πία το σω us. SERM. But, faith St. Paul, when the kindness and love of God our LXXI. Saviour unto man appeared-according to his mercy he faved Tit. iii. 4. God fo loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Hard-Son. God hereby commends his love unto us, that we as Tngos nav yet being finners, Chrift died for us. It was not a particular Oε8. fondness of affection, (fuch whereof no particular ground Rom. v. 8. can be affigned or imagined,) but an univerfal (infinitely Ephef. ii. 4. rich and abundant) goodness, mercy, and pity toward this John iii. 16. eminent part of his creation, funk into diftrefs and lamentable wretchedness, which induced God to fend his Son for the redemption of mankind. 2. God declares himself impartial (moft particularly) in this cafe; that as all men in regard to him ftand alike related, and are in the same condition, fo he proceeds with indifferent affection, and upon the fame terms with all. He is equally the Lord and Maker of all men; and all men are equally involved in guilt, and exposed to ruin; upon which grounds St. Paul inferreth, that as to God's regard of man's falvation, there is no difference between Jews and Greeks; and by parity of reason there can be none between any other forts of perfons, antecedently to Rom. ii. 11. God's merciful intentions. There is, faith he, no respect of perfons with God, (as to preparing the capacities and means, to propounding the terms and conditions of falRom. iii. vation, for about these he difcourfes ;) for, Is he, faith the Apostle, affigning the reafon of that affertion, the Rom. x. 12. God of the Jews only, and not of the Gentiles? No: There is no difference, faith he, of Jew and Greek, for there is the fame Lord of all, being rich (rich in mercy and bounty) unto all that call upon him; that is by confequence fimply unto all; for St. Paul implies, that God therefore provided that all men fhould have the means of calling upon him imparted to them; for that, how fhould they call upon him without faith? and how Should they believe without preachers? and how should there be preachers, if they were not fent? Whence he infers (against the sense of those Jews, with whom he disputes) that it was neceffary that the Apostles fhould have a commiffion to preach unto all. And, The righteoufness of 29. Rom. iii. 22, 23. God by the faith of Christ is manifefted unto all, and over SERM. all that believe; for there is no difference; for all have LXXI. finned, and come short of the glory of God: the relation of God is the fame to all men, (He is the God and Lord of all;) the ftate and need of all men are the fame; there is therefore no difference, excepting that confequent one, which compliance or non-compliance with the conditions offered unto all doth induce. It is true in this respect, what the Wife Man faith, ὁ πάντων δεσπότης ὁμοίως προνοεῖ Wild. vi. 7. Téρì πάντшν• He, that is Lord of all, careth (or provideth) for all alike; and what Clemens Alexandrinus fays, as to this particular, All things lie equally for all from God; fo that no man can complain of him; as partial to fome, and deficient to others. 3. We may obferve, that the undertakings and performances of our Lord are for nature and extent compared with those of Adam, (who was TÚTOS TE μéλλovros, a type Rom. v. 14. of him that was to come ;) as Adam, being a representative of mankind, did by his tranfgreffion involve all men in guilt, and fubject them to condemnation; provoked God's wrath, and drew the effects thereof upon us; brought all men under the slavery of fin, and neceffity of death; fo was our Lord the proxy of mankind, and by his performances in our behalf did undo for our advantage, what the former did to our prejudice; by his entire obedience expiating the common guilt, fufpending the fatal fentence, pacifying God's wrath, reducing righteousness, and restoring life to all that would embrace them; fo doth St. Paul at large (in the 5th chapter of his Epistle to the Romans) propound and profecute the comparison; clofing his discourse thus: Therefore as by Rom. v. 18. the offence of one man judgment came upon all men to condemnation; fo by the righteousness of one, the free gift came upon all men to juftification of life. As guilt, wrath, and death forementioned, were the fruits of what Adam did, falling upon all; fo pardon, grace, and life, were (in Η Πᾶσι πάντα ἴσα κεῖται παρὰ τῷ Θε8, καὶ ἐςὶν αὐτὸς ἀμεμφής. Clem. Alex. Strom. vii. p. 301. SERM. defign) the effects of what our Saviour performed relating LXXI. unto all. Yea, the fame comparison St. Paul seems to intimate in his fecond Epiftle to the Corinthians, where he 2 Cor. v.14. faith, that if one died for all, then are all men dead; that is, Chrift's dying for all men, implies all men in a state of condemnation and fubjection to death; and that inference supposes the performances of the first and second Adam to be in their nature and primary effects coextended and commenfurate. The fame St. Paul feemeth in express terms to say, All men have finned, and are fallen short (or are deftitute) of the glory of God; being juftified freely by his grace (or favour) by the redemption that is in Chrift Jefus. (All men are justified, that is, according to God's favourable intention and defign.) Yea, the very reafon, why God permitted fin and death to prevail so univerfally is intimated to be his defign of extending a capacity of Rom. xi. righteousness and life unto all; fo St. Paul tells us: God Rom. iii. 23, 24. 32. 1 Cor. xv. 22. 2 Tim. i. 10. Rom. vi. 23. Heb. iv. 15. hath fhut up all men under fin, that he might have mercy upon all. And particularly, that by virtue of Chrift's performances.death is abolished, and immortality is conferred upon all men, St. Paul moft exprefsly teacheth us; For, faith he, as in Adam all die, fo in Christ shall all be made alive. I obferve that Profper (an eager difputant about points allied to this) feveral times confeffeth, that Chrift may be moft rightly affirmed to have been crucified for the redemption of the whole world, especially upon two accounts, for his true susception of human nature, and for the common perdition of all men in the first mane; we have touched the latter; let us add, that 4. Our Saviour affuming our nature, and partaking of Phil. ii. 7. our flesh, being made in the likeness of men, and found in ii. 17. v. 2. fashion as a man; yea, endued with the paffions and infirGal. iv. 4. mities of man's nature, expofed to the tribulations and inconveniences of man's life, did thereby ally himself, and Heb. ii. 14, put on a fraternal relation unto all men. Forafmuch, faith 11, 12, 16. e Cum itaque rectiffime dicatur Salvator pro totius mundi redemptione crucifixus, propter veram naturæ humanæ fufceptionem, et propter communem in primo homine omnium perditionem, &c. Profp. ad Gal. c. 9. 26. He Heb. ii. 11. 16. the Apostle to the Hebrews, as children (the children he SERM. means of the fame father, or brethren; as the tenor of LXXI. his discourse makes evident) are partakers of flesh and' blood, he alfo himfelf likewife took part of the fame; that is, graciously defigning to become a brother to the children of men, he affumed all that was proper to man's nature. God, faith St. Paul, made πäv dvos åvdpúπwv, the A&s xvii. whole nation or race of men, dwelling upon the face of the earth, of one blood; and of that one blood our Saviour was pleased to take part, entitling us thereby to a confanguinity with him '; and it was a title of his, which he seemed to affect and delight in, the Son of man. being fuch did fanctify our nature, by the closest conjunction thereof to the divine nature, and rendering it more than a temple of the Divinity; he dignified it, and (as Heb. ii. 7, that Apostle intimateth) advanced it above the angelical nature by an alliance to God himself; he thereby not 1 Tim. ii. 5. only became qualified to mediate between God and man, and capable to tranfact that great business of man's falvation; but was engaged, and in a manner obliged to do it; for as he was a man, he furely was endued with the beft of human affections, univerfal charity and compaffion, which would excite him to promote the welfare of all; as he was a man, he was fubject to the common law of humanity, which obliges to endeavour the common benefit of men. As he was a brother in relation, fo he could not, he would not be otherwife in affection; he is not to be conceived deficient in performance of the offices fuitable to that condition. That good-will which he re- Matt. v. 44. quires us to bear toward all men indifferently, good and Acts x. 38. bad, friends and enemies, he queftionlefs did bear himself in the highest degree, and to the utmost extent; the general beneficence, which in his converfation and practice he did exprefs, doth fignify how large his defires and intentions were in regard to the welfare of men; fo that we may thence well aver with St. Ambrofe: Incarnationis Ambr. de * Ἡ πρόσληψις τῆς σαρκὸς ἐκ ἐδέλε τὸν λόγον φύσει Κύριον ὄντα, ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον ἐλευθέρωσις ἦν ἡ γινομένη παρὰ τῷ λόγε πάσης ἀνθρωπότητος, &c. Athan. c. Arr. Orat. iii. p. 385. Gal. vi. 10. Parad. 8. SERM. Dei myfterium eft univerfæ falus creaturæ; The mystery of LXXI. God's incarnation doth respect the falvation of all mankind, according to his defire and defign. Rev. xv. ii. 14. 5. We are taught that our Lord hath by his faving perActs x. 36. formances acquired a rightful propriety in, and a title of 1 Cor. xi.3. dominion over all men living; to him is committed the 18. xi. 27. governance and protection of all mankind, as the reward John iii. 35. of what he did and fuffered for its fake. He is called the xiii. 3. Mat. xxviii. i. 2. John xvii. 2. V. 22. Phil. ii. 9. Heb. ii. 8. Lord of all men; and the head of every man. It is faid that all things by his Father are given into his hand, and put under his feet; that power is given him over all flesh ; Pfal. cx. 7. that all authority is given him in heaven and earth; all judgment is committed to him. Which privileges, rights, dignities, are declared to have been procured by the virtue of his faving performances, and purchased by the price of Rom.xiv.9. his blood. For, to this end, faith St. Paul, Chrift both died and rofe again, and revived, that he might be the Lord both of the dead and living, (or might exercise lordship over both the dead and living, ἵνα καὶ νεκρῶν καὶ ζώντων κυρι1 Cor.vi.20. súσ:) and, We are not our own, (faith he again,) we are Heb. ii. 9. bought with a price: and, We fee Jefus, for the fuffering of 12. death, crowned with glory and honour, that by the grace of God he might tafte death for every man, (or, for the fuffering of death, that by God's grace he might taste death for every man, crowned with glory and honour; for there Phil. ii. 8,9, seems to be such a trajection in the words :) and, He was Rev. v. 9, obedient unto death, even to the death of the cross; therefore hath God exalted him, and given him a name above every name. Subjection then and redemption, as they have one ground, fo they are implied to have the same extent; as every one must call Christ Lord, fo he may call him Saviour; therefore his Lord, because his Saviour. And fince Christ hath got an authority over all men, a propriety in every man; fince he hath undertaken to govern and protect the world, he queftionlefs, as a prince of incomparable benignity and clemency, doth seriously intend and de 8 Ανθρωπον αὐτὸν ποιήσας ὁ πατὴρ ἐχ ἁπλῶς ἐποίησεν ἄνθρωπον, ἀλλ ̓ εἰς τὸ κυριεύσαι πάντων αὐτὸν, καὶ ἁγιάζειν πάντας διὰ τὸ χρίσματος πεποίηκεν. Ath. Orat. 3. in Arr. 385. |