"cursed is every one that continueth not in all things written in the book of the law to do them!" That anger no sinner can appease; and it is utterly beyond the power of any one to avert the punishment with which he is threatened, because of his sin. Were our repentance ever so sincere, and our grief for sin ever so poignant; were our future conduct perfectly irreproachable and praiseworthy; and were our efforts to please God ardent and unceasing;

"Could our tears for ever flow,

Could our zeal no languor know,
These for sin could not atone; 99

we should still remain obnoxious to the righteous malediction of God, and subject to the penalties of His violated law. The moral law is the rule of righteousness: it shows us what we are required to do: and it can never be satisfied but by unbroken, undeviating, perfect obedience. Hence, when it has been broken, "by the deeds of the law," how regularly and how scrupulously soever performed, "there shall no flesh be justified before God." Here, then, we are in a most perilous situation, and are unable to deliver ourselves from it: we look in vain for any human help; "for no man can by any means redeem his brother, or give to God a ransom for him." Our own works cannot save us; and to whatever finite source we look, all refuge fails; for no created power can preserve us from the just consequences of our moral delinquencies; we are cursed for not having "continued in all things written in the book of the law to do them;" and the lifted thunder of the sin-avenging God is ready to fall upon our guilty heads. But, blessed be God, "what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh," God himself has done, by "sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh;" and he, "by a sacrifice for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us," provided we "walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit."

"To redeem them that were under the law." The doctrine of redemption by Christ is woven into the very texture of the Scriptures. "The Son of man came to give his life a ransom for many." "The Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all." "He bare our sins in his own body on the tree." "He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities." "He gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity." "He gave himself a ransom for all." "Ye were redeemed with the precious blood of Christ." "He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world." This is the current language of the holy Scriptures; and thus we are assured that Christ has accomplished the work for which he came into the world: he has answered the claims of the broken law his meritorious sacrifice has expiated the guilt of our sins and, in his redeeming work, the righteousness of God is so manifested, that he can still be just," while he is "the justifier," the pardoner of the sins, "of him that believeth in Jesus."

The design of Christ was,

Secondly, to give us the adoption of sons.

'Adoption was an act frequent among the ancient Hebrews, Greeks, and Romans, by which a person was taken out of one family and incorporated with another. Persons of property, who had no children of their own, adopted those of another family. The child thus adopted ceased to belong to his own family, and was in every respect bound to the person who adopted him, as if he were his own child; and in consequence of the death of his adopting father he possessed his estates. If a person, after he had adopted a child, happened to have children of his own, then the estate was equally divided between the adopted and real children. The Romans had regular forms of law, by which all these matters were settled." The Galatians, to whom the text was addressed, being subject to the Romans and regulated by their laws, perfectly understood the meaning of the Apostle when he told them, Christ had redeemed them from the curse of the law, on purpose that they "might receive the adoption of sons." Now our sins had not only placed us under the curse of the violated law, but also deprived us of our sonship, the favour of God, and our right to the inheritance of eternal life. Instead of being the sons of God, we were the children of the wicked one, shut up in the kingdom of darkness, and doomed to endless death.

Adoption is that act of grace by which we who were alienated from God, enemies against him, and disinherited or cut off from his family, are restored to his favour, translated out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of his dear Son, placed in his family, have put upon us his name, are made partakers of his nature, and become entitled to all the privileges and prospects of his beloved children. Is not all this beautifully illustrated by the affecting parable of the Prodigal Son? Was it not to this gracious act of adoption that the Apostle Paul alluded, when, quoting from the Old Testament, he said to the churches at Corinth, "Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty?"

It has sometimes been supposed that regeneration, or the attainment of a new spiritual nature, must necessarily precede our adoption into the family of God; and that he in his infinite kindness adopts us because we were previously made partakers of his holiness; for, it is said, we must be partakers of the nature of God before we can be admitted into his family. But it is difficult to conceive of one of these as being before the other: they may be distinguished, but cannot be separated. Indeed, pardon, justification, adoption, and regeneration seem to us to be substantially the same act of God, blessings which he bestows in the same moment of time. Still, while these blessings are essentially connected, in the order of thinking they appear to succeed each other; so that between adoption and regeneration the relation resembles that of cause and effect. Is not this the view which is given by St. John, (i. 12, 13,) where he says, "As

Dr. Adam Clarke.

many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God?" To us, the order in which these blessings are obtained appears to be this: When we believe on the name of Christ, all our sins are pardoned; then, having forgiven our iniquities, "God imputeth unto us righteousness without works;" and, being made righteous or justified, he "sheds abroad his love in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us;" given unto us, not as "the spirit of bondage to fear, but the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father;" and, being made the children of God, this same Spirit of adoption regenerates and, by his holy influences, assimilates our spirits to the nature of God, unto whom we are now permitted to approach as "our Father."

That this adoption is not conjectural or assumptive, and that the relation to God in which it places us is not merely figurative or ideal, is evident from the words which immediately follow the text: "And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father." Here there is nothing hypothetical, inductive, or uncertain: the Spirit is sent forth into our heart, which is the seat of life, the source of sensation, the fountain of intelligence, the place where his testimony can be properly discerned, understood, and not mistaken. And this "Spirit himself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God." We, therefore, have the utmost evidence of the fact of our adoption, which we possibly can have; evidence so convincing and satisfactory, that a man receiving it is enabled to call God his Father with the most affectionate confidence: we have the word and the Spirit of God, and that word sealed on our heart by the divine Spirit. And so long as we continue faithful, the Spirit that witnesses our adoption will continue to bear his indubitable testimony; and hereby we shall know that we are of God, by the Spirit which he giveth us.

From this subject we learn,

First, that God has provided for us the most important and invaluable blessings.

We were alienated from him, enemies to him, rebels in his kingdom; had transferred our allegiance to Satan, and were become the children of the wicked one. We were guilty before God, condemned by him, shut up in the prison-house of sin, and ready to drop into the abyss of endless perdition. In this degenerate and perilous condition, we had no power, no desire to return to him from whom we had wandered; to obey him against whom we had rebelled; to make conditions of peace with him whose enemies we had become; to serve him who is our lawful Sovereign; or to be restored to his family and his favour. Our will was perverse; our course was wayward; and "every imagination of the thoughts of our hearts was only evil continually." Sometimes, it is true, we were aware of our wretchedness; we groaned heavily beneath our burden; and our state seemed like that of "prisoners in a pit wherein is no

water;" but, as we had been drawn away and enticed from the narrow path, and were in the broad way which leadeth to destruction, our depraved passions impelled us onward, and we became worse and worse, more and more guilty and unholy; every plunge we made only sank us deeper and deeper in "the horrible pit and the miry clay;" and made us to feel more intensely that we were brought into captivity to the law of sin which was in our members." We were foolish, disobedient, deceived, and serving divers lusts and pleasures. But, then, after that, the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared. He sent us a Redeemer "to preach deliverance to the captives; to heal the broken-hearted;" to restore us to his favour; to reinstate us in his family; to make us partakers of his nature by the "washing of regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Ghost;" to constitute us heirs of heaven; and to "seal us with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of that inheritance reserved for all who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation."

What important blessings are these! How necessary to make us happy! How wretched and miserable are all who live without them! What sighs and groans evince the affliction of all who are conscious of their lost condition, and see that no works of righteousness which they are able to perform can better their state! Redemption and adoption! It is impossible to estimate their worth. Redemption from the curse of the broken law of God! Salvation from the guilt of sin! Adoption into the family of heaven! "Regeneration unto a living hope of an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, and that fadeth not away!" And God has provided these blessings for every sinner. No one need remain without them. Christ has redeemed them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons." But all men were "under the law;" under it, as their rule of government; and under its curse, because of their transgressions. "The Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all." "He gave himself a ransom for all." "He hath redeemed us unto God by his blood." All, all; every human being on earth, therefore, being redeemed, may be pardoned, adopted, sanctified, and saved.

From this subject we learn,—

Secondly, that we ought to be supremely solicitous to have a personal interest in those blessings.

Time is uncertain; and this life is the only period allotted to men in which to attain a saving interest in the blessings of the Gospel. But every man needs those blessings, because every man has broken the law of God, and every man is under its curse, and exposed to its penalties. While, then, we rejoice to know that Christ has redeemed every man from sin and from hell, it should never be forgotten that no one profits by Christ who does not receive his redeeming grace. Sin must be felt and deplored, hated and abandoned, before we can be delivered from its guilt and its power. It is not enough to have a general impression of the evil nature and consequences of sin, without a definitive feeling of that evil in our own hearts; for it is

only when we see sin to be exceeding sinful, that we become sorrowful and contrite in heart before God on account of it. And we shall never be supremely anxious to have a personal interest in Christ, till we are deeply conscious of our need of him. We may admire his character, wonder at his love, desire to be like him, and extol his disinterested generosity and boundless grace; but until we see ourselves all guilt and impurity, on the brink of hell, and just about to step into perdition, without comfort or hope, and unable to derive pardon or safety from any other source than Christ, we shall not be prepared to trust exclusively in what he has done to save us. It was only when the publican saw the evil of his sin, felt his guiltiness, and was sensible of his peril, that, as a sinner, he sought refuge in the mercy of God." It was not until Saul of Tarsus was made aware of the guilt and evil of his conduct, and the danger to which it exposed him, that "he, trembling and astonished, said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" Just so is every sinner who is properly acquainted with his own circumstances: the anxious inquiry, the sincere prayer, of such a one is, "What must I do to be saved? Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? God be merciful to me a sinner!"

Did you ever thus see yourself a sinner? Was your heart ever made humble and sorrowful because of your sin? Did sin ever press on your spirit as a burden of intolerable weight? Were you ever constrained to groan for redemption in the blood of Christ, even the forgiveness of your sins? Has your burden been removed? Are you now a child of God? Do you enjoy "the earnest of the Spirit?" Can you look forward with pleasure to the period when you hope to receive "the purchased possession" of which God has condescended to make all his children heirs? If so, never forget your calling; persevere in diligent obedience; "grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby you are sealed unto the day of redemption ;" and soon you shall receive the "house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens."

And now, sinners, what shall we say to you? Christ subjected himself to the greatest privations; he endured the most extraordinary agonies to redeem and save you; and still you remain the slaves of sin. He would wrest you out of the hands of the proud oppressor; but you will live in his degrading vassalage. He bore the curse of the violated law, that you might be delivered from it; but you wantonly refuse the benefits of his redeeming mercy. He would bring you out of the family of the outcast and rebellious; but you will not forsake the deeds of your father, the devil. O that you could now be persuaded to give yourselves up to him who bought you by his blood; or remember, if you still resist his grace, and remain unsaved, you must perish, and that without remedy. "For there is none other name given under heaven among men, by which we can be saved."