plauded as the son of David. And they SER M. were all incited and push'd on by the V. bloody zeal of the chief Priests and Rulers, whose love of earthly greatness and felicity had given a wrong turn to their interpretation of fcripture, and made them, whilst they expected a temporal Prince, reject the true Meffiah and Saviour of Mankind.

All these, no doubt, together, would take care to make fure of the work they were about. Their malice could not fail to prompt them punctually to execute the direful fentence, and fee him paft recovery whom they fo implacably pursued. And yet if any fufpicion could be left of their fhewing him favour, of their relenting when they faw his fufferings, or abating the rigour of their malice towards him; yet all that too will be entirely taken off, when it is confider'd, that his body after this was committed to his friends; who doubtless had there been any but the least remains of life, would have been careful to improve their flattering profpect, and with their Mafter to have made their languid hopes revive. But does any thing of this nature appear? No; they buried him, and were fo far from any thoughts of reftoring him to life, that with the arts of embalming, at that time ufual with the Jews, they took care to fecure his body

against

SERM. against that stench and putrefaction, to V. which dead bodies otherwise are liable.

And now they who can believe him for all this either not to have been dead, or not really incarnate (whose body had on all hands undergone fo ftrict examination, had been first of all tortured by his enemies, and then granted to his friends, and after that by thofe friends committed to the grave) must be men that are proof against the evidence of history, and have learnt the art of being refolute infidels against all the grounds of credibility. But

III. THIRDLY, 'tis our greater comfort, and ought particularly to be remember'd on this day, that he did not continue in this state of death, but is described farther in the Text, as he quickly triumph'd over that enemy, by rifing from the grave to immortality, never to return unto corruption. And behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen.

The Resurrection of Christ is not only a great and ftupendous miracle, a most important proof and confirmation of the whole chriftian doctrine, but it was moreover neceffary as a Fact which had been promised and foretold, and in its own nature tending to enfure the gospel benefits. Had our Redeemer remain'd under the power of death, then where had been the

conqueft

conqueft he gain'd over it? or what our SER M. affurance of the efficacy of his fufferings? V. It was moreover neceffary for him to afcend corporally into heaven, in order to present that body, which had fuffer'd, as an allfufficient atonement for the fins of men, and thereby to make continual interceffion for us. But had the body, which was thus to be presented, been left to lie and perish in the grave, our faith in Christ must have been altogether vain, we had been yet in our fins; we had wanted the benefits of his powerful interceffion, and the comfortable applications of Divine grace and pardon obtain❜d by virtue of his merits. It had likewife been foretold, as well by David and others in the old teftament, as by Jefus himself in the new, not only that he fhould be deliver'd into the hands of finners, and be put to death upon the cross, but that on the third day he should rife again. From henceforth therefore his refurrection became neceffary, as neceffary as it is God should not lie, but that all his promises should be yea and Amen, ftedfaft and fure, and inviolably kept. Upon both accounts it was material for our bleffed Lord in the Text, to remind thefe Afatick churches of this amazing proof of his Divine power, in order to convince them of their duty, and confirm their hopes of happiness through him.

For

SERM. For the fame reasons it becomes us to V. reflect, how amply this important Fact has been attefted and affured to us. As it is matter of fact it must rest upon the evidence of witneffes; and we have them in fuch numbers, as makes it highly abfurd to fufpect them either of delufion or confederacy. Their manner of conviction was fuch, by the experience of their own fenfes, as frees them from all danger of being imposed upon themselves, either by the prepoffeffions of Enthusiasm, or by the craft of any designing knave or evil fpirit, who might take upon him to perfonate their deceafed Mafter. They were perfons moreover by their education, little qualified to have form'd a contrivance for im-pofing upon others; and there was a jealous eye kept over them, to discover any. project they might have ventured to contrive. Befides which, they have given the greatest proof that can be afked of their fincerity, they feal'd their doctrine with their blood, and defended the truth of the Gospel with fuch courage and conftancy, as can be imputed to nothing else but the firm conviction and belief of it. And which is more than all, their teftimony was confirm'd by the miracles they wrought, and God himself did bear them witness both by figns and wonders, and divers miracles and

gifts of the Holy Ghoft according to his own SERM.

will.

But this is not all the reflection we are led to make by the paffage now before us. Had Chrift been only raised, like Lazarus and fome other examples which we read of in fcripture, to walk a while longer and converfe on earth, and then return again to death and filence, tho' this had been indeed miraculous, yet it had not been enough to answer the defign of our redemption. For, our Redeemer was to live in heaven, and make continual interceffion for us. He was likewife to be invested with the Regal dignity, and to remain a King for ever. Here therefore is the ground of our comfort and affurance, that Chrift being raised from the dead dieth no more, death bath no more dominion over him: for in that be died, he died unto fin once, but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God: and behold (says he himself in the Text) I am alive for evermore, Amen. On the fortieth day from his firft quitting the grave, he did in the prefence of a great number of disciples and followers afcend vifibly into heaven, and there is to remain (as the scripture fpeaks) until the times of reftitution of all things. This is the ground of our fure truft and confidence, that we have an Advocate always with the Father to intercede for us, that our forerunner is already entered

VOL. III.

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into

V.