and overflow it, will you not then be more proof against all the fparks of hell, and fiery darts of the devil? O believer, is not the Spirit promifed as floods upon the dry ground, to drench the dry powder? And does not your profeffion oblige you to this attendance and dependence upon Chrift for more and more of the Spirit? For what mean you when you fay, Is not this the Chrift? Dɔ you not mean, Is not this the Anointed of God; anointed with the Spirit, to give the Spirit? Therefore, let your conftant recourfe be to him on this errand, taking as many along with you as you can, by the influence of your advice and example, faying, Come fee a man that told me all things that ever I did: Is not this the Chrift? 2dly, I would clofe with a word to these that are yet ftrangers to Chrift, that never met with him, nor got fuch a discovery of him as leads to this self-abafing and Chrift-exalting exercife. And may I be allowed by you, O you that are believers in Chrift in this house, to perfonate you in a few words, and fpeak to thefe that are ftrangers to Chrift in your name. O Chriftlefs finner, Come fee a man that hath told us all things that ever we did; Is not this the Chrift? The hearts of all that are acquaint with Chrift, join with me in faying to you, Come fee him, come fee him: That which we have heard and seen, declare we unto you, that you may have fellowship with us, in our fellowship with the Father and the Son, by the Spirit. There are fome here that can fay, we have heard his voice, telling us all things that ever we did; and we have feen his glory as the glory of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth; and, Is not this the Christ? Come fee a man that hath opened our eyes, and fometimes difpelled all our clouds and darkness; Is not this the Chrift? anointed to be a Prophet to teach and inftruct the like of you.-Come fee a man that hath pardoned all our fins, and washed us in his blood; Is not this the Chrift? anointed to be a Prieft to juftify guilty finners like you.-Come fee a man that hath fubdued all our iniquities, and fometimes given a dafh to the power of fin and Satan in us; Is not this the Chrift? anointed to be a King to ranfom flaves of the devil like you.-0 come fee a man, of whom we can fometimes fay, he hath hath healed all our diseases; Is not this the Chrift? anointed to be a Physician for healing fuch defperate difeafes as yours are.-Come fee a man that hath convinced us of all our fins and vilenefs of heart and way, and drawn out our hearts to him as the God-man; is not this the Chrift; IMMANUEL, God with us?You need not fay, where fhall we fee him? you have neither a journey to go down to hell, nor up to heaven; The word is nigh: and in the glafs of this word he is to be feen. All the believers here can fay, we never faw him any where but in this word of the gofpel, and in thefe public and private ordinances; and there he lies as open to your view as to ours. The word is the immediate object of our faith, wherein we fee him; and when we hear him fpeaking to us in his word, and hear with fpiritual understanding, then we fee him. To hear and know his voice, is all one with feeing him; it is in his word, that we hear him telling how polluted and filthy we are, and thus all that ever we did; and hear him telling how fair and lovely he is, and thus fhewing us that he is the Chrift: fo that we fee him in what he tells us in his word; and as we have feen him there, fo you may fee him here; you have the fame glafs, the fame Bible, the fame word, the fame promife, the fame gofpel-mirror to see him into, that ever any faint on earth faw him in, fince he afcended to heaven: "The word is nigh, even in thy heart, and in thy mouth." O then, reft not on our report of him only; for, what he hath told us concerning ourfelves, and concerning himself, will not profit you, if you do not come and fee that our report is true. Come and fee him yourself, by believing and taking it on his own word, that he is the Chrift, anointed for your behoof. But what is this I am doing, fpeaking to you only in the name of believers? Here, (however bafe a worm I am) my office warrants me to fpeak to you in a greater name than theirs or ours; yea, in his name, the latchet of whofe fhoes we are not worthy to unloofe: In his name, then, who is the glorious JEHOVAH, the Gcdman, that can tell you all things that ever you did, and thereby give you convincing evidence that he is the VOL. III. † K k Christ, Chrift, I call you to come and fee him. He can tell you fome things about you, O finner, that the world does not know, and cannot tell you. And may I prefume in his name, to tell you fomething, perhaps, yet a fecret, which if he would blefs, you might therein hear him; telling you all things that ever you did. Let me allude to what paft between Chrift and this woman in the context, upon their firft meeting; and, perhaps, there is more than an allufion in it. Chrift hath been at this occafion, offering you the living water; and if you be faying with this woman, whether in jeft or earnest, Sir, give me this water that I thirst not; Chrift is in effect, faying, Go call your bufband and come bither; bring whatever husband you are in league with, that fo your league and covenant with death, and your marriage with hell may be difannulled. If you be faying with this woman, I have no bufband; why, then you may hear Chrift faying, in effect to you, Thou baft well faid, I have no bufband; for as long as you are not married to Chrift you have no head, no husband, that can do you any fervice. But, Bebold, you have had five bufbands; you have had many hufbands, and whom you are now married to is not your husband, your true and lawful hufband. O harlot finner, you have been married unto many a black hufband all your days; you have been married to the law, the first hufband; married to your own righteoufnefs and felf-conceit; you have been married to the world; married to your lufts; yea, and married to the devil; your heart hath been joined to idols: and now, by this, he is telling you all that ever you did. He is telling you what you have been, and what you have done. Have you been a common ftrumpet, a common whoremonger, a common drunkard, a common fwearer, a common Sabbath-breaker, a neglecter of prayer in fecret, and in your family? Yea, you have been a hypocrite, an atheift, a blafphemer, a perfecutor, a murderer, an injurious perfon, unjuft, unfaithful to God and man, unmerciful, unbelieving, impenitent. He is telling you your fecret faults, not only what you did in fuch a company, but what was that you did in fuch a private place. When When thou waft under the fig-tree I faw thee, fays Christ, to Nathanael, in another cafe; fo fays Chrift to you, when thou waft under the dark fhade, hiding thyfelf from the eyes of men, my eye was upon thee; under the cloud of night I faw thee: and, Can any bide bimfelf in fecret places that I cannot fee? do not I fill heaven and earth, fays the Lord? Yea, I fay, all that ever you thought, or did, or defigned to do; and I faw into thy heart and wicked nature from whence thy atheistical practices did fpring. And now, if by his word he be telling you all things that ever you did, then what do you fay to this queftion, Is not this the Chrift? Is he at one glance giving you a view of all your lewdnefs, all your bafenefs, all your vilenefs? Then do you perceive that he is a Prophet, when he tells you how many falfe hufbands you have had? O! Is not this the Cbrift? Is not this the only true Hufband with whom your foul fhould match? Is he the man that hath told you all things that ever you did? O then, Will you go with this man? Will you marry the man, the God-man, the Chrift of God? He is content, even after all your whoredoms to receive you for a bribe, even after you have been adulteroufly matched with the devil and your lufts; will you match with this man, and quit with all your bafe hufbands that have been haleing and dragging you to hell, and fay, What have I to do any more with idols? Oh! my five hufbands have ruined me; my falfe unhappy matches can give me no comfort, either in death or through eternity, but rather contribute to my eternal condemnation. But here is a glorious wonderful match in my offer, a man that hath told me all things that ever I did: Is not this the Chrift, that is anointed to fave me from the guilt of all that ever I did, and to fave me from fin and wrath. O then, is it a match? is it a bargain? Why, fay you, Who is he that I may match with him? Where is this Chrift? Behold, man, woman, he is faying to you in this word, I that speak unto thee, am be; tho' it be by a poor finful meffenger that I am fpeaking to you, fays Chrift, yet, I that Speak into you, am be. And now, O hath he dif covered himself to you in this word, and drawn out your heart to the match? Then think not ftrange that you meet with fome interruption in his converse with you; but go your way and leave your water-pot behind you; and give up not only with your unlawful husbands, but even with your lawful works and endeavours in point of truft and confidence: for your own black righteousness, and doings of yours, will never draw a drop of living water to you; but let your heart fay, "In the Lord only have I righteoufnefs and ftrength; I will go in the ftrength of the Lord God, and make mention of thy righteoufness, even of thine only." O may it be heard tell of you in the city of Dunfermline, as it was heard of this woman in the city of Samaria, that you have met with Chrift; that by your words and walk henceforth you are determined to fay, Come fee a man that told me all things that ever I did: Is not this the Chrift? 6.9 END OF VOLUME THIRD. 10 9 487 AA A AA A 30 |