pówer. (Heb. i. 3.) Can any one work miracles but God, who made and overruleth nature, even to the raising of the dead? For, as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them, even so the Son raiseth up whom he will. (John, v. 21.) Who hath power to give the Holy Spirit, but the divine Being, from whom that Spirit proceeds? But this Christ promises in virtue of his own authority (John, xv. 26): But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of ME. In short, all works of grace and regeneration. are ascribed to HIM; and as the whole current of the New Testament proves the divine character and perfection of the Son of God, I need trespass upon you no longer than to add,

In the last place, that the Scriptures further do plainly show that Christ is HONOURED as God; for, in St. John, v. 23, he declares, himself, that all men should honour the SON, even as they honour the FATHER; and that he who honoureth NOT the Son, honoureth NOT the Father, who hath sent him. And this honour God himself commands to be paid him, in these words of the Apostle to the Hebrews (i. 6), And let all the angels of God worship him. No higher homage can the FATHER receive than to have PRAYER made to him.

St. Stephen, dying in the fulness of divine faith, pays Christ this service in these words, saying,

Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. The Apostle St. Paul likewise exhorteth all his churches every where to call on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Can HE be less than God, in whom faith and hope are strictly directed to be placed? and this my text positively enjoins, Let not your heart be troubled; ye believe in God, believe also in ME: for to whom praise, and glory, and thanksgiving, and honour belong, HE, doubtless, must be DIVINE. Thus concludes St. John (Rev. v. 13), Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto Him that sitteth on the throne, and unto the LAMB, for ever and ever. Nor can we be the least astonished at all this, when the very NATURE of God is most expressly ascribed to the Son, as the following passage abundantly determines in Heb. i. 3, Christ is called no less than the brightness of God's glory, and THE EXPRESS IMAGE OF HIS PERSON, Phil. ii. 6, the samę Apostle further boldly affirms, that He, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be EQUAL WITH GOD. In another place (Col. ii. 9) he speaks still plainer, that in Christ dwelleth ALL THE FULNESS OF THE GODHEAD BO¬ DILY; that he is the image of the invisible God; and that it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell,

:

Thus have I collected, in one point of view, sufficient scriptural evidence to inform and convince you (though but a small portion of what is

revealed) that Jesus Christ is God's Son, his ONLY Son, VERY God of very God. I have endeavoured to explain to you the signification of the blessed names by which we call upon him as our Saviour and Deliverer, the Anointed of the Lord, God's Holy One, our gracious Redeemer. These divine truths should inflame our hearts towards him, and strengthen both our faith and hope; since, as God, he is mighty to save all those who come to him in sincerity and humility. There remains but one more part of the article I have chosen for my present subject, and that is, in what sense we call Jesus Christ our LORD; but that involves such an abundance of comfortable observation, that it will be more profitable to make it the substance of my next Lecture; I will, therefore, only crave your patience, while I make a short practical application from what has been now advanced for your instruction, and conclude.

By this time, none can be ignorant that God, of his unbounded love to mankind, sent his own Son from heaven to make a new covenant for his creatures; or, in other words, God was manifest in the flesh, and reconciling the world to himself. Sin reigned in the world, in consequence of our fallen nature, and death through sin: Christ Jesus, by an act of divine mercy, pledged himself as a sacrifice, from all eternity, to renew our nature, so that we should

be again capable of living uprightly; and in due course of time came into the world to manifest his victory over sin and death in his own person, and to bring life and immortality to light, by the power of his resurrection: indeed, what doth his very name import (as has been so fully shown you), but the SAVIOUR or DELIVERER? Thou shalt call his name JESUS, for he shall save his people from their sins; i. e. he shall afford them a power to subdue them, so that they may escape the punishment due to them; for, if we suppose that the holy Jesus came to save men. from their sins, in this sense, viz. that what he has done will certainly remove the final consequence of sin, although men CONTINUE in it, what do we but teach men to sin, that grace may abound? It is a saving doctrine, therefore, to preach to you, that his grace doth not more abound in forgiving what is past, and atoning for original depravity, than in the gift of his Spirit, to enable us to become his people indeed.-In another sense, likewise, Christ may be said to save his PEOPLE from their sins, in that all are sinners before God. After we have done all we are commanded, we are but unprofitable servants: original sin cleaves to the very best; therefore, in this view of our state by nature, his atonement was necessary to save even his own people, those who had so benefited by his grace, as strictly to deserve this title; for, even

these most certainly needed an interest in his redemption. But the one great purpose of his coming in the flesh, was doubtless to destroy sin in the body; his own example, and all his precepts, positively declare it: and in this strict sense only, are the words his people to be understood; for wilful sinners cannot possibly be styled his people. He shall save them from their sins, because they will obey his voice, they will' not resist, but act according to the influence of the Spirit he procured for them from his heavenly Father, which will be granted to their humble prayers, in order to assist the infirmities of their carnal nature, and mend the great depravity of it. We are not, therefore, to understand by the phrase, HIS PEOPLE, any particular persons in preference to others, further than they give marks of belonging to him: not a people by any absolute, unconditional choice; for Christ died for the sins of the whole world-and the promise belongs to ALL who will accept the terms, and employ the gracious means held out to secure it. Our blessed Lord is an universal Saviour, in the purest sense; for, it is written, God would have all come to the knowledge of the truth, and be saved; that he taketh no pleasure in the death of a sinner, but would rather he should repent, and return from the error of his ways. None, therefore, I say, can properly be called his people, but such as follow his precepts, and