happy hereafter; for there will be no change of difpofitions in a future ftate, but only the perfection of those predominant in us here, whether good or evil. Either heaven must be changed, or the finner, before he can be happy there. Hence also it appears, that God's excluding fuch from heaven is no more an act of cruelty than our not admitting a fick man to a feast, who has no relifh for the entertainments; or not bringing a blind man into the light of the fun, or to view a beautiful profpect.

We fee then that holiness is abfolutely neceffary; and what a great inducement fhould this confideration be to pursue it? If we do not fee the Lord, we fhall never fee good. We are cut off at death from all earthly enjoyments, and can no longer make experiments to fatisfy our unbounded defires with them; and we have no God to fupply their room. We are banished from all the joys of heaven, and how vaft, how inconceivably vaft is the lofs! We are doomed to the regions of darkness for ever, to bear the vengeance of eternal fire, to feel the lashes of a guilty confcience, and to spend an eternal in an horrid intimacy with infernal ghofts! and will we not then rather follow holiness, than incur fo dreadful a doom? By the terrors of the Lord, then be perfuaded to break off your fins by righteousness, and follow holiness; without which no man fhall fee the Lord.

SERMON

SERMON X.

The Mediatorial Kingdom and Glories of Jefus

Chrift.

JOHN Xviii. 37. Pilate therefore faid unto him, Art thou a King then? Jefus answered, Thou fayeft that I am a King. To this end was I born, and for this caufe came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth.

K

INGS and kingdoms are the most majestic founds in the language of mortals, and have filled the world with noife, confufions, and blood, fince mankind first left the ftate of nature, and formed themfelves into focieties. The difputes of kingdoms for fuperiority have fet the world in arms from age to age, and destroyed or enflaved a confiderable part of the human race; and the conteft is not yet decided. Our country has been a region of peace and tranquillity for a long time, but it has not been because the luft of power and riches is extinct in the world, but because we had no near neighbours, whose interest might clash with ours, or who were able to disturb us. The absence of an enemy was our fole defence. But now, when the colonies of the fundry European nations on this continent begin to enlarge, and approach towards each other, the fcene is changed: now encroachments, depredations, barbarities, and all the terrors of war begin to furround and alarm us. Now our country is invaded and ravaged, and bleeds in a thousand veins. We have already,* fo early in the year, received alarm upon alarm and we may expect the alarms to grow louder and louder as the feafon ad

yances.

Thefe

*This fermon was preached in Hanover, Virginia, May 9, 1756.

These commotions and perturbations have had one good effect upon me, and that is, they have carried away my thoughts of late into a ferene and peaceful region, a region beyond the reach of confufion and violence; I mean the kingdom of the Prince of Peace. And thither, my brethren, I would alfo tranfport your minds this day, as the best refuge from this boifterous world, and the most agreeable manfion for the lovers of peace and tranquillity. I find it advantageous both to you and myfelf, to entertain you with thofe fubjects that have made the deepeft impreffion upon my own mind: and this is the reason why I choose the present fubject. In my text you hear one entering a claim to a kingdom, whom you would conclude, if you regarded only his outward appearance, to be the meaneft and vileft of mankind. To hear a

powerful prince, at the head of a victorious army, attended with all the royalties of his character, to hear fuch an one claim the kingdom he had acquired by force of arms, would not be ftrange. But here the defpifed Nazarene, rejected by his nation, forfaken by his followers, accufed as the worst of criminals, standing defencelefs at Pilate's bar, just about to be condemned and hung on a crofs, like a malefactor and a flave, here he fpeaks in a royal ftile, even to his judge, I am a King: for this purpose was I born; and for this caufe came I into the world. Strange language indeed to proceed from his lips in these circumstances! But the truth is, a great, a divine perfonage is concealed under this difguife; and his kingdom is of fuch a nature, that his abafement and crucifixion were fo far from being a hindrance to it, that they were the only way to acquire it. Thefe fufferings were meritorious; and by thefe he purchafed his fubjects, and a right to rule them.

The occafion of these words was this: the unbelicving Jews were determined to put Jefus to death as an impoftor. The true reafon of their oppofition to him was, that he had feverely expofed their hypo

crify, claimed the character of the Meffiah, without answering their expectations as a temporal prince and a mighty conqueror; and introduced a new religion, which fuperfeded the law of Mofes, in which they had been educated. But this reason they knew would have but little weight with Pilate the Roman governor, who was an heathen, and had no regard to their religion. They therefore bring a charge of another kind, which they knew would touch the governor very fenfibly, and that was, that Chrift had fet himfelf up as the King of the Jews; which was treafon against Cæfar the Roman emperor, under whofe yoke they then were. This was all pretence and artifice. They would now seem to be very loyal to the emperor, and unable to bear with any claims inconfiftent with his authority; whereas, in truth, they were impatient of a foreign government, and were watching for any opportunity to shake it off. And had Chrift been really guilty of the charge they alledged against him, he would have been the more acceptable to them. Had he fet himself up as King of the Jews, in oppofition to Cæfar, and employed his miraculous powers to make good his claim, the whole nation would have welcomed him as their deliverer, and flocked round his ftandard. But Jefus came not to work a deliverance of this kind, nor to erect fuch a kingdom as they defired, and therefore they rejected him as an impoftor. This charge, however, they bring against him, in order to carry their point with the heathen governor. They knew he was zealous for the honour and interest of Cæfar his master; and Tiberius, the then Roman emperor, was fo jealous a prince, and kept fo many fpies over his governors in all the provinces, that they were obliged to be very circumfpect, and fhew the ftricteft regard for his rights, in order to efcape degradation, or a feverer punishment. It was this that determined Pilate, in the ftruggle with his confcience, to condemn the innocent Jefus. He was afraid the Jews would inform against him, as difmifling one that

fet

fet up as the rival of Cæfar; and the confequence of this he well knew. The Jews were fenfible of this, and therefore they infift upon this charge, and at length plainly tell him, If thou let this man go, thou art not Cafar's friend. Pilate therefore, who cared but little what innovations Chrift fhould introduce into the Jewish religion, thought proper to inquire into this matter, and asks him, "Art thou the King of the Jews?" doft thou indeed claim fuch a character, which may interfere with Cæfar's government? Jefus replies, My kingdom is not of this world; as much as to fay, "I do not deny that I claim a kingdom, but it is of fuch a nature, that it need give no alarm to the kings of the earth. Their kingdoms are of this world, but mine is fpiritual and divine,* and therefore cannot interfere with theirs. If my kingdom were of this world, like theirs, I would take the fame methods with them to obtain and fecure it; my fervants would fight for me, that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now, you fee, I ufe no fuch means for my defence, or to raise me to my kingdom: and therefore you may be affured, my kingdom is not from hence, and can give the Roman emperor no umbrage for fufpicion or uneafinefs." Pilate anfwers to this purpose: Thou doft, however, fpeak of a kingdom; and art thou a king then? doft thou in any fenfe claim that character? The poor prifoner boldly replies, Thou fayeft that I am a king; that is, "Thou haft ftruck upon the truth: I am indeed a king in a certain fenfe, and nothing shall conftrain me to renounce the title." To this end was 1 born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I fhould bear witness to the truth; " particularly to this truth, which now looks fo unlikely, namely,

that

*Domitian, the Roman emperor, being apprehenfive that Chrift's earthly relations might claim a kingdom in his right, inquired of them concerning the nature of his kingdom, and when and where it should be fet up. They replied, "It was not earthly, but heavenly and angelical, and to be fet up at the end of the world."-O κοσμικὴ μὲν ἐδε ἐπιγειαν ἐράνιον δὲ εἰ ἀγελικὴ τυγχάνει ἐπὶ συλελέια TÃ divC σernaquén. Eufeb. Eccl. Hift. lib. iii. chap. zo.