And now, believer, I know you would defire that others should share of the fame happinefs with you; and therefore pray that a fhort concluding word may be bleffed with power to thousands that hear me. O ye that are by-flanders and bearers only, in whatever corner of this house round about me, whether you be in my view or not, you are in God's view; and I have a word from him to you all; And, as I have told you what a terrible thing it is to live and die in unbelief with respect to this glorious device, fo now I would tell you your duty in this matter, and how you may share of the bleffings and benefits, in time and for ever, that flow from this glorious meeting and embracement; and it is by kiffing the Son of God, in whom all these attributes of God do kiss and embrace each other, Pfal. ii. 12. Kifs the Son, left be be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little: Bleffed are all they that trust in him. Bleffed are all they that kifs and embrace him. Would you then share of the grace and glory that iffue from this wonderful meeting, and ineffable embracement among the divine perfections, in Chrift the Son of God O then, come and kifs the Son: O down, down with carnal thoughts, carnal kiffing, carroufing, and cajolling; here, here is an object worthy of the most endeared embraces of the immortal foul. O come, and kifs the Son, by believing in him, and applying the benefits of this glorious tranfaction to yourself: And, be who you will, if you kifs and embrace the Son, you will find thefe glorious attributes of God kiffing and embracing you, and hugging you in their arms, as a darling of heaven, and a special favourite in the house of God.

Are

Sig

Are the attributes of God embracing one another in Chrift? O flee into their embraces, by fleeing into Chrift, Say not, Chrift is in heaven, how shall I embrace him? For the word is nigh, even in your mouth, and in your heart, Rom. x. 8. d. So near 9. is he in this word, that you may kifs him with your mouth, as it were, and embrace him in your heart; and to take in his word of grace, and Chrift in it is to embrace him. What do you fay against Chrift? Are you afraid that truth and righteousness confpire against you, and hinder mercy and peace from ever meeting with you, and embracing you? Ono, fear not; only believe, that mercy and truth are met together, and that righteousness and peace bave kiffed each other in Chrift. Truth will not ftand in the way of mercy; for they have met together: Righteoufnefs will not ftand in the way of peace; for they have kiffed each other. He is indeed an infinitely juft God, to take vengeance upon fin; but juftice will not hinder mercy from coming to you: Only believe that justice and mercy are reconciled in Chrift, fo as mercy can vent itfelf towards you, to the credit of justice. But O! may fuch a black-mouthed finner as I, as black as hell and the devil, expect a kifs of fuch an infinitely fair Jefus? Is that to be expected, that fuch oppofites fhould meet in one another's arms? Yet, allow me, though a black finner like yourself, to be the happy meffenger, to tell you in God's name, that, be you as black as you will, fuch a meeting and embracing betwixt Chrift and you, is more to be expected, than ever men or angels could have expected that infinite juftice and mercy should have met together, and kiffed each other in a God-man; and this unexpected meeting is the very ground upon

upon which your expectation of a meeting with, and embracement of God in Chrift is to be founded: O then, come, and kifs the Son. Why, but I cannot, fay you; I think I would fain do it; but I cannot get at him, to kifs and embrace him. Indeed this kindness muft begin on his fide; and therefore, O pray that he would come and meet you with a kifs of infinite love. Say with the church, Song i. 2. Let him kiss me with the kifles of his mouth: for his love is better than wine. If that be the language of your foul, O I cannot embrace him; but but my heart fays, O let him come and embrace me, and draw me out of the embracements of all my former lovers, and lufts, that I may never kifs any idol in the world again, but may live and die in the arms and embraces of the fon of God; Is that the language of your foul before the living GOD? why then the embracement betwixt Chrift and you is begun, that fhall never have an end; for it is a pledge, that he and you shall meet together in heaven, and embrace each other to eternity.

影

Now, though I hope that this glorious meeting of divine perfections in Chrift hath put forth fome virtue to draw in fome poor foul to the match; yet I fear that the most part are yet but idle hearers and fpectators, as if they were not concerned; but O unconcerned foul, be who you will, O yet, will you come and fee this great fight! O come and fee the greatest fight that ever was, or will be, in heaven or earth, a bush burning, and not confumed: all the burning and fhining attributes of God meeting together with infinite harmony in the bufh of our nature, and yet the bufh able to bear the glory, Zech. vi. 13. O come and wonder! Here is the wonder

wonder of men and angels! For this is a wonderful meeting to them: And the name of the meetingplace is juftly called, wonderful! O come and partake; for the meeting is concerning your falvation in Chrift: His delights were with the fons of men. O come and fing to the praise and glory of this wonderful harmonious embracement of divine perfections in Chrift, especially you that partake, fo as to fee the glory, and feel the virtue thereof. O will you fing with your hearts, and lips, and lives, faying, Glory to God, that his attributes have met together, and kiffed each other, in Chrift; and that ever the like of me got a kifs by the by: Glory to God, that there is no breaking off this meeting, nor parting of these embraces, by fin, Satan, earth or hell; but that they meet and embrace each other to eternity. And tho' you cannot remember to fing all that has been faid, yet I hope the weakeft memory may remember to fing the beft note of all the fermon every day, faying, Glory, glory, glory to God, that mercy and truth are met together, righteousness and peace have kissed each other.

The

The best bond, or fureft engagement.

A SERMON preached immediately before the adminiftration of the facrament of the Lord's-fupper, at Dumfermline, July 19, 1724.

By the Rev. Mr. RALPH ERSKINE.

JEREM. XXX. 21.

For who is this that engaged his heart to approach unto me? faith the Lord.

M' My parted

friends, after the first Adam's heart defrom the Lord, fo as to violate the covenant of works, never a heart of all his pofterity could or would have approached unto God again, but had remained in their natural enmity against him, had not the fecond Adam fo engaged his heart unto God in our favour, as to draw the hearts of many after him: And if we could this day look into Chrift's heart, and discover his heart-kindness in this matter, fo as to knit our hearts to him, and to God in him, and get the knot fealed in the facrament with God's feal; it would make this a day to be much remembered to all eternity. O then, let your hearts be looking up to the Lord, that you may fee into the heart and bofom of this fcripture,

and