death and hell; from misery and perdition, present and future, unavoidable and eternal! Redemption from the world, to which we were enslaved; from the lusts of the flesh, to which we were wholly subject; and from Satan himself, who led us captive at his will! Redemption into life and liberty; the glorious liberty of the children of GoD! liberty of access to GOD, as his adopted sons and daughters, and to love and serve him in sincerity and truth! A redemption, which implies perfect holiness, attended with unutterable peace and joy in this world, and bliss and glory, which shall know no period, in the world to come! O how valuable, or rather invaluable, a gift is this! Who can sufficiently estimate its worth! what man upon earth, I will not say, but, what angel in heaven, can comprehend its necessity on the one hand, or its value on the other! Without it, we had been eternally undone; with it, we are made happy for ever!

But we must not stop here. Let us proceed to reflect upon the way in which this salvation is conferred, and it will appear doubly important, a way altogether new and astonishing. That our rebellion against the King of kings might be pardoned, our ruined souls recovered, our forfeited privileges restored, and, at the same time, the honour of the Divine attributes secured, the authority of his law preserved, and the equity of his government demonstrated; GOD's eternal Son becomes incarnate! He relinquishes that glory and felicity he had with the Father before the world began; he clothes himself with our frail humanity, with its attendant infirmities; he suffers, bleeds, dies ;-dies the most painful and disgraceful death, which the malice of men and devils could devise, or their power inflict! Let men and angels, yea, let the whole creation stop, and gaze, and adore this strange mystery!

"Redemption! 'twas creation more sublime;
Redemption! 'twas the labour of the skies;

Far more than labour, it was death in heaven."

Surely this is love indeed! Love, high as heaven; for from thence it brought the Son of GOD down to us, and thither it raises our fallen souls! Love, deep as hell; for from thence it stoops to redeem us, and from thence it rescues us! Love, broad as the world, and long as eternity; for it comprehends the whole human race, and shall endure through everlasting ages! Love, immeasurable as infinity, and mysterious as GoD its author! Well might the Apostle say, "God is love," for this is that attribute, which blazes out with such effulgence, and pours forth such a flood of

light as almost to shade his other perfections, while it overwhelms our weak and finite minds.

"O how omnipotence is lost in love!

Father of angels! but the friend of man;

Thou who didst save him, snatch the smoking brand
From out the flames, and quench it in thy blood!
How art thou pleas'd by bounty to distress,
To make us groan beneath our gratitude,
To challenge and to distance all return!
Of lavish love, stupendous heights to soar,
And leave praise panting in the distant vale."

Not to dwell too long on this engaging topic, which is indeed inexhaustible, and will afford sufficient, and more than sufficient matter for contemplation and praise, through the ages of eternity, I hasten to call your attention to another divine favour, which shines resplendently in the new heavens, enlightens and cheers us with its kindly influence, and, adding to the lustre of the preceding, renders them more efficacious and useful. The blessing I mean, is the light of the Gospel, whereby we are made acquainted with the fore-mentioned mercies of GoD, and so engaged thankfully to accept and walk worthy of them.

Had not the LORD "brought life and immortality to light by the Gospel," had not "the Day-spring from on high visited us to give light to us who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death;" we must have remained in gross ignorance both of ourselves and of GOD, both of this world and the next, both of sin and the Redeemer, both of our fall and recovery. The almost universal experience of the heathen world is a sad, a very sad demonstration of this truth. Alas! how little the very wisest of them knew concerning the most interesting points; such as related to, and were closely connected with, their present and eternal felicity! Not that GOD left himself entirely without witness among them. If so, their sin would have been unavoidable. The dim light, reflected from his works of creation and providence, and transfused into their understanding and conscience, by the secret influences of his Spirit, might doubtless, if followed, have con ducted them to glory and virtue, and, therefore, renders the condemnation of those who neglected that light, reasonable and just. But still, it must be allowed that our advantages for religious knowledge, are, I had almost said, infinitely superior to theirs. We are now no longer at a loss to know, either ourselves,-whence we came, what we are, and whither we are going? or the Author

of all things,-what he is in himself, and what to his creatures? GOD is revealed to us in all his holiness and justice, wisdom and power, truth and love; and we are plainly and fully informed concerning our lost estate by nature and practice, our redemption by CHRIST JESUS, and those offers of pardon, holiness and happiness, made to us through him, which, if we accept in a way of repentance and faith, we shall be eternally and unchangeably happy, but if we reject them, we must be punished with extreme and endless torment. So that we may truly say, "The darkness is indeed past, and the true light now shineth."

And this light of revelation wherewith the LORD has graciously favoured us, not only shines in our Bibles, and illuminates, with the knowledge of GOD and JESUS CHRIST whom he hath sent, those who have leisure and ability to peruse the sacred pages; but, blessed be GOD, it beams forth from our pulpits, and darts its bright rays from the examples of many living witnesses of the power of godliness. Yes! GOD has graciously raised up many burning and shining lights, whose instructions and behaviour show us "how we ought to walk, and please GOD." Nay, further, he has instituted certain outward and visible signs of his inward and spiritual grace, which, while they represent it, are likewise means of its conveyance. Thus, in the sacrament of the LORD'S Supper, "CHRIST JESUS is evidently set forth as crucified before our eyes," and the benefits purchased by his death are exhibited to us, and, if we believe, embraced by us; while the washing of water in baptism, is a striking emblem of the purification of our souls from sin, and the renovation of our nature after the image of God.

I must not conclude this head without mentioning one more gift of God, which adds a double value to all his other gifts, and without which they would have all been unprofitable-the gift of the Holy Spirit; the purchase of our Redeemer's sufferings, and the fruit of his mediation. "Having ascended up on high, and led captivity captive, he received gifts for men, even for the rebellious, that the LORD GOD might dwell among them," viz. by the influences of his Spirit. "If I go not away," said JESUS to his disciples," the Comforter will not come, but if I depart I will send him unto you. I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter to abide with you for ever." And this blessing was not to be confined to the Apostles and primitive Christians, but was to be extended to all nations and ages. For it was promised of old, "that God would pour out his Spirit upon all flesh," which promise, St. Peter tells us, was not only to that generation,

and to the nation of the Jews, but to " their children, and to those that were afar off, even as many as the LORD should call." Accordingly," the true light" of the Spirit enlightens, more or less, 66 every man that cometh into the world," and that " grace of GOD which bringeth salvation, hath appeared unto all men, teaching us that denying ungodliness, and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world."

This Spirit, thus purchased for, and offered to, the whole human race, is called "the Spirit of Truth," "the Holy Spirit," and "the Comforter," because it is his office to enlighten, sanctify, and comfort mankind. The Gospel diffuses around us a glorious light, and scatters the shades of darkness, wherewith we were encompassed in our heathen state. But, alas! we cannot see this light, we still remain in gross ignorance of every necessary truth, because 66 the eyes of our understanding are blinded," and the veil of unbelief interposes betwixt us and the light. In this condition we continue, till "he, who commanded light to shine out of darkness, shine into our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of GoD in the face of CHRIST JESUS." Then, being put in possession of that faith which is of the operation of God, ❝ with unveiled face we behold as in a glass the glory of the LORD, and are changed into the same image from glory to glory, by the Spirit of the LORD." Thus are we convinced of sin, and brought to unfeigned repentance for it; thus are we also convinced of righteousness, and put in possession of it. We are directed and induced to submit to the righteousness of GOD; or that way of salvation he hath appointed, through faith in the righteousness of CHRIST. We are assured of our justification by the testimony of the Spirit, by whose agency "the love of GoD is" likewise "shed abroad in our hearts, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God." Taught of GOD, we see the evil of sin, and flee from it; the beauty of holiness, and aspire after it. We pay a due respect to, and observe all God's commandments, which we do not find grievous, and "in keeping of which there is great reward;" and hence we rejoice also in the testimony of a good conscience, and possess a "peace of mind that passeth understanding."

How can we doubt whether this is a valuable and necessary gift of God? How could we have done without it? What would all his other gifts have availed us, if he had not given us this? Surely nothing; nay, they would even have involved us in certain and increased misery. For, good had it been for us, that we had never been created, if God had not redeemed us from that sin, and guilt, and bondage into which we had fallen; and equally

good had it been, that we had not been redeemed, if the Holy Spirit had not been given to apply that redemption. In vain had CHRIST lived and died for us, if "the Spirit did not take of the things that are his, and shew them unto us ;" in vain would the light of the glorious Gospel shine around us, if the Holy Spirit did not shine within us; and in vain had we been at first created, if, through the operations of the self-same Spirit, we were not new-created. I may add also, that "in as much as the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of GOD, and the things of God knoweth no man, but by the Spirit of God," we cannot so much as understand either the nature or the value of GOD'S gifts, much less can we improve them, without the influences of his Spirit. In every point of view, therefore, the absolute necessity, and incomparable value, of the gift of the Holy Spirit is very apparent; for without it, all the other gifts of GOD would have been more than lost upon us; whereas with it, they answer their intended end, and become truly and infinitely useful.

And how does this, as well as God's other favours, demonstrate his amazing, his unfathomable love to us! Will the Most High indeed dwell with man? Will Infinite Majesty and Glory condescend to abide with vile worms of the earth? Will the pure and holy Gon visit our impure and unholy breasts with his sacred inspiration? He will; he does; yea, he has done it from our youth up until now. From our earliest years does the Spirit of GoD strive with man, and powerfully, though often secretly, and unobserved, enlighten their minds, awaken their consciences, persuade their wills, and attract their desires! Yes, "the light shineth in darkness, even when the darkness comprehendeth it not," when men "love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil," yea, when they even "hate the light, and will not come to the light, lest their deeds should be reproved."

The death of CHRIST draws those, who do not yield to its attraction, but, on the contrary, despise and trample it under foot. And the Spirit of grace visits those, who grieve his love, quench his motions, and do despite to his gracious offices. This is mercy, forbearance, and long-suffering indeed! O, how condescending, patient, and kind is the LORD our GOD! How wonderful it is, that he should so long bear with us, notwithstanding our provocations, and defer our punishment; that he should so long strive with us, and wait to do us good, notwithstanding our abuse of his grace, and contempt of his love! How amazing it is that he has not, long before now, resolved his Spirit should no more strive with us, and