arrived fafe at the Prefence of God! Now he cries to us, Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? Behold and fee, if there be any Sorrow like unto my Sorrow (b)! and we fcarce regard the mournful Voice, nor fcarce turn afide to view the Wounds. But then our perfected Souls will feel, and flame in Love for Love. With what aftonishing Apprehenfions will redeemed Saints everlaftingly behold their bleffed Redeemer? the Purchafer, and the Price, together with the Poffeffion? Neither will the View of his Wounds of Love, renew our Wounds of Sorrow. He, whofe first Words after his Resurrection were to a great Sinner, Woman, why weepest thou (c)? knows how to raife Love and Joy, without any Cloud of Sorrow, or Storm of Tears. If any Thing we enjoy was purchased with the Life of our dearest Friend, how highly fhould we value it? If a dying Friend deliver us but a Token of his Love, how carefully do we preferve it? And ftill remember him when we behold it, as if his own Name were written on it? And will not then the Death and Blood of our Lord everlastingly fweeten our poffeffed Glory! As we write down the Price our Goods coft us; fo on our Righteousness and Glory, write down the Price, the precious Blood of Chrift. His Sufferings were to fatisfy the Juftice that required Blood, John xx. 15.

(b) Lam. i. 12.

37 Blood, and to bear what was due to Sinners, and fʊ to restore them to the Life they loft, and the Happinefs they fell from. The Work of Chrift's Redemption fo well pleafed the Father, that he gave him Power to advance his Chofen, and give them the Glory which was given to himself, and all this according to his good Pleasure, and the Counsel of his own Will (d).

§3. (2) ANOTHER Pearl in the Saint's Diadem is, that it's a free Gift. These two, purchased and free, are the Chains of Gold which make up the Wreaths for the Tops of the Pillars in the Temple of God (e). It was dear to Chrift, but free to us. When Chrift was to buy, Silver and Gold were nothing worth; Prayers and Tears could not fuffice, nor any Thing below his Blood; but our buying is receiving; we have it freely, without Money, and without Price(f). A thankful Acceptance of a free Acquittance, is no paying of the Debt. Here is all free; if the Father freely give the Son, and the San freely pay the Debt; and if God freely accepts that Way of Payment, when he might have required it of the Principal; and if both Father and Son freely offer us the purchased Life on our cordial Acceptance, and if they freely fend the Spirit to enable us to accept; what is here then that is hot free? Oh the everlasting Admiration that must needs furprize the Saints to think of this Freenefs! What did the "Lord fee in me, that he should judge me meet for "fuch a State? That I, who was but a poor, dif"eafed, defpifed Wretch, fhould be clad in the "Brightnefs of this Glory! That I, a creeping "Worm, fhould be advanced to this high Dignity "That I, who was but lately groaning, weeping, dying, fhould now be as full of Joy as my Heart

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(4) Ephef. i. 9, 11. (e) 1 Kings vii. 17. (f) Ifa.lv. 1.

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06 can hold! yea, fhould be taken from the Grave, "where I was rotting, and from the Duft and Dark"nefs, where I feemed forgotten, and be here fet "before his Throne! That I fhould be taken, with

Mordecai, from Captivity, and be fet next unto the "King; And with Daniel, from the Den, to be "made Ruler of Princes and Provinces!. Who can "fathom unmeafurable Love?" If Worthiness were our Condition for Admittance, we might fit down and weep, with St. John, because no Man was found worthy. But the Lion of the Tribe of Judah is worthy, and hath prevailed (g); and by that Title muft we hold the Inheritance. We fhall offer there the Offering that David refused, even Praife for that which coft us nothing (h). Here our Commiffion runs, freely ye have received, freely give (i); but Chrift has dearly bought, yet freely gives.

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$4. IF it were only for nothing, and without our Merit, the Wonder were great; but it is moreover against our Merit, and against our long endeavouring our own Ruin. What an aftonishing Thought it will be, to think of the unmeasurable Difference between our Defervings and Receivings! Between. the State we should have been in, and the State we are in! To look down upon Hell, and fee the vast Difference that Grace hath made betwixt us and them! To fee the Inheritance there, which we were born to, so different from that which we are adopted to! What Pangs of Love will it caufe within us, to think, "yonder was the Place that Sin would have

brought me to, but this is it that Chrift hath "brought me to! Yonder Death was the Wages of my Sin, but this eternal Life is the Gift of God, thro' Jefus Chrift my Lord (k)! Who made me to differ (1)? Had

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(g) Rev. v. 4, 5. (k) Rom. vi. 23.

(h) 2 Sam. xxiv. 24.
(1) I Cor, iv, 7.

(i) Matt, 1, 8.

"Had I not now been in those Flames, if I had had "my own Way, and been let alone to my own "Will? Should I not have lingered in Sodom, till "the Flames had feized on me, if God had not in "Mercy brought me out (m)?" Doubtlefs this will be our everlafting Admiration, that fo rich a Crown fhould fit the Head of fo vile a Sinner! That fuch high Advancement, and fuch long Unfruitfulness and Unkindness, can be the State of the fame Perfon! And that fuch vile Rebellions can conclude in fuch moft precious Joys! But no Thanks to us, nor to any of our Duties and Labours, much lefs to our Neglects and Laziness: We know to whom the Praife is due, and must be given for ever. Indeed to this very End it was, that infinite Wisdom caft the whole Defign of Man's Salvation into this Mould of Purchafe and Freeness, that the Love and Joy of Man might be perfected, and the Honour of Grace most. highly advanced; that the Thought of Merit might neither cloud the one, nor obftruct the other; and that on these two Hinges the Gate of Heaven might turn. So then let DESERVED be written on the Door of Hell, but on the Door of Heaven and Life THE FREE GIFT.

§ 5. (3) THIS Reft is peculiar to Saints, belongs to no other of all the Sons of Men. If all Egypt had been Light, the Ifraclites would not have had the lefs; but to enjoy that Light alone, while their Neighbours lived in thick Darkness, muft make them more fenfible of their Priviledge. DiftinguishingMercy affects more than any Mercy. If Pharoah had paffed as fafely as Ifrael, the Red Sea would have been lefs remembered. If the reft of the World had not been drowned, and the rest of Sodom and Gomorrah not burned, the faving of Noah had been no Won

(m) Gen. xix, 16..

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