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of his soul" in the salvation of men," he was satisfied." This was "the joy that was set before him :" and, for the attainment of it, "he endured the cross, and despised the shame';" and rested not till he could say, " It is finished." Well, therefore, might he, in the near prospect of these events, say, "Now is the Son of man glorified."]

We are next to contemplate the glory accruing, II. To the Father, through the Son

Now is the Son of Man glorified, and "God is glorified in him." Here, as before, we must contract our observations to the smallest space, lest we detain you too long. The Father was here greatly honoured, 1. In the display of all his perfections—

[There was not an attribute of the Deity which did not here shine forth in its utmost splendour. His wisdom, in having devised such a stupendous plan for the salvation of men: his love, in having given his only-begotten Son to die for them his justice, in exacting of him the utmost farthing of their debt: his MERCY, in receiving all who should come to him in the name of this divine Saviour. His power, too, was displayed, in upholding his Son under all his various and complicated trials", and in enabling him to finish the work he had begun. His holiness, too, was made known, in that not a human being should ever find acceptance with him, but by acknowledging his own desert of condemnation, and pleading the merits of this vicarious sacrifice. All these perfections were now made to harmonize, and every one of them to reflect a glory on the rest: a glory of which it would never have been susceptible, if this plan had not been devised and executed for the manifestation of it.]

2. In the accomplishment of all his purposes—

[Salvation may be considered as originating with the Father, who sent his Son for the attainment of it. For the fallen angels he prepared no such mercy: but for the sons of men he determined to execute this stupendous plan, that so mercy might be exercised towards them in consistency with the demands of justice, and holiness, and truth. And all was now brought to maturity. Justice was about to be satisfied for the sins of the whole world, and a jubilee was now to be proclaimed to every child of man. Now all the millions of the redeemed stood, as it were by anticipation, around his throne, and gave him glory, such as had not yet been given from the

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foundation of the world: and this glory was obtained for him through the intervention of his Son: so that it might well be said, that, whilst the Son himself was glorified, the Father was glorified in him.]

We have yet further to notice the glory added, III. To the Son, by and with the Father

The Father now, in his turn, glorified his Son: 1. In the testimonies borne to him under his sufferings

[Not only did several of our Lord's enemies proclaim his innocence, but universal nature bore witness to him. The sun at mid-day veiled his face in darkness; the earth quaked; the rocks rent; the dead arose: and all in attestation, that the person who had just expired was no other than our incarnate God. To these events our Lord more immediately referred, when he said, " He shall straightway glorify him."]

2. In the triumphant issue of them—

[It seemed as if the Saviour was vanquished, when he died but it was "by death that he overcame him that had the power of death, that is, the devili." Yes, upon the very cross itself "he spoiled principalities and powers, triumphing over them openly in it." In vain were the stone, the seal, the watch: they were placed by man, to prevent his resurrection; but, overruled by God, to attest it. In the presence of no less than five hundred brethren at once did he ascend to heaven; from whence he sent down the Holy Ghost to bear witness to him, by mighty signs and wonders that were wrought by his Apostles in his name. Our Lord had said of the Holy Spirit, "He shall glorify me: for he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you1:" and agreeably to this prediction did the Holy Spirit descend at the appointed time, and impart to the Apostles such powers as had never been communicated since the foundation of the world. Jesus himself, too, was then invested with all power in heaven and in earth, as the reward of his own sufferings, and for the benefit of those for whom he died and together with the Father is he made the object of adoration amongst all the hosts of heaven. Hereafter, too, shall he come again to judge the world, and shall assign to all, whether friends or enemies, their proper portion.]

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3. In the benefits conferred in consideration of them

[Speedily after his ascension were not less than three thousand souls converted to him, and all the blessings of

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salvation were poured out upon them for his sake. From that day great numbers, in every quarter of the globe, have found mercy through him: millions are already seated with him upon thrones of glory, as monuments of his grace: millions, too, are at this very moment rejoicing in him upon earth: and, in due time, multitudes, countless as the sands upon the sea-shore, will glory in him as the one Author of their happiness; and will to all eternity adore him, as having "loved them, and washed them from their sins in his own blood, and made them kings and priests unto their God." They will all unite in ascribing "salvation to God and to the Lamb for ever and ever."

Thus, whilst the Father is glorified in him, shall he himself also be glorified by, and with, the Father, as the Redeemer and Saviour of the world.]

Let me now, in CONCLUSION, entreat you, my brethren, to be like-minded with God, and to glorify the Lord Jesus,

1. By an humble affiance in him

[In this is he glorified, as much as by the saints before his throne. This is what he expects at our hands. This he regards as answering the end of all that he has done and suffered for us. Go then to him, brethren, with all your sins. Let nothing keep you from him. Never, for a moment, limit either his grace or mercy; but believe him "able to save to the uttermost all that shall come unto God by him." Expect also from him all those supplies of grace and peace which are needful for you in this vale of tears. Let your expectations be enlarged to the full extent of your own necessities, and to the full extent also of all his great and precious promises. This is to glorify him as he has said, "All mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them"."]

2. By an entire surrender of yourselves to him

[This also is required of you: "You are not your own: you have been bought with a price: and therefore you should glorify him with your bodies and your spirits, which are his." Our Lord himself has said, "Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit P." And I may add, that herein is Jesus glorified also. Let it be seen, then, what the effect of his sufferings is, and what is the redemption that he has purchased for you. This is the way to honour him: this is the recompence he expects at your hands. And if you glorify. him thus in this world, you shall assuredly be "glorified together with him" in the world to come.]

n John xvii. 10.

• 1 Cor. vi. 19, 20

P John xv. 8.

MDCLXXXII.

FAITH IN CHRIST AN ANTIDOTE TO ALL TROUBLE.

John xiv. 1. Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.

AS God is eminently distinguished by that character," The Comforter of all them that are cast down," so did Jesus evince his title to it during the whole time of his sojourning on earth: there was no distress which he did not remove from those who made their application to him; and not unfrequently did he anticipate the wants, which the unbelief or ignorance of his followers made them unable to express. He had now been revealing to his Disciples the things which were speedily to be accomplished: and, perceiving that they were greatly dejected by the prospect before them, he encouraged them in the words which we have read; "Let not your hearts be troubled:" and then he prescribed an antidote, sufficient to dispel all their fears: "Ye believe in God; believe also in me."

In discoursing on these words, we shall shew, I. The troubles which he taught them to expectThere were three in particular which seemed most to affect them;

1. Their bereavement of his

presence

[This, if it had been only to a remote quarter of the globe, or after the manner of Elijah's departure, would have greatly depressed their minds; because of the love he had manifested towards them, and their entire dependence on him for instruction and support-but to have him withdrawn from them by cruel sufferings and an ignominious death, was distressing beyond measure; so that the very thought of it filled them with the deepest concern

-]

2. The disappointment of their worldly hopes

[They had supposed he was about to establish an earthly kingdom, and that they should be exalted to situations of great dignity. But when they heard, that, instead of reigning over other nations, he was to be rejected by his own; and that, instead of elevating them to posts of honour, he himself

was to die upon a cross; they knew not how to reconcile these things with his former professions, or how to bear the shame which such a disappointment would unavoidably occasion -]

3. The persecutions they were to meet with from an ungodly world

[Hitherto they had been screened from persecution, their Lord and Master having borne the brunt of it in his own person: but now they understood that they were to drink of his cup, and to endure all manner of sufferings, and death itself, after his example. This excited painful apprehensions in their minds, and caused them the most serious disquietude—]

What means he used to dissipate their fears, will be found in,

II. The remedy he proposed

The verbs in our text may be taken either imperatively or indicatively; and many think it would be better to construe both of them alike: but the spirit of the passage seems best preserved in our translation; which acknowledges, that they do believe in God the Father, and exhorts them to place the same confidence in him as in the Father. They now thought they should lose him entirely and for ever. To rectify this error, he enjoins them, notwithstanding his removal from them, to believe in him,

1. As present with them in their trials—

[Though he would not be present to the eye of sense, he would be really nigh to them on all occasions. Wherever they should be, there would be no bar to his admission to their souls: he would come and visit them, and dwell in them, and manifest himself to them, as he would not unto the world. This would be a far greater blessing to them than his bodily presence; so that they had no reason to regret his apparent withdrawment from them.]

2. As interested in their welfare

[They had never found him indifferent about any thing that related to them: nor would he forget them after he should have been taken from them into heaven: on the contrary, he was going thither to prepare mansions for them; and he would still enter into all their concerns, sympathizing with them in their afflictions, and regarding every thing that should be done to them as done immediately to himself. If any should give

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