cation, we shall find that it comprises a general sketch of all the leading doctrines of Christianity. Thus, our Lord clearly sets forth the universal condemnation of mankind by nature and by practice; with the source, plan, and manner of their redemption by Divine grace. He expressly shows, and that with different amplifications, that the two grand truths of religion, on which the salvation of every soul of man depends, are, sanctification, through the new-birth, and justification by grace, through faith in his own blood. And unless these two great objects be attained, we are again and again assured, that no one can enter into the kingdom of God. Having moreover declared the ample means provided for our redemption by the sacrifice he came down from heaven to make, he explains the reason why all men obtain not the blessings of his salvation. It is because of unbelief and the love of sin. For "he that believeth not is condemned already;" and he that doeth evil is, as it were, doubly condemned, -openly, by his evil deeds which go before unto judgment, and, secretly, by his unbelief and hatred of the light, as the sins which follow after.

Amid all the blaze of gospel light, which is exhibited in such a wonderful condensation of wisdom in the words to which I have referred,— the passage selected for our text is the most resplendent object. So that were we to search

the records of human wisdom from one end of the civilized world to the other; to ransack the stores of learning in every country, and in the books of every age, we should find nothing either in the writings of philosophers or Christians that could yield, within similar limits, such a concentration of momentous truths, as the verse before us. And so distinguished are these truths above all other knowledge, that methinks, were the minister of Christ restricted to a single text, to form the subject of his preaching throughout life, that that text would be,-" God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

We find in the comprehensive words of the text,

I. The SOURCE of human redemption ;-God's love to the world.

II. The astonishing manifestation of that love;"God so LOVED the world, that he GAVE his ONLY-BEGOTTEN SON."

III. The OBJECT of God's unspeakable gift in the surrender of his Son;-That believers "should not perish, but have everlasting life." And,

IV. The CHARACTERS to whom that gift and sacrifice are appropriated; "Whosoever be

lieveth in him."

I. Consider THE SOURCE OF HUMAN REDEMPTION ;-the love of God to the world.

When the world, with the creatures and things therein, came from the hands of its Creator, he looked upon all which he had made, and, behold, it was very good! All was lovely; the beasts of the forest were harmless; the earth brought forth in spontaneous plenty every tree that was pleasant to the sight and good for food; noxious weeds, wide-spreading thistles, or useless plants cumbered not the ground; and man, the lord of the soil, was innocent, holy, and happy. Man was in the image of God, nature beamed with happiness, and all was lovely. Thus did the world and all its creatures derive their perfection and loveliness from the love and beneficence of their Creator.

But how soon was the beauty obscured! Sin, like a withering blight, seized upon all nature, and marked it with a universal curse, when Adam transgressed and fell. And then did our fallen father beget a son in his own degenerated image, and thus sin and death passed upon all men; sin being propagated by Adam and his sinful seed, and death, with all the varieties of human misery, came into the world because of sin. Was there, then, a necessity for this pollution of the works of our heavenly Father? Was Adam created weak, that he could not stand? Was he unwarned, that

he knew not his danger? Was any thing defective, that he required more? Surely not! He was made upright; he was warned of the danger of eating the forbidden fruit; and he possessed every created thing that was good. His fall was, therefore, wilful and without excuse. Was, then, the love of God withdrawn when Adam rebelled? Did the Lord both curse the ground, and his rebel creature man, with an eternal curse? Truly the ground was cursed for man's transgression, and all the race of man fell under the curse of a broken law; but blessed be the Lord God of heaven, his love overpowered the curse, and a way for our escape was provided.

Brethren; consider the love of God to the fallen world. Did he continue to love the world because it loved him? No; for it is enmity against him! Was it because the world repented of its transgressions and followed on to obey him? Alas, no; for it is still a rebellious world to this day! Was it because it was grateful for every manifestation of the Divine goodness? No; for it denied the God of all its mercies, and is not backward in blaspheming the power that made it! Has the world, then, shown any goodness, loveliness, or amendment, because of which the Lord should cause his love to return to it? No; for it is written, "there is none that doeth good, no, not one:" "the whole world lieth in

wickedness;" "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God!”

Why then this persevering love, when the world so little deserved it? The world loves its own. It loves them that love it. But God, whose love is an essential attribute of his nature, still looks on the world, with all its miseries, rebellions, and wickedness, and loves it!

II. When Jehovah in his infinite wisdom and prescience traced, before the foundation of the world, the progress of that world he designed to create for his own glory, he clearly foresaw the sin and misery with which human nature would envelope itself, as with a polluted garment. And when he beheld the desperate state of wickedness into which his favoured creature man would willingly run, and the terrible condemnation in which he would involve himself, it grieved him, to speak after the manner of men, that his creature who was to be made capable of enjoying so much blessedness, should expose himself, by his voluntary act, to such terrible miseries. "And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his [own] arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him." Thus he proposed to redeem the world from its own wilful condemnation, even "with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb