made in the New Covenant for pardoning our Sins upon our Repentance, and for the accepting and rewarding of our fincere, though imperfect, Obedience; fo that, through the rich Grace and Mercy of God in Jefus Chrift, it fhall give us a Right to eternal Life. If God fhould, as in ftrict Justice he might, infift upon a perfect Obedience to his Laws, if nothing lefs than this could. intitle us to that eternal Glory and Bleffednefs, it is evident we could not pretend any Claim to it, nor have any Hope of obtaining it: For there is not a just Man upon Earth that doeth Good, and finneth not. Ecclef. vii. 20. If we fay that we have no Sin, we deceive ourselves, and the Truth is not in us. I John i. 8. are expreffly told that Jews and Gentiles are all under Sin; that all have finned and come fhort of the Glory of God; and that the whole World is become guilty before God. Rom. iii. 9, 19, 23. Here then a great and amazing Difficulty arifeth: For if. Obedience to the Divine Law be requifite to our obtaining the Favour of God, and every Failure in our Obedience be a Sin, and every Sin deferveth and renders obnoxious to Punishment, does not this fubvert all our Hopes at once? For how can we hope to obtain eternal Life as the Reward of our Obedience, when the Obedience VOL. IV. Ii

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we

we yield is fo defective, and we are charge-I able with fo many Iniquities and Tranf the bib greffions?

But here the Gospel comes to our Relief with it's happy Tidings, and openeth to us the most glorious Scene of Divine Wisdomy Grace, and Love that ever the World faw: It discovereth to us the admirable Expe dient which God hath fixed upon for rea moving our Jealoufies and Fears, and for difpenfing Pardon and eternal Salvation to cin fuch imperfect Creatures as we are,d fuch a Way as to preferve the Authority of his Government and Laws, and to make a bright Display of his illuftrious moral Excellencies in all their Harmony and Beauty.

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mal bas We are therefore informed, that God fent his own Son into the World, in the Fulnefs of Time, that he might take upon him the Character and fulfil the Office of Mediator between God and Man, and might In Purobtain eternal Redemption for us. fuance of this great Defign, as he became Flesh and dwelt among us, fo in our Nature he yielded a most perfect Obedience to the whole Law of God; an Obedience very glorious in itself, and highly inhanced by the Dignity of his Perfon, and which was therefore infinitely pleafing to his beavenly Father; and greatly honoured the Divine Law,

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Law, which had been very much dif honoured by our Difobedience. And he did alfo, according to the Divine Will and Appointment for the Sake of guilty Mankind, go through a Courfe of the moft amazing Humiliations, and the moft grievous and bitter Sufferings: He was wounded for our Tranfgreffions, and bruifed for our Iniquities; and at length became obedient unto Death, even the cruel and ignominious Death of the Cross. This Obedience he performed, and thefe Sufferings he endured, according to the Scheme fixed upon in the Councils of the Divine Wifdom and Love, for this End, and with this View, that the Virtue and Merit of all that he did and fuffered, on our Behalf, might be applied to us for our Ufe and Benefit, and might, according to God's wife and gracious Ordination, be made available for procuring the Pardon of Sin and eternal Life for us, upon our fincere Repentance and new Obedience. And acScordingly there is now a New Covenant established with us through this great Mediator, in which it is provided, that all those of the human Race that heartily repent of their Sins, and with a bumble Faith lay hold of the Offers of Divine Mercy, and yield themselves wholly to God in a Redeemer, and who, in Confequence of this, Ii 2. make

make it their upright and diligent Endea- ́ your to walk in an uniform Obedience to his holy and righteous Laws, fhall be gracioufly accepted; they fhall obtain the Pardon of all their Sins, and, being juftified freely by the Divine Grace, fhall have Peace with God through our Lord Jefus Chrift. He will be to them a reconciled God and Father, and they fhall be his Children, and, if Children then Heirs, Heirs of God, and JointHeirs with Chrift. And their fincere progreffive Sanctification and Obedience, notwithstanding it is ftill attended with Failures. and Defects, fhall be at length crowned with the glorious Reward of eternal Life ; which fhall be conferred upon them, as the Gift of God through Jefus Chrift our V Lord.

In this Method all is great, and wife, and glorious. Grace, Mercy, and Peace, all the Bleffings of Salvation and eternal Life, are to be regarded as flowing to us originally from God the Father, and as immediately difpenfed to us through Jefus Chrift, his well-beloved Son, the great Mediator of his Appointment; in whom it pleafeth a wife and gracious God to tranfact with, and to fhew Favour to, guilty Mankind. This glorious Method of our obtaining Salvation and eternal Life through

Redeemer was a Myftery, in a great Mea-.

fure,

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DISCOURSE XXIV. 485 fure, bid f

fure, bid from Ages and Generations, but is now made manifeft by the Gospel, This great Saviour of Mankin dwas indeed prefignified in the original Promife made to our first Parents, immediately after the Fall: And, under the Old Teftament, there was all along preferved the Hope and Expectation of a Saviour to be manifefted in due Time, who was pointed out in feveral remarkable. Prophecies; and it was particularly declared concerning him, that he should make Reconciliation for Iniquity, and should bring in everlafting Righteousness. Dan. ix. 24. Yet, after all, the Notions that good Men then had of thefe Things were very indiftinct: But now under the Gospel they are brought into a clear and fatisfying Light. The great and only Mediator, that had been fo long promifed and foretold,s hath actually appeared: The Councils of God for our Salvation, and the exceeding great and precious Promifes, and the gracious Terms of the New Covenant, are moft clearly published to the World, and our Fears and jealousies are happily dif pelled. If we were to look merely to our own Righteoufnefs and Obedience, which is defective in fo many Instances, our Hope would be but fmall; but even this eternal Glory and Felicity which is promised in the Gospel doth not appear too great and

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glorious,