The gospel only can make fin odious, and holiness delightful It effects this by revealing to us the love of Chrift a ——Hence our Lord reminds us of his love in order to confirm our love to him- I. The nature and extent of Chrift's love to us The comparison in the text denotes not equality but refemblance is b The love of Chrift to us, like that of his Father to him, 1. Without beginning There never was a period when the Father firft began to love his Son [He loved him before his entrance on his miniftry, before his existence in the world 4, before Ifaiah's time, from all eternityf] There never was a period when Chrift first began to love us [His love is firft manifefted when we believe in him— But our faith in him is the effect, not the cause, of his love to us This is affirmed by the prophets, and by Chrift himself"—] 2. Without measure The Father's love to Chrift was unbounded [He is one with Chrift in nature, and therefore in affection He has fhewn the greatnefs of his love to him, in the gifts beftowed upon him, and in his conftant co-operation with him-] us Chrift's love to us is alfo unbounded [It produces moft aftonishing acts of kindness towards Human affections fall far fhort of it "- It " paffes all knowledge," whether of men or angels-] 3. Without Matt. iii. 17. e Ifai. xlii. 1. f In this fenfe many commentators explain Prov. viii. 22, 23, 30: and if that interpretation be admitted, the eternity of Chrift's love may be confirmed by ver. 31. But, however this paffage be interpreted, the fact itself stands on the most unquestionable authority. John xvii. 24, Jer. xxxi. 3. Ezek. xvi. 6. h John xv. 16. i John x. 30. Eph. v. 25. VOL. I, * John iii. 35. Col. i. Rev. i. 5, 6. D D 19. 1 John v. 19, 20. 3. Without variation The Father's love to Chrift was unchangeable [His love feems to have been withdrawn for a feason — He feemed not to anfwer his prayers P— But he heard him always, and loved him always- The apparent fufpenfions of his love were the necessary means of accomplishing the purposes of his love even towards Chrift himself'] Chrift's love to us alfo is unchangeable [There are feafons when he feems to withdraw his love— But his chastisements are tokens of his love 3— He hates fin indeed, and will correct his people till they put it away But he will not withdraw his love from them — Wherever he fixes his love, he refts unaiterably in it"] 4. Without end The Father's love to Chrift fhall endure for ever [He has given him a pledge of this in his exaltation te heaven-] Chrift's love to us fhad also be everlasting— [He knows no change of mind with refpect to what he has beftowed *___ Whomfoever he loves he continues to love This truth is a juft ground of joy and confidence — -] What returns can we ever make to Chrift for fuch amazing love? II. The duty refulting from it This part of the text requires application rather than difcuffion It fets before us, not merely our privilege (which is, to continue in a fenfe of Chrift's love to us) but our duty 1. To love Chrift [This would have been our duty, though he had not fo loved us But the obligation to it is greatly increafed by his love— Let him then be exceeding precious to us Let us defpife every thing in comparison of him — 2. To continue in love to him [We are too apt to decline in our love But 9 John xi. 42. y John xiii. 1. a Phil. iii. 8. But declenfions, however fecret, are very offenfiveThey will, if continued in, difqualify us for heaven They will reduce us to a worfe fituation than everLet us therefore cleave to the Lord with full purpose of heart] 3. To abound in all acts and offices of love to him [In fecret, let us contemplate, admire, and adore his excellencies In public, let us confefs, honour, and obey him -] It commends to us that duty as refulting from the declaration that precedes it [The love of Chrift towards us is the ftrongest of all motives to the love of him Was Chrift's love to us fo unmerited, unbounded, invariable, and lasting? and fhall ours to him be weak and tranfient? Let it operate then fuitably on all our hearts Let us not reft fatisfied with what we have attained h Let us meditate on his love as the means of increafing ours -] Gal. iii. 1. O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whofe eyes Jefus Chrift hath been evidently fet forth, crucified among you? THE method of a finner's juftification is plainly revealed in the gospel Nor is any doctrine more worthy of attention An error with refpect to many other points may confift with our falvation But to err in this, is to deftroy all hope of accept ance Hence St. Paul devotes even an angel from heaven to a curfe, if it could be fuppofed that one thould be found who would introduce a gospel different from that which he himself had preached DD 2 Unhappily, Unhappily, however, the Galatians had been mifledThe apoitle writes this epiftle in order to reclaim them He tells them that he had reproved even Peter hinfelf, and that too before the whole church at Antioch, for diffembling the truth He then proceeds to reprove their declenfion alfoWe fhall confider I. Wherein their disobedience to the truth confifted The Galatians had formerly "received the truth in the love of it" [They had entertained the highest respect for him who firft evangelized them They had been knit to him with the most cordial affection They had found much bleffednefs by means of the gofpel d They had received miraculous powers in confirmation of the word They had been enabled to adorn their profeffion by a fuitable life and converfation They had even endured many sufferings for their attachment to the truth —] But they had lately imbibed the doctrines of fome Judaizing teachers [Many of the Jewish converts were still zealous for the law of Mofes Hence they laboured to make profelytes wherever they came Many of the Galatian churches were induced to embrace their doctrines— Hence, though Gentiles originally, they put themselves under the yoke of the Jewish law-] Thus they, in fact, "difobeyed and renounced the truth" itfelf [They had been taught to expect juftification by faith in Chrifi But now they fuperadded an obedience to the law as a joint ground of hope By this they declared that faith in Chrift was infufficient for their juftification They Gal. iv. 15. f Gal. v. 7. Gal. ii. 16. They did not indeed intend by this to reject Chrift entirely But the apostle tells them repeatedly that God confidered their conduct as equivalent to an utter rejection of the gospel * Hence he warns them that they were turned altogether to "another gospel 1”—] Their defection therefore involved them in the deepest guilt; as will appear more fully, if we confider II. The particular aggravation with which it was attended St. Paul himself had preached among them in a most lively and affecting manner [Wherever he went, his conftant fubject was Chrift cru eufied " He fully opened to his hearers the nature and ends of Chrift's death He always declared the efficacy of it as an atonement for fin He earnestly exhorted all to truft in it for their acceptance with God He had dwelt fo much, and in fo affecting a manner, on this fubject, that the crucifixion of Chrift might be faid to have been depicted, or even exhibited before their eyes-] This was a great aggravation of their guilt in departing from the faith [Had they heard lefs of Chrift, they had been lefs culpable Had they heard of him in a lefs affecting manner, they had not been without a plea Had they feen no particular effects flowing from the apostle's preaching, they might have had fome excufe Had the fubferviency of the law to the gospel never been opened to them, their defection from the truth might have been accounted for But to renounce the 'truth, after it had been fet forth with fuch energy, and attended with fuch effects, was extreme folly and wickednefs Their conduct was no lefs than a crucifying of Chrift afresh-] What animadverfion their difobedience merited we may fee in III. The reproof which the apoftle gave them on account of it St. -4. Gal. i. 6. Gal. ii. 21. and v. 2- |