IN discoursing of the Method, in which the great Mediator between God and Man, Christ Jesus, hath undertaken to save Sinners, I propos'd to consider the Necessities of fallen Men, and thereby to evince both that we had very great need of the assistance of a Mediator, and that no Method, which we can possibly think of, could have so fully answer'd the end of pro­viding for our Necessities, as that which our bles­sed Saviour, by his coming into the World hath been pleas'd to take.

The Necessities of Men I reduc'd to four Heads.

• First, A suspicion and jealousy of Mind concern­ing God, and an Alienation from him, as consequent thereupon.
• Secondly, A gross ignorance of God, of them­selves, and of the several particulars of their Duty.
• Thirdly, An indisposition and inability to com­ply with the Divine Will, although it should be fully and clearly reveal'd.
• [Page 2] Fourthly, After all, an incapacity of removing those other evil and mischievous Consequen­ces, to which their sins had expos'd them, and of obtaining for themselves that compleat Salvation, which they stood in need of.

The two former of these I have consider'd at large, and now proceed to those two which remain, which I shall treat of with greater Brevity, what I have to offer upon these Heads, not requiring so much inlargment, as on the former.

Thirdly therefore, The next Difficulty which fall­en Men are under, is this, That they find them­selves indispos'd and unable to comply with the Divine Will, even when it is fully and clearly re­vealed to them.

Whosoever will impartially consider what I have offer'd, touching the Precepts and Example of our Blessed Saviour, and will seriously study the Writ­ings of the New Testament, in which a particular account of each of them is contain'd, must ac­knowledge, that a profess'd Christian cannot want sufficient Instruction, in all the particulars of his Duty: But there is still something farther necessary, viz. to be both able and willing to comply with the Precepts, and to imitate the Example thus set before him. Christians themselves confess, and complain with the Apostle, Rom. 7.23. that they see another Law in their Members, warring against the Law of their Minds, which, antecedently to the Grace of the Gospel, brings them into Captivity. And the Adversaries of Christianity make this a great Objection against our holy Profession, and I doubt not but that it is, at the bottom, the principal ground of their Infide­lity, [Page 3]that the Precepts of our Lord are too strict, and his Example too exact, to be complyed with and imitated by humane Nature. And this is evi­dently the Reason, why so many profess'd Chri­stians act disagreeably to their Profession, viz. That their Appetites and Passions are too strong for their Understanding and Reason: they know the Will of God, and inwardly approve it, but cannot prevail with themselves to obey it: to Will, that is to have some faint and imperfect inclination to act according to the conviction of their Judg­ments, is present with them; Vers. 18, 19. but how to perform that which is good, they find not: So that the good which they would, they do not; but the evil which they would not, that they do, as the same Apostle emphatically expresses it. And all this is but one of those evil Consequences, which, as I observed in a former Lecture, Lect. ij. p. 20. 21. naturally follow our apostacy from God.

My present Business therefore is to shew, what Provision our Mediator hath made in this case; and this I shall do, in the three following Particulars.

I. Our Blessed Saviour hath provided in this in­stance, by annexing such Sanctions to his Pre­cepts, as do naturally tend most powerfully to in­fluence our Minds.

II. By promising the assistance of the Divine Spirit, for the enabling us to do what of our selves we cannot.

III. By settling such institutions to be constant­ly observ'd and us'd in his Church, as are both in their own Nature proper to excite us, and are moreover design'd as Means of conveying the Grace of the Holy Spirit to us.

[Page 4] I. By annexing such Sanctions to his Precepts, as do naturally tend most powerfully to influence our Minds.

The Precepts of Christianity are all of them so perfectly good in their own Nature, and so tho­rowly agreeable to the Understanding of a reason­able Creature, that every Man to whom they are made known, would readily comply with them, if it were not for the seeming Pleasures of Sin, and the difficulties with which some instances of Virtue seem to be attended; seem, I say; for af­ter all, the Experience of every good Christian fully satisfies him, that the present Pleasure, which attends a faithful compliance with the Precepts of the Gospel, greatly preponderates all its dif­ficulties; as the uneasiness and the remorse, which attend a sinful Course of Life, do on the other hand render its Pleasures very incon­siderable. Prov. 3.17. The ways of Wisdom are ways of Plea­santness, and all her Paths are Peace; and to him that is become a thorow Christian, the Command­ments of God are not Grievons. 1 John 5.3. But nevertheless, thus it falls out, through the Error and Corrup­tion of Mankind, that Men are frequently misled by a present Pleasure, which they feel in comply­ing with their sensual inclinations; and that the practice of Christian Piety and Virtue, forasmuch as it thwarts such inclinations, becomes difficult and irksome to them. Now to balance this, our Bles­sed Saviour hath by his Gospel propos'd, over and above the present satisfaction and Pleasure which are to be found in compliance with his Laws, future rewards for our Obedience, and fu­ture Punishments for our Disobedience.

The Passions of Hope and Fear were implanted in our Nature by him who made us, to be a check upon our present Sense; and they are of especi­al Use to us, during this state of our Tryal, to preserve us from being influenc'd by the false and deceitful appearances of present and sensible Ob­jects. And although we cannot be said to have ar­rived at a Christian Frame and Constitution of Spirit, till we heartily approve the Precepts of our Religion, and chuse to comply with them, on account of their own intrinsick reasonableness and goodness; yet 'tis usually by the hope of Re­wards, and the fear of Punishments, that our Minds are at first awaken'd, and our thoughts be­come duly fix'd; and even after we have attain'd to a sincere and prevalent love of Piety and Vir­tue upon their own account, yet still our hopes and fears are of great use to us, to excite our Minds, to quicken our Endeavours, and to turn the Scale, upon all Emergencies, against the temp­tations of Sense.

And by how much the more considerable the Objects of our hope and fear are, by so much the greater is the influence which they will have up­on us. For which reason, the Gospel hath pro­pos'd to us such Rewards and Punishments in the life to come, as to those who thoroughly believe and consider them, will appear infinitely to out­weigh all the present Pleasures by which foolish Sinners are courted, and the present difficulties by which they are apt to be discouraged. For it pro­miseth on the one hand, all that Happiness, which humane Nature compleated by the union of a pu­rified Soul with an incorruptible Body, and re­stor'd [Page 6]to the favor of Almighty God, is capable of; and on the other hand, it threatens all that Misery, that Men compos'd of Soul and Body reunited, but unregenerated, and abandon'd by God, are obnoxious to; the particulars of which states are [...] such as we cannot have a full conception of in this Life; but from the general view which the Gospel hath given us, both of the Quality, and the Duration of this future Happi­ness and Misery, we have all the reason in the World to infer, that nothing, but either down­right disbelief of these things, or the want of representing them duly to our Minds, by frequent and serious consideration, can render them inef­fectual to excite our hope and fear to that de­gree, as will serve to influence our tempers and our lives.

For the farther promoting of which ends, the Gospel hath fully and clearly asserted the Re­ality and Certainty of these future Recompences, not speaking of them, as of what may possibly be, or what is only probable; but as of what we may as surely depend upon, as upon any other Truths which it hath reveal'd to us, leaving no room for any profess'd Christian to doubt or hesitate concerning them.

And herein it must be granted, that the Method taken by the Christian Institution, for exciting our hope and fear, and by consequence for mo­ving us effectually to comply with its Precepts, altogether surpasses what has been done by any other institution of Religion. It would be ridi­culous to compare the dreams of Pagan Poets, or the Mahometan Fables, concerning the Re­wards [Page 7]and Punishments of the life to come, with the Promises and Threatnings of the Gospel. As to the Mosaical Institution, which we Christians acknowledge to have been Divine, it look'd no farther in its Promises and Threatnings, at least not in plain and express terms, than to the good and evil things of the present life. Not but that wise and good Men amongst the Jews, looking beyond the Letter of their Law, did see, tho' obscurely, into the other World.

The notion of the Soul's Immortality was in­deed from Nature and Reason, generally em­brac'd by the considering part of Mankind: but yet the wisest and best Philosophers express'd themselves very dubiously with respect to a fu­ture State, of which sufficient Evidence might be produc'd both from Socrates amongst the Greeks, and Tully amongst the Romans, who seem to have gone as far as any others in the Expectation and Hope of Immortality; but yet could not say enough powerfully to excite the hopes of good Men, or the fears of the Wick­ed, to such a degree, as might suffice to balance the Temptations of the present Life, at least with the vulgar and unthinking part of Men, which is by far the greater number. Whereas the Gospel speaks so plainly, and so positive­ly of these matters, as may be sufficient to in­fluence all sorts of Men by whom it is be­lieved.

To conclude this Particular; The belief of the Recompences of the Life to come, as reveal'd by the Gospel, is that which has made so wide a difference between the Christian and the Pagan [Page 8]World. What the State of the Heathen was, be­fore the publishing of Christianity, I have ob­serv'd in a former Lecture. Lect. ij. p. 23. Men were almost universally and totally fallen from the Divine, and sunk into the Animal Life, estranged from God, and enslav'd by the Devil and their own Lusts: But when the Gospel was Published, it awaken'd their Minds, causing them to look forward towards another Life, and to consider the consequences of their present behaviour.

There are indeed in this degenerate State of the Christian Church, abundance of Men pro­fessing themselves Christians, who are yet as un­reform'd as the worst of Infidels: But then, 'tis because they do not heartily believe, or at least do not at all consider the Principles of Christi­anity. But as this is certain, that where Chri­stianity is Profess'd, there are far greater num­bers of all Ranks of Men, who are persuaded to the practice of Piety and Virtue, than there are in other parts of the World; so 'tis as evi­dent, that this is in great measure owing to the Principles which I am now speaking of. 'Tis the belief of a future Life, which keeps bad Men in the Christian World, from being much worse than they are: 'Tis that which first awak­ened and excited most of those, who are re­claimed from an evil Course: And 'tis that, which those who are become Christians in good ear­nest, hearty lovers of Piety and Virtue, are forc'd often to have recourse to, seriously re­presenting to their own Minds, those future Re­compenses which the Gospel assures them of, in order to the strengthening their good Reso­lutions, [Page 9]and the fortifying themselves against the many Temptations they meet with in this evil World. By all which, we may perceive the great Usefulness, and even Necessity of these Motives, which the Gospel hath offer'd to our Consideration. But this is not all; for

II. Our Blessed Saviour hath made farther Provision against the Indisposition and Inabili­ty of Men, by promising the assistance of the Divine Spirit, for the enabling us to do what of our selves we cannot.

Every created and finite Spirit must be suppo­sed necessarily and constantly to depend upon that Spirit which is uncreated and infinite, ever standing in need of Influences from him. A state of Innocency and Integrity cannot exempt a Creature from such dependance. This, Lect. ij. p. 27, 28. as I have formerly observ'd, results from the Nature and Condition of a Creature, to be of it self muta­ble and fallible, insomuch that it can by no o­ther means preserve its Integrity, than by ad­hering to its Maker, and deriving Influences from him. Much more then, upon the degeneracy of such a Creature, some special influence from God must be necessary in order to its Reco­very.

It was, as I have taken Notice, Ibid. from neglect­ing to adhere to God and depend upon him, that our first Parents apostatiz'd, whereby they and their Off-spring became, not mutable and fallible; that they were before; but, as Ex­perience too plainly proves, very much dis­order'd [Page 10]and weaken'd in all their Faculties, ha­ving contracted an Indisposition to that which is Good, together with strong Habits of Sin. The Spirit, having once given way to the Flesh, lost its Authority and Government, which it can­not easily reassume.

In order therefore to a recovery from this state, to effect which is the great design of Christianity, there must be a supply of new strength, some extraordinary influences from the Divine Spirit, to reduce the Soul into good Or­der, and to preserve it, when so reduc'd. And for this we are beholden to the Undertaking of our great Mediator.

'Tis true, good Men in all Ages of the World, such I mean as have had a becoming sense of God, and of natural Religion, have profess'd their reliance upon God, and there hopes of his assistance; and I question not, but they have in some measure partaken of what they thus ho­ped for; which was in truth, though not clear­ly understood by them, the effect of God's Mer­cy and Grace through Jesus Christ; whose Un­dertaking, as we Christians believe, had its effect for the benefit of Mankind, ever since the first Promise made to Adam after his Fall. But, as the greater part of Man were left to the sug­gestions of Nature, and the conjectures of Rea­son in this case, having no express Declaration or Promise, which they knew of, upon which they might depend; so the Pious and good Men amongst the Jews themselves, who enjoy­ed the Divine Oracles, yet believ'd and hop'd [Page 11]for the assistance of the Divine Spirit, rather upon the grounds of natural Religion, than of their own Law, the Promises of which, as I before observ'd, were chiefly of the good things of this life, what was beyond this being rather obscurely hinted to them, than plainly express'd. For which reason St. Paul, who very well un­derstood the Jewish Law, and was thoroughly acquainted with the sense in which his Coun­trymen generally understood it, says, Rom. 7, 8, 10. That sin taking occasion by the Commandment, wrought all manner of Concupiscence; and again, That the Commandment, which was ordain'd unto Life, was found to be unto Death; and again, That the Law, ch. 8.3, 4. in that it was weak through the Flesh, could not effect that Righteousness in us, which it aimed at. By all which he plainly asserts, that the Law of Moses, as such, only declared Mens Du­ty, but brought no assistance along with it to enable them to perform it; and consequently, left them in a worse state, than it found them, without the addition of Gospel Grace.

The Prophets indeed utter'd many Predicti­ons of a plentiful Effusion of the Divine Spi­rit: Is. 44.3. Ezek. 36.26, 27. Joel 2.28. But this was to be in the Days of the Messiah, as the Jews did, and we Christians now do understand those Prophecies to import. And they were accordingly fulfilled in the days of our Blessed Saviour; there having been a very plentiful Effusion of the Divine Spirit upon the Apostles, and first Preachers, and Professors of Christianity, to enable them to do extraordina­ry Works, and to capacitate them to dis­charge [Page 12]and undergo their Employments and their Sufferings: And not only so, but we have more­over, both from our Lord and his Apostles, express and clear Promises of the Communica­tion of the same Spirit, to enlighten and assist the Minds of Christians in every succeeding Age.

Our Lord to this purpose did in general de­clare the readiness of Almighty God, to give his Holy Spirit to all those who should ask it of him, Luke 11.13. arguing from the goodness of God, and his fatherly care of Men, infinitely exceeding that of any earthly Parent.

More particularly, our Lord hath given a pro­mise of the Divine Spirit, to all such as shall come to him, and believe in him. At a So­lemn Festival of the Jews, John 7.37, 38, 39. Jesus stood and cry­ed, saying, If any Man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. He that believeth on me, as the Scripture hath said, Out of his belly shall flow Ri­vers of living Water. And this, as the Evange­lists adds, He spake of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: For the Holy Ghost was not yet given, (not in that plentiful man­ner, as afterwards,) because that Jesus was not yet Glorified. And indeed it was after the glo­rification of Jesus, that this Spirit was given, first in so wonderful a manner, as on the day of Pentecost, as a pledge of his being thence­forward to direct and assist the Church of Christ in all succeeding Ages, a Promise to that pur­pose being given to all the Members of the Christian Body. For so St. Peter, discoursing [Page 13]to the Jews upon that occasion, Acts 2.38, 39. solemnly de­clares. Repent, says he, and be Baptiz'd every one of you, in the Name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of Sins; and ye shall receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost. For the Promise is unto you, and to your Children, and to all that are afar off, even as ma­ny as the Lord our God shall call.

'Tis upon this account, that St. Paul declares so amply the Power which Christians receiv'd by the Gospel, to enable them to do what, nei­ther by the Abilities of Nature, nor by the As­sistance of the Law of Moses, they could have done. When, in the place before-cited, he had complain'd of the Law in the Members whereby Men are Captivated, Rom. 7.23, 24. and thereupon express'd ve­ry pathetically his Sense of the Wretchedness of Men, by reason of the Body of Death which they carry about with them, he concludes with tri­umphing in the Grace of the Gospel, v. 25. I thank God, through Jesus Christ our Lord; farther ex­plaining himself in the following Words; ch. 8.1, 2, 3, 4. There is therefore now no Condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the Flesh, but after the Spirit. For the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the Law of Sin and Death. For what the Law could not do, in that it was weak through the Flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful Flesh, and as a Sacrifice for Sin, condemned Sin in the Flesh; that the Righteousness of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the Flesh, but after the Spirit; as much as to say, that by embracing the Gospel of Christ, he was not [Page 14]only freed from Condemnation, on account either of his past Faults, or his present unavoidable Infirmities; but moreover received strength through the assistance of the Spirit of Christ, which would enable him sincerely, though not without all impersection, to obey the Laws of God, and to attain to that Righteousness, which through the inordinacy of the Flesh, and the weakness of the Mosaical Institution, he could not attain to before.

For the same reason elsewhere comparing the Law with the Gospel, he gives the preference to the latter, in very significant terms. The Law he stiles the Ministration of the Letter, 2 Cor. 3.3, 6, 7, 8, 9. which killeth; the Gospel, the Ministration of the Spirit, which giveth Life: One, the Ministration of Death, and of Condemnation, written and engraven in Stone; the other, the Ministration of Righteous­ness, written in fleshly Tables of the Heart, with the Spirit of the living God.

But 'tis needless to recite more Passages, the New Testament is full of them; this being the great Promise of the Gospel, declar'd through­out the Sacred Writings, that the Divine Spi­rit should be imparted in a free and plentiful manner to those, who should embrace the Chri­stian Religion.

And this certainly is a sufficient Provision a­gainst the indisposition and inability of Men's Minds to comply with the Divine Will, when reveal'd to them. Rom. 7.12, 14. The Law of God, as St. Paul expresses it, is Holy, and the Commandment Holy. Just and Good; the Precepts of the Gospel are [Page 15] Spiritual, and Divine; whereas we are Carnal and sold under Sin: But the Spirit of God can rescue us from this Slavery, by enlightning our Minds, fixing our Thoughts, inclining our Hearts, and spiritualizing our Affections, making us not only to delight in the Law of God after the in­ner Man; but to walk also not after the Flesh, but after the Spirit. The Example of our Lord was exact, and altogether perfect, and we must not hope in this life to attain to the same ex­actness and perfection: But as it was upon ac­count of its Perfection fit to be propos'd to our imitation; so the same Spirit which dwelt in our Lord, without measure, can form us by degrees after his likeness, and make us in our measure to resemble him both in our Tem­pers and Practices.

If it be objected, that we want instances amongst the Professors of Christianity, to verify this Doctrine, that the Divine Spirit is thus im­parted by the Gospel; the Answer is easy. The primitive times of Christianity abounded with instances of this kind. Such were the Apostles, who could every one of them have said, as St. Paul did, Be ye followers of me, 1 Cor. 11.2. even as I also am of Christ. And such were abundance of the Members of the Christian Body, which liv'd in and near those times. Nay such, thanks be to God, even since the degeneracy of the Christi­an Church, there have been and are to be met with in every Age; though, God knows, too few, to the great scandal of Unbelievers, who are not willing to consider this matter tho­roughly, [Page 16]but are forward to catch at any seem­ing advantage, for justifying their Insidelity. In a word, we might all of us be instances of this kind, to the honour of our Lord, and to the credit of our Holy Profession, if we would diligently use the means appointed for the at­taining this Divine Spirit, and faithfully im­prove all his kindly motions upon our Minds; which brings me to the next particular I nam'd, viz.

III. That our Blessed Saviour hath made far­ther Provision in this Case, by settling such In­stitutions to be constantly observ'd and us'd in his Church, as are both in their own Nature proper to excite us, and are moreover design'd as Means of conveying the Grace of the Holy Spirit to us.

The excellency of the Precepts and Example of our Lord will not engage us to Obedience and Imitation, unless we have them much in our view: The powerful Motives of the Gos­pel will not affect us, unless they be seriously and frequently consider'd by us: And the Grace of the Divine Spirit it self, though freely offer­ed, yet will prove ineffectual, unless it be thank­fully and carefully entertain'd and improv'd. Now as the indisposition of Mens minds is great, so experience teacheth, that either the Business, or the Pleasures of Life are moreover apt to employ or divert them to that degree, that un­less some farther course be taken to turn the Stream of their Thoughts the right way, all that [Page 17]we have hitherto mention'd may be lost upon them. Besides that the Spirit of God being in­visible, and his influences, suitable to his Na­ture, secret and indiscernible to sensual and worldly Men (which is the reason our Saviour assigns, why the World cannot receive him, viz. John 14.17. because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him;) it may therefore be very fit, nay necessary for us, who are us'd so much to converse with sensible Objects, to have some stated, external, and sensible Means, for the deriving his inter­nal Grace to our Spirits. Our blessed Saviour therefore knowing this to be our Case, hath kindly and bountifully provided for us in this instance also.

To this purpose, he hath not only caus'd his Word to be Written by those who Conversed with him, and were Commission'd and Inspir'd by him, which we may at all times have free recourse to our selves; but he hath farthermore appointed certain Institutions, to be constantly observ'd in his Church, and settled an Order of Men as his Ministers, to see them observ'd, and to perform their part in the observance of them. Thus he order'd the Apostles and their Successors in the work of the Ministry, to re­ceive into the number of his Disciples, all such as should profess their Repentance and Faith in him, by the external Rite of washing them with Water, in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, thereby listing and enrolling them, as Servants of the Blessed Trinity, and en­gaging them by a solemn and publick Profession to declare themselves such.

He hath farther ordain'd, That all his Disci­ples, thus initiated, shall not only perform acts of Christian Devotion by themselves, but more­over that they shall frequently meet together, to joyn in the more publick Worship of God through Jesus Christ, and mutually to exhort and encourage each other; particularly, that on a certain Day, every Week, besides other occa­sional Assemblies, they shall meet in most solemn manner, to offer up the sacrifice of Praise and Prayer to the great Father of all, in the Name of his only begotten Son; and that at the same time his Word shall be Read and Preach'd a­mongst them, in order to the improving their Understandings, and the awakening their Con­sciences, and the causing them to remember and consider the great Truths which they profess to believe.

He hath farther appointed, That in these so­lemn Assemblies, they shall frequently comme­morate the great Sacrifice which he made of him­self upon the Cross, by partaking of that En­tertainment which he hath assign'd them at his own Table, thereby not only professing themselves all Members of the same Body, but at the same time also representing to God, to themselves, and to one another, the infinite love of God to Sinners, through a Mediator, and solemnly engaging themselves afresh to continue the Di­sciples of Jesus Christ.

Now these Institutions, howsoever they may be despised by the prophane, unthinking, or supercilious sort of Infidels, whosoever seriously [Page 19]considers them, cannot but see, that they have a natural and strong tendency to engage the Thoughts, and awaken the Minds of those that use them, and thereby to render both the Pre­cepts, and the Example, and the Motives of the Gospel useful to the ends for which they were design'd.

And if we will yet farther look into the de­sign of them, we shall find, that they are more­over appointed by our Lord, as means of de­riving and conveying the Grace of his Holy Spirit to our Souls.

Thus, Matth. 28.19, 20. when our Lord commission'd his Apo­stles to make Disciples out of all Nations, bapti­zing them, and teaching them to observe all things whatsoever he had commanded them, he immedi­ately subjoyns, And lo, I am with you always, e­ven unto the end of the World; which can im­port no less, than his assisting and blessing them and their Successors, in the faithful discharge of their Ministry. He else-where declares in gene­ral, Matth. 18.20. that where two or three are gathered together in his Name, there is he in the midst of them, viz. by the presence and assistance of his Holy Spirit.

As to the Sacrament of Baptism, St. Peter is very express, in the place before cited, where exhorting his Hearers to Repent and be Baptized, Acts 2.38, 39. he encourages them by proposing the Benefits which they should receive thereby, namely, re­mission of Sins, and the Gift of the Holy Ghost, the promise of which, he says, was not to that Generation only, but to their Children, and to all [Page 20]that were afar off, even as many as God should call. John 3.5. For which reason our Saviour himself, in his discourse with Nicodemus joyn'd together Regeneration by Water and by the Spirit; and St. Paul, speaking of the same Rite, says, that Christians were sav'd, Tit. 3.5, 6. according to the Mercy of God, by the laver of Regeneration, and the renew­ing of the Holy Ghost, which was shed upon them abundantly, through Jesus Christ our Saviour; im­plying, that Baptism with Water was the way of entitling Christians to that Divine Gift, and a means of conveying it to them.

And so likewise as to the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper, it is intended not only to ex­hibit to Christians the Elements of Bread and Wine in Memory of our Saviour's Passion; 1 Cor. 10.16. but according to St. Paul's Expression, the Cup of Blessing, then blessed is the Communion of the Blood of Christ, the Bread then broken is the Com­munion of the Body of Christ, viz. a Communion or Participation of all the Benefits purchas'd by breaking the Body and shedding the Blood of Jesus, of which a principal one is, the Grace of the Divine Spirit to strengthen our Souls.

To conclude this particular; The Gospel is styl'd, Rom. 8.2. as I before observ'd, the Law of the Spi­rit of Life; 2 Cor. 3.6. the Ministers of the New Testa­ment are said to be Ministers not of the Letter, but of the Spirit. When they perform the Of­fices of their Function, one is said to Plant, and another to Water, 1 Cor. 3.5, 6. whilst God giveth the increase, viz. by the Operation of his Holy Spirit accompa­nying these external Ministrations; and finally the [Page 21]Church is said to be the Temple of God, foras­much as the Spirit of God dwelleth amongst and in the Members of it; all which passages do e­vidently import, that the external Ministrations of Religion in the Christian Church, are design'd as so many means of deriving the internal Grace of the good Spirit to those who faithfully make use of them.

And as to this, I may presume that it will not be pretended that any other institution of Religion hath afforded the like means. The Jews indeed abounded in external Ordinances; which they were commanded to observe, as the Pro­phets themselves intimate, and the Apostles more fully assure us, not as good in themselves, but as suited to their temper and present circum­stances; which to free and generous Minds were indeed unpleasant and burdensome. Nor were they attended with that Promise of internal Grace and Assistance, which is annexed to the Christian Institutions. For as the Author to the Hebrews at large Discourses, Heb. 9.10. The Jewish service stood only in Meats and Drinks, and divers Wa­shings and carnal Ordinances, impos'd on them un­til the time of Reformation; all which were on­ly Examples and Shadows of heavenly things: ch. 8.5.6.10. But Jesus hath obtain'd a more excellent Ministry, by how much also he is the Mediator of a better Co­venant, which was establish'd upon better Promi­ses, viz. such as these, that God would put his Laws into their Mind, and write them in their Hearts; and that he would be to them a God, and they should be to him a People.

Every other Profession of Religion had like­wise its external Rites and Ordinances belong­ing to it; but I think I may fairly leave it to the Judgment of any serious Deist, whether the Christian Institutions already mentioned, are not much more rational, decent, easy, and every way better adapted to the ends for which they are design'd, than those of any other Religion, and consequently, whether in this instance also our Blessed Saviour hath not made the best Provisi­on for us.

There remains yet one farther Difficulty which fallen Men lay under, which I am to consider in the last place, and to shew that our Lord hath in that instance likewise made due Provision for us, viz.

Fourthly, An incapacity of removing those o­ther evil and mischievous consequences, to which their Sins had expos'd them; and of obtaining for themselves that compleat Salvation which they stood in need of.

The remaining Consequences of our Apostacy from God, which I took notice of in a former Lecture, Lect. ij. p. 21, 22. are all the Calamities of this present life, concluded at last with a Seperation of Soul and Body by Death, and followed in a future state with all those Evils, to which an immortal Soul seperated from its Body is there liable, which are more than we are able to enumerate, or so much as to conceive in the state in which we now are.

That Men were of themselves altogether una­ble either to avoid these Evils, or to deliver [Page 23]themselves from them, is evident. No humane Wit or Power, as Experience proves, can ward off abundance of those Calamities to which all Men are obnoxious from the present state of things in this lower World; nor can the wealth of the richest Man upon Earth purchase an Exemption from them. The wise Man must die, as certainly as the Fool; the Prince, as the Peasant; and the Rich Man, as the Beggar. Nor have any of these the least power to dispose of their Souls, when they are dismis'd into the World of Spi­rits.

Much less are they able to obtain for them­selves that Salvation, which will compleat their Happiness. All that is done for us in this life, even by our Blessed Saviour himself, is but the beginning of our Salvation; we are by him put into a sttate of Salvation, and guided in the way which leads directly and surely to the completi­on of it: But we cannot be said to be saved, till every evil disposition be perfectly rooted out of our Souls; till our Spirits are restor'd to their perfect Health, and all the Habits of Piety and Vir­tue are confirm'd in them; nor indeed till our Bodies also shall be raised again and united to our Souls.

For although the wisest of Philosophers, and the best of Christians have justly complain'd of these Bodies of Flesh, as clogs to their Spirits, and therefore may have desir'd and chosen to be deliver'd from them, in order to have their Spirits set at liberty from their present incumbrance; yet the natural abhorrence which all Men have of [Page 24]the separation of their two essential parts made by Death, and that ardent desire of life which is im­planted in humane Nature, seem plainly to inti­mate, that we cannot be compleatly happy without consisting of Soul and Body united. And the Go­spel consirms this Notion to us, by causing us to wait for our compleat Salvation till the Resurrecti­on of the Body. Rom. 8.19, 20, 21, 22, 23. Thus St. Paul, having mention­ed the earnest expectation which the whole Creation hath of being deliver'd from Vanity, and that bon­dage of Corruption to which it is at present subje­cted, he adds, And not only they, but our selves also, which have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we our selves groan within our selves, waiting for the Adop­tion, to wit, the Redemption of our Body. And to the same purpose again; 2 Cor. 5.4. We that are in this Taber­nacle do groan, being burdened; not for that we would be uncloath'd; but cloath'd upon; that morta­lity might be swallow'd up of life; intimating, that Christians will not be compleatly happy, till their Bodies shall be redeem'd from Corruption; and till their Souls shall be cloath'd with such Bodies as shall be prepar'd for them at the Resurrection; till which time, they will not be deliver'd from all the effects of the Divine Displeasure, nor clearly manifested to be the Children of God.

Now 'tis apparent, past all dispute, that we can do nothing of all this for our selves; and that no other Institution of Religion, besides the Christian, hath discover'd to us, how it shall be done for us.

But in this instance also, our Blessed Saviour hath made abundant Provision. The Gospel hath assur'd us, and we Christians do firmly believe, [Page 25]as fundamental Articles of our Faith, that as our Lord died to made Expiation for our Sins, so he rose again from the dead; and that then, according to his own Declaration, Matth. 28.18. All power was given unto him in Heaven and in Earth; Eph. 1.20, 21, 22. that God, having rais'd him from the dead, hath set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far a­bove all Principality and Power, and Might and Do­minion, and every Name that is named, not only in this World, but also in that which is to come; and hath put all things under his feet; and given him to be the Head over all things to the Church: as also, that he will according to his Promise come again to perfect the great Work which he hath under­taken, and which he hath been carrying on by all the Methods I have hitherto mention'd.

Now allowing all this to be true, we have a plain account, how we shall be deliver'd from all the remaining evil Consequences of our Fall, and be made perfectly happy, to the utmost of our de­sires and capacities.

For hereby we are assur'd, That we have now a powerful Friend in Heaven in our own Nature; Heb. 4. 15, 16 One who can be touch'd with a feeling of our Infir­mities, having been in all points tempted like as we are; and One who hath such an Interest in the Fa­ther of all, that by him we may go freely to the throne of Grace, obtaining Mercy and finding Grace to help in time of need: who although he doth not think fit to deliver us at present from all the Cala­mities of this Life, Rom. 8.28. yet will cause all things to work together for our good; 1 Cor. 10.13. not suffering us to be tempted above that we are able, but with the temptation also, [Page 26]making a way to escape, that we may be able to bear it; 2 Cor. 12.9. affording us such a Measure of his Grace, as shall be sufficient for us, and causing his strength to be made perfect in our weakness: Who, although he permits us to remain liable to Death, as the just Reward of our Transgression, Rom. 14.9. yet being Lord both of the Dead and the Living, will receive our Souls at the hour of Death, and take care of them during their state of Seperation, reviving them with his Insluences, and filling them with the comfortable Expectation of their more compleat Happiness. Finally we are assur'd, that as he will obtain of the Father, and confer upon his faithful Servants, all that is truly good and fit for them, during this state of their Tryal, and pre­serve their Spirits which they have committed to his Custody, till his second Appearance; so that he will come again in Person, redeem their dead Bodies, and perfect their Souls, reuniting them, and fully instating them in the favour of God, and bestowing upon them the Inheritance of Children; of all which he hath given them at present his Spi­rit, as the sure Pledge and Earnest.

This is that Provision, which our Blessed Savi­our, according to the Declaration of his Gospel, hath graciously made, in this last instance of our Necessity; after which I need add no more, this being the completion of our Felicity, and of our Mediator's Undertaking.

And thus I have finish'd what I at first propo­sed, with respect to the intrinsick Evidence of Christianity, shewing its Credibility from considering the Persons whom Christ Jesus came to save; the [Page 27]Nature of the Salvation which he proposeth; and the Method in which he hath procur'd it.

If in doing this, I have laid down a true Scheme of our holy Profession (as I am verily persuaded I have) according to the Doctrine of the Holy Scriptures, and the general sense of the Christian Church; and if through this whole Scheme there is nothing but what is highly worthy of God, and extremely beneficial to his Creatures; nay if ac­cording to this Representation of Christianity, it not only infinitely excels all other Institutions of Religion, but is such, as that we are not able to frame an Idea of any Institution comparable to it, (as I firmly believe upon impartial consideration it will appear to be) it must then be granted that This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptati­on, that Christ Jesus came into the World, to save Sinners.

This therefore I heartily offer to the serious thoughts of all such Men, as have a just sense of God and of natural Religion upon their Minds, and have accustom'd themselves to think seriously of mat­ters of importance.

The external attestation, which God hath given to the Gospel, by Prophecies, Miracles, and an won­derful Success in its Propagation, will tend, where duly observ'd, not only farther to confirm this in­trinsick Evidence, but also to awaken and excite the minds of those, who are not us'd to serious think­ing; or are strongly prejudic'd against Religion in general, through the violence of their corrupt in­clinations. But when all is done, here we must fix; being assur'd, that as no Revelation can be [Page 28]from God, which is not worthy of him; so what­soever is so highly worthy of God as the Christian Revelation is, must be credible upon its own account.

May we, who profess to believe the Gospel, both on account of its intrinsick Evidence, and the ex­ternal attestation it hath had, and to be sensible of the excellent Method therein propos'd for the Sal­vation of Sinners, prove to the World the reality and the stedfastness of this our Faith, by its influ­ence upon our Spirits and our Lives. Then shall we our selves yield a farther attestation to the truth of our Blessed Saviour's Religion, by demonstrat­ing its Virtue and its Excellency to the unbeliev­ing World.

And may Almighty God, who hath thus graciously revea'ld himself to Mankind, by his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, send forth his holy Spirit, to accompany the preaching of this his Gospel, so that it may be more universally receiv'd, and more thoroughly obey'd in all the Nations of the Earth, to the Glory of his Holy Name, and the Salvation of Sinners.

Now to the One God and Father of all, and to our Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of the Fa­ther, with the Eternal Spirit; our great Creator, Re­deemer, and Sanctifier, be ascribed, as is most due, all Honor, Praise, and Glory, sorever. Amen.