A SERMON.

ST. LUKE, chap. xxiv, v. 47.-" And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

THESE words were delivered by Christ Himself after the great sacrifice which He made on the cross for the sins of mankind, and had completed the work of human redemption by rising from the dead. Though it is not "for us to know the times and seasons which the Father hath put in His own power' concerning the last situation of the Church, yet He has put it into our power so far to declare the end from the beginning, its beginning from Jerusalem to the present times of the Gospel.

In discoursing on the passage which I have proposed for our consideration on this occasion, I shall call your attention,

Acts, i. 7.

B

1st. To the nature of that commission which Christ gave to His Apostles.

2ndly. To the extent of that commission.

3rdly. Apply the subject to those two Societies the cause of which I have been called upon to ad

vocate.

I. THE NATURE OF THAT COMMISSION WHICH CHRIST GAVE TO HIS APOSTLES.

The special commission which Christ gave to His Apostles was, that "repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem."

Christianity found mankind in a general state of sin and misery. In Judea alone something of the worship of the true God existed by the law of Moses, but so obscured with Pharisaic traditions, and corrupted with Sadducean profaneness and infidelity, that, even with a multitude of teachers, they were amused indeed, but were neither instructed, nor fed with "the bread of life." Some degree of moral instruction, merely with respect to society in this world, they certainly had, from Moses and the prophets; but of that instruction which consists in "repentance and remission of sins" they were totally destitute. Notwithstanding the light of the Old Testament, the provision of sacrifices, and the declaration of so many prophecies concerning the Messiah, it does not appear, with many good examples of holy men, that the Jews were materially better

than the rest of the world; for we read but of three believers-namely Zachariah, Simeon, and Anna --who looked for redemption in Christ.

Such was the state of darkness when the Sun of Righteousness made his appearance. A few were converted during Christ's abode upon earth; but it should seem that the five hundred brethren who saw Him together after His resurrection, made up the sum total of His disciples, all of whom, with the eleven sincere apostles, were possessed with notions of a temporal kingdom. This, therefore, was the critical time for beginning the Church at Jerusalem; this was the first of those outpourings of the Spirit which, to the present age, have visited the earth.

As "repentance and remission of sins" were the leading doctrines of Christ, He had offered Himself a sacrifice for sin, was risen again for our justification, and, in sight of His disciples, was just ascended into heaven, having given them directions to abide at Jerusalem waiting for the promise of the Holy Spirit, of the outpouring of which they had, on the day of Pentecost, the plain demonstration of all their senses. The conclusion, therefore, which they drew was, that the person whom they had crucified was the Lord, the long expected Messiah, through whom alone salvation was exhibited to sinners. They whose hearts were smitten with a sense of sin, "gladly received the word and were baptized, and the same day were added unto them about three

thousand souls."* In this manner did the convictions and consolations of the Spirit attend the first converts; for "they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread and in prayer."†

Here we see the first plantation of the Church. They were not Christians in name only, but they understood and believed the doctrine of "". repentance and remission of sins" "in the name of Christ.' They continued united to the pastors whom God had made instruments of conversion; they received, and that constantly, the Lord's Supper: they had felt the pangs of guilt they had seen what a price had been paid for their redemption: they rejoiced with trembling as just emerged from the pit of destruction, and the same spirit which cried Abba! Father! in their hearts, taught them to dread sin above all evils, and to walk in peace.

The apostles then were commissioned by our Lord to instruct mankind in the nature and necessity of repentance in order to the forgiveness of sins; to shew them in what true repentance consists; viz.that it is not the bare sorrow for the commission of flagrant sins-not the mere reformation of the outward man-not the actual abstinence from open immorality, while the love of sin reigns in the heart, -but the abhorrence of sin itself on account of its abomination in God's sight; in short, that it is an

*Acts, ii, 41.

† Acts, ii, 42.

entire change of the inward man, a newness of nature, a total change of heart, a hatred of the ways of sin, a "hungering and thirsting after righteousness." These were the doctrines which our Saviour commissioned His apostles to preach. There was no other Gospel to preach than what Christ Himself had revealed, and this was the same which, under the direction of the Holy Spirit, the four Evangelists afterwards committed to writing, and which we, by the blessing of God, have at all times in our power to consult.

The apostles, therefore, began immediately to preach to the world what they had both seen and heard of the divine power of Christ, His promises, His commands, His gracious love for mankind in making atonement for their sins, His averting the wrath of God by His own righteousness, and inviting persons of every description to believe in His righteousness for acceptance with God.

By the assistance of the Holy Spirit, which was sent after Christ's ascension according to promise, the first Ministers of this new Gospel were enabled, not only perfectly to remember every thing that Christ Himself had said unto them, but to understand it; which they did not before, at the time of Christ's speaking to them. They were enabled to comprehend the greatness and goodness of this new dispensation, so as to explain, to their own full conviction, its doctrines with zeal and diligence; and they had power given them to enforce the Gospel precepts, by