coming to raise them from the dead, and putting the laft hand to the work of our redemption-Then will he appear a Saviour indeed, for he will complete the falvation of the faithful-Then will he appear a Chrift indeed, for he will finish the defign of his unction, and will make us kings and pricfts to God his Father--Then will he appear Lord indeed, for all things fhall be fubjected to him, he will triumph over all our enemies, he will swallow up death in victory, and he will elevate us to the poffeffion of eternal glory".

Having fpoken of fimple terms, I proceed to add fomething concerning expreffions peculiar to Scripture. Thefe deferve a particular explication, and fhould be difcuffed and urged with great diligence, as well because they are peculiar modes of fpeaking, as because they are rich with meaning. In this clafs I put fuch forms of fpeaking as thefe; To be in Christ Jesus. To come to Jefus Chrift. To come after Jefus Chrift. To live in the flesh, To live after the flesh. From faith to faith. From glory to glory. To walk after the flesh. To walk after the fpirit. The old man. The new man. Jefus Chrift lives in you, To live to Jefus Chrift. To live to ourselves. To die to the world. To die to ourselves. To be crucified to the world. The world to be crucified to us. Jefus Chrift made fin for us; we made the righteousness of God in him. Chrift put to death in the flesh, quickened by the Spirit. Die unto fin. Live unto righteousness. Quench the Spirit. Grieve the Spirit. Refft the Holy Ghoft. Sin against the Holy Ghoft: and I know not how many more fuch expreffions, which are found almoft no where but in Scripture. Whenever you meet with fuch forms of speech as thefe, you must not pafs them over lightly, but you muft fully explain them, entering well into the fpirit and meaning of them, It would be very convenient for a young man to procure for this purpofe an exact collection, and endeavour to inform himfelf of the fenfe of each.

.

This fubject would require, as it well deferves, a particular treatite; however, I will briefly give an example of the manner in which expreffions of this kind thould be dif

This difcourfe was very long and tedious. All that could elucidate the treating of texts by comparijon is retained; but that which tented only to diffract the mind, is expunged,

cuffed.

cuffed. Let us take thefe words; Mark viii. 34. Whofoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me. Methinks it would not be improper to divide the fermon into two parts. In the first we would treat of the expreffions, which Jefus ufes, Come after me-deny himself take up his crafs—and follow me. And in the fecond we would examine the entire sense of our Saviour's whole propofition.

To begin then with the explication of thefe expreffions. To come after Jefus Chrift fignifies no other thing than to be his difciples, to take him for the rule and model of our conduct; in a word, to profefs an acknowledgment of him as our head and mafter, our fupreme prophet and teacher, our pattern and exemplar.

Deny himself is an expreffion fo fingular, that it seems to frock reafon and nature, and to fuppofe a thing difficult, yea, abfolutely impoffible, or at leaft extremely criminal. Yet, it is certain, nothing can be more holy, nothing more neceffary, nothing more juft than this felf-renunciation which Jefus Chrift here ordains. He does not mean that we thould divide ourselves from ourfelves, or that we fhould hate ourselves; but he intends,

1. In general, that we fhould renounce all that is in us exceffive, vicious, and irregular; this he calls felf, becaufe corruption is become, as it were, natural to us; we being conceived in fin, and shapen in iniquity.

2. He commands us particularly to renounce that violent, immoderate, and exceffive love, which man, in a ftate of depravity, has for himfelf, making felf-love his chief and only principle of action, in one word, being a god to himself.

3. He enjoins the renunciation of that falfe and perverfe pretence, which all finners have, that they are their own matters, that no one has a right over them, that to themselves only belongs the difpofition of words, actions, and thoughts. The Saviour means, that, renouncing this unjuft and foolish pretence, we fhould fubmit ourselves to the government and direction of God, confiding in the conduct of his wifdom, and receiving him to reign in our hearts by his word and spirit.

Take up his crefs, is an expreffion confecrated by Jefus VOL. I. Chrift

H

Chrift to a facred purpose, though it does not belong only to Scripture ftyle. Here two things are intended by it; the mystical crofs of converfion, and the crois of afflictions.

1. Converfion is called in Scripture a cross; because fin and carnal lufts are made to die within our hearts: this the Scripture calls crucifying the old man.

2. Afflictions are very juftly called crofes, not only because nature fuffers, but also because by these means we become the horror and reproach of the world.

Finally, to follow Fefus Chrift, is, 1. To become his difciple, to believe his doctrine, to approve his inaxims, to be perfuaded of the truth of his mysteries and holinefs of his laws.

2. To follow is to imitate him, to propofe him as our exemplar and pattern in the whole conduct of our lives, to walk in the fame way as he walked, in order to obtain communion with him in glory.

3. To profefs openly our fubjection to him, as our Mafter and Lord, to obey his orders, &c. In a word, to follow is the fame as to come after him, which we juft now explained.

This is the firft part-The fecond confifts in confidering the entire fenfe of Jefus Chrift's whole propofition. He means then, that, if we would be really of the number of his difciples and followers, we muft fubmit to two things, fanctification and affliction.

1. Sanctification. Here enter into the fubject, and fhew how impoffible it is to belong to Jefus Chrift without forfaking fin and entirely changing the life. The grace of God, that bringeth falvation, hath appeared to all men; teaching us, that, denying ungodliness and worldly lufts, we fhould live foberly, righteously, and godly, in this prefent world, looking for that bleffed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God, and our Saviour Jefus Chrift.

Thefe are St. Paul's words to Titus; and three things may be remarked in them, grace, holiness, and glory. And you may eafily obferve, that grace conducts to glory only by means of holiness: take away holiness, and grace and glory can never be joined together. The apoftle therefore does not fay, The grace of God hath appeared to all men, teaching us to look for the glorious appearing

of

of Jefus Chrift; but he fays, The grace of God hath appeared to all men, teaching us to deny ungodliness and worldly lufts, to live foberly, righteously, and godly, in this prefent world; and fo to be looking for that bleffed hope, the glorious appearing of the great God, and our Saviour Jefus Chrift. Grace indeed ends in glory; but it can only do fo by the intervention of holiness.

You may alfo allege, to the fame purpose, the end of Jefus Chrift's coming into the world, which was not only to destroy fin as it fubjected us to eternal punishment, but as fin. You may finally fhew how much it is for the glory of the Father and of Jefus Chrift, and for the reality and plenitude of falvation, that the difciples of Jefus fhould be fanctified.

2. Affliction. Two things here must be difcuffed: 1. The truth of the fact, that true believers are exposed to afflictions in this world. 2. The reasons why the Divine Wifdom fubjects believers to thefe trials.

2.

1. The truth of the fact results, 1. From the examples of all the great fervants of God who have appeared in the world to this day; as Noah, Abraham, Lot, Mofes, St. Paul, and all the other apoftles of Jefus Chrift. From the whole history of the church, which was always nourished and increased in afflictions. This may be illuftrated by the burning bufh, which appeared to Mofes; or by the thip, into which Jefus and his apoftles went, toffed with waves, and expofed to the violence of winds and ftorms.

2. The reafons for this difpenfation of Divine Providence may be taken from a common-place of afflictions; as, By means of afflictions God restrains our impetuous paffions, exercises our virtues, detaches us from the world, elevates us to the hope of a better life, and difplays the glory of that admirable Providence which governs us. Afflictions alfo are particular honours, which God confers on us, by them enabling us to walk in the fteps of Jefus Chrift, and conforming us by them to our divine leader. For thefe reafons, and many more of the fame kind, we may fairly conclude, that with profound wisdom Jefus Chrift has called us to affliction, and joined the cross to the profeffion of true Christianity".

This is fomewhat abridged, for the fame reafon as the foregoing."

We have before obferved, that, befide fimple terms, and fingular expreffions peculiar to Scripture, there are alfo fometimes in texts, particles, that are called fyncategorematica, which ferve either for the augmentation or limitation of the meaning of the propofition: As the word fo in John iii. 16. "God fo loved the world." The word now in the viiith of Romans; "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Chrift Jefus :"and in many more paffages of the fame kind.

Whenever you meet with thefe terms, carefully examine them; for fometimes the greatest part, and very often the whole of the explication depends upon them, as we have already remarked on that paffage juft now mentioned, God fo loved the world: for the chief article in the doctrine of the love of God is its greatncís, expreffed by the word fo. It is the fame with that other term now, There is, therefore, now no condemnation to them which are in Chrift Jefus; for the word now thews, that it is a conclufion drawn from the doctrine of juftification, which the apoftle had taught in the preceding chapters; and it is as if he had faid, From the principles which I have eftablished, it follows, that there is Now no condemnation, &c. Having then explained, 1. What it is to be in Christ Jesus ; 2. What it is to be no more subject to condemnation; chiefly infift, in the third place, on the word now; and thew that it is a doctrine which neceffarily follows from what St. Paul had established touching juftification, in the foregoing chapters: fo that this term makes a real part of the explication, and indeed the most important part°.

Sometimes these terms in queftion are not of confequence enough to be much dwelt on, but may be more properly paffed with a flight remark. The word Behold, with which many propofitions in Scripture begin, muft be treated fo; you muft not make one part of this, nor infift on it too long. The fame may be faid of that familiar expreffion, of Jefus Chrift, Verily, Verily, which is an affeveration, or, if you will, an oath: but neither on this nuft you infift much. So again, Amen, or fo be it, which clofes fome texts. Woe be to you, which Jefus Christ often

See ante, page 47.

See this exemplified in Skel. 45. where the difcuffion turns en, tirely upon the word "henceforth." See alfo Skel. 69. where the word "Amen" ferves as the foundation of the whole difcourfe. -

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