JESUS CHRIST THE BELOVED ONE, AND SINNERS ACCEPTED of GOD FREELY IN HIM.* Ерн. і. 6, His grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the Beloved. BEFORE our works can be accepted, our persons must; and how that is attained is here declared. The apostle taking a view of the state of salvation that believers are brought into, in the fulness of it, ver. 3; runs it up unto the prime author of it, the Father, ib. the eternal plan of it in the decree of election, ver. 4; whereof the great design to be accomplished on them, their true sanctification, ib. to be begun here, and perfected in glory; the reason of this design, that they were predestinated to adoption into his family, for it was inconsistent with the honour of a holy God, to have unholy children, ver. 5. In this verse are two things. 1. The great end of God's predestinating the elect to be his own children; "the praise of the glory of his grace." It was a display of his free grace that he aimed at. Grace is love and favour freely flowing, without anything in the object to draw it out. This grace shown to sinners is glorious grace, like a shining sun, casting such a lustre, as is most admirable and attractive. And it is to be praised by the sons of men; but they that do not see, and do not feel the glory of it, cannot praise it, more than the blind the light of the sun. But God purposed to bring the elect out of the devil's family, and make them his own children freely; that they seeing, tasting, and feeling this glorious grace, might raise a song of praise of it here, and 'joining voices in heaven, might carry it on in the highest strain there for ever, praising the glorious grace appearing in their adoption; opening the various folds of it, and admiring the glories of free grace, for ever and ever. It is dangerous then to cast a veil over it, doctrinally or practically. 2. A particular fruit of this glorious grace; "Wherein he hath made us accepted in the Beloved." Where we have, (1.) The fruit itself, the acceptance of the persons of believers with God; "He hath made us accepted." The acceptor is the Father, vers. 3, 5. The accepted are us, believers, who are "blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ," ver. 3. The acceptance is emphatically expressed. The word is, as if he had * The substance of several sermons preached at Etterick in the year 1726. said, he hath graced us; and imports not only that he hath accepted us, but freely accepted us, without anything in us to render us acceptable; and bears not only free love and favour, but also all kinds of real benefits and favours flowing therefrom, Luke i. 28. (2.) The way and manner of the acceptance. How can a sinner be accepted of a holy God? "In the Beloved," that is, Christ. It is not only for his sake, but God looking on the sinner in Christ, united to him, accepts him. He calls Christ here "the Beloved," to intimate that the accepting love and favour of God is first pitched on him, and then for his sake comes down on his members; so he is the Beloved by way of eminency. He saith not, "his Beloved," though doubtless he mainly aims at that, but "the Beloved," that he might give a vent to that love to Christ that his heart swelled with on the mention of this; and so uses a general term, whereby Christ might be pointed out as the object whereon the loves of heaven and earth meet together. (3.) The original spring and source of this acceptance, intimated by the relative wherein. It refers not only to the word grace, but to "the glory of his grace," q. d. From, through, and by which glorious grace and free favour, he hath freely accepted us undeserving and ill-deserving creatures; that glorious grace finding a way to accept the sinner, with the good leave of justice, in Christ. From the text, thus explained, ariseth the following savoury points of doctrine. Docr. I. Jesus Christ is the beloved, the eminently beloved One. DOCT. II. The way how a sinner comes to be accepted of God, is freely, in Christ. DocT. III. Glorious free grace shines forth in the acceptance of sinners in the beloved Jesus. DocT. I. Jesus Christ is the beloved, the eminently beloved One. I. Shew in what respects Christ is the eminently beloved One. I. I am to shew in what respects Christ is the eminently beloved One. First, He is the beloved of the excellent ones of the earth. Who these are, ye may see, Psalm xvi. 3. They are "the saints." Him all the saints love with a love above all persons and all things, Luke xiv. 26. And, 1. They meet altogether in him in love, however they are scattered through the world; hence is he called, "the desire of all nations," Hag. ii. 7. So that lovers of Christ and saints are of equal latitude; Eph. vi. 24, " Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity." The American saints and the European saints take him all for their Beloved. As it is the same sun in the firmament that warms all their bodies, it is the same Sun of righteousness, Christ, that warms all their hearts in love. They differ vastly in their languages, customs, and particular dispositions; but they perfectly agree in their love of one beloved Jesus; Gen. xlix. 10, "Unto him shall the gathering of the people be." And so they are knit as one body, whereof Christ is the beloved head. 2. Each one of them loves him with a superlative and transcendent love; Psalm 1xxiii. 25, "Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire besides thee." They have a general love to mankind, a special love to their respective countries, a more special love to their relations, but the most special and peculiar love, leaving all the rest behind, is to Christ, Luke xiv. 26. In the other they are divided, but in this they meet in one; their beloved ones are very different, but their beloved One is one and the same. 3. They love other persons and things for his sake, Rom. xv. 2, 3; Tit. iii. 3—5. When the soul is in its natural state, other persons and things have the man's love, but Christ has none of it; when Christ discovers himself in his glory to the soul, then the man hates all in comparison of him; but Christ regulates the soul's love to other things, and takes it not away, but makes it run in another channel, springing from himself. Now other things being loved for him, himself is the best beloved. 4. The liker any thing is to him, they love it the more. Hence the godly that bear his image, are therefore beloved by them; and the more godly they are, the more beloved are they, 1 John iii. 14. They love his ordinances, because they bear the impress of his authority, his law as the image of his nature; his way and example, because of the tread of his steps therein to be seen. All which bear him to be their eminently beloved. And, 1st, They love him with a love of good-will; and vent it in prayer and praise; Psalm 1xxii. 15, "Prayer also shall be made for him continually, and daily shall he be praised." It is not in their power to profit him, and he needs nothing at the creature's hand, being completely happy in his Father; but they shew good-will to him, in concern for his glory in the world, that his kingdom may prosper, his name spread far and wide, and be perpetuated to all generations. 2dly, They love him with a love of delight and complacency, 1 Pet. ii. 7, "Unto you which believe he is precious." His name and every letter of it is sweet to them, Cant. i. 3. They delight in him as a sister in a brother, a child in a father, and a spouse in a hus band. Everything in Christ is sweet to a believer; therefore they are said to eat his flesh, and drink his blood: for as by eating one finds the sweetness of the meat, and every bit of it, so by faith the soul finds the sweetness of Christ and every thing in Christ. And, (1.) They love him for what he is in himself, Cant. v. 10-16. The glorious excellencies of his person and natures, his attributes and perfections, make him the object of their love. Their hearts. are framed to the love of God: so they love him for himself, they love him for that holiness and purity for which carnal men hate him, as the owl doth the sun, Psalm xxx. 4. (2.) They love him for what he is to them, he is best in himself, he is the best to them. his offices; for what he has done for them, and for them. They love him as the foundation of all their hopes, the scope of all their desires, and the spring of all their joys. And fitly does he go under the name, “the Beloved,” even in respect of the saints: for, Cant. v. 16. And as They love him for all for what he will do [1.] They profess him to be the beloved of their souls; they are not ashamed of their choice. So the spouse calls him, Cant. per tot. See chap. iii. 3, "Saw ye him whom my soul loveth?" as if she would have all to know him by that name, "her Beloved;" supposing there is none so but he. [2.] They show him to be so, by their life and actions before the world, Cant. viii. 6, 7. Where love to Christ is, it will discover itself by the soul's preferring Christ to all persons and things, so as to part with any thing when it comes in competition with him. fection, Rev. vii. 10. Secondly, Christ is the beloved of the glorious ones in heaven. All eyes are upon him there, for he is there the light of the pleasant land, Rev. xxi. 23, as the sun is in this world. And he is there, 1. The beloved of the glorified saints, who now love him in perTheir love to him is now perfected, and they love him with a pure and ardent love. They see him now no more through a glass, but face to face; they behold the glories of his person, the glories of his actings and sufferings for them; his eternal undertaking, his going through with his undertaking in his birth, life, and death; and the glory he now hath from his Father as the reward. So their love to him is in a continual flame. 2. The beloved of the holy angels, Rev. v. 11, 12. the cherubims were posted, looking towards the ark In the temple or mercy-seat, a type of Christ; which signified the angels looking to Jesus with love and admiration, 1 Pet. i. 12. They behold his glory, and cannot but love him. They love him as the brightness of the Father's Brother of the family, the heir of all things, and glory, as the elder their Lord, Heb. i. 6, as the Saviour of sinners, and the head of angels, by whom they and all things do consist, Eph. i. 10. 3. The Father's beloved, Matth. xvii. 5. And here we may consider Christ two ways, as God, and as Mediator. 1st, As God, equal and co-eternal with the Father and Holy Spirit. He was the beloved of the Father and the Spirit. The Scripture teacheth that "God is love," 1 John iv. 8, and that love must be eminently among the persons of the glorious Trinity one towards another. Thus, Prov. viii. 30, he is held out as the Creator's delight. See John i. 18, Heb. i. 2. But what our text mainly aims at, is, 2dly, As Mediator, God-man, having a common relation to God and sinners of mankind, as the representative of an elect world, and the bond of union and communion betwixt God and sinners, for the glory of God and the salvation of sinners. of his person; John i. 18. (1.) As such he is the Father's beloved, his prime favourite, and most accepted, his "well Beloved," Mark xii. 6, in whom he is "well pleased;" Matth. iii. ult., the perpetual rest of his eyes and heart, 2 Chron. vii. 16. And he is his beloved, [1.] In respect He "is in the bosom of the Father." For he is "the brightness of his Father's glory," Heb. i. 2. The glory of God shines forth in his face, 2 Cor. iv. 6. He is "the image of God" in a peculiar manner, ver. 4. Therefore says he, John xiv. 9, " He that hath seen me, hath seen the Father." See Col. ii. 9, and i. 19. So he is the most beautiful object in the eyes of God, in heaven or in earth; and accordingly has the highest place in his love, Heb. i. 13. [2.] In respect of his office. The Father is well pleased with him in the character he took on. And, (1.) He was well pleased with his undertaking for the great work of sinners' salvation. See with what satisfaction he speaks of it; Psalm 1xxxix. 19, "I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people." He cordially accepted him as the sinners' surety, and took his single bond for all the elect's debt, and his security for the injured honour of his name. He was the Father's own choice, and he delighted in his choice, Isa. xlii. 1. He so loved the Undertaker, that, [1. He promised to be with him, and furnished him with all things necessary for the work, Isa. xlii. 6, and lxi. 1. [2.] He bestowed eternal salvation on many, before the time the Saviour paid the ransom; he set them free, and gave them their discharge, before the death of Christ. He rested in the Beloved's engagement. (2.) He was well pleased with and accepted him in his carrying on VOL. XI. L |