more immediate consideration of the lavish on him the riches of his goodresurrection state itself.

SO

I. It is pretty generally acknow-
ledged among Christians, that the
grand purpose of God in redemption
is to make such an exhibition of
certain of his attributes, as could
not otherwise be properly conceived
of. It is not sufficient, either for
men or angels, that Jehovah should
be proclaimed as "the Lord, the
'Lord God, merciful and gracious,
'long-suffering, abundant in good-
ness, &c.;" he will be known as
such by his actings: so that the
universe may have experimental
have experimental
evidence of this blessed and glorious
truth. I pass however from the
general consideration of this point,
to its particular bearing on redeemed
man, which is not, I think, so com-
monly dwelt upon.

ness. As we read of the eastern
monarchs sometimes raising men,
according to the pleasure of their
will, from very lowly circumstances,
treating them as special favorites,
exalting them among all other
princes, presidents and rulers, and
"whom
sending them forth as those “
the king delighteth to honour :”
the Lord Jehovah hath purposed to
raise up man as a beggar from the
dunghill, a to receive him to his own
bosom, to dwell and walk with
him as his friend and familiar, to
exalt him in dignity above the
angels and archangels, giving him
to inherit all things as his portion,
and in fact only in the throne being
greater than him.

It will. I trust, be readily admitted, that these things are true concerning the MAN Christ Jesus: would that they were as fully believed in regard to the elect of God in general! I am persuaded that we should find this blessed expectation most influential in stirring us up to walk But worthy of our high vocation. so wonderfully is the love of God above all that we could ask or think, that the saints in every age have need to pray, that, the eyes of their understanding being enlightened, they may know what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints.'

For aught we know to the contrary, angels had never witnessed an example of the justice and severity of God, until the angels that rebelled were hurled down to Tartarus. But in regard to the rebellion of man, the principalities and powers in heavenly places are to behold a display of the mercy and goodness and love of God: not such a mere ordinary instance of these qualities, as shall only prove that they are connected with the nature of the deity; but such an exhibition of them as shall be worthy of Jehovah, and afford the most wonderful and exalted specimen of these attributes. To this end man is permitted to fall, and so to fall, that he becomes lower, if possible, than the angels that rebelled; being "earthly and sensual" as well as devilish," and as it were two-fold more the child of hell than his deceiver. But God will not only pardon him, and re-instate him in his former condition of happiness; but he hath determined to

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It may be well however to instance two or three testimonies concerning Christ. cerning Christ. As Jesus declares that the Father hath committed all judgement to the Son, because he is the Son of Man;b so St. Paul asserts, that all things are put under him, He only excepted which did put all things under him.c In Ephesians we are told, that God hath raised him far above all prin

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a 1 Sam. ii, 8. b Compare John v, rv. 22, & 27. 1 Cor. xv, 27, 28.

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God hath never said to one of them,
Thou art my Son ?" Behold what
manner of love the Father hath
'bestowed on us, that we should be
called the sons of God!—Beloved
now are we the sons of God." Is
Jesus, being the Son, "appointed
heir of all things ?"k-So the
Apostle argues of the saints, "that
that
if children, then heirs-HEIRS OF
GOD! and JOINT-HEIRS With Christ!
if so be that we suffer with him
that we may be also glorified to-
gether !”—“ He that overcometh
shall inherit all things; and I will
be his God, and he shall be my
'son.”m I cannot take these things
as mere rhetorical flourishes, spok-
en without any definite meaning: I
view them as blessed and glorious
realities, not one jot or tittle of
which shall fail: and therefore I
cannot conceive, how the saints can
be "
predestinated to the adoption
of children," and made "joint-heirs
with Christ," unless they stand in
the next immediate gradation to him
in rank and privilege and glory in
the kingdom of their Father. For
this purpose they are made "to sit
together in heavenly places in
• Christ Jesus: that in the ages to
come he might shew the EXCEED-
ING RICHES of his grace in his
kindness toward us, through Christ
Jesus." I know not how others
who can receive and realize these
truths are affected by them: as for
me, they fill me with self-loathing
and abasement.

<

<

<

Before I quit this part of my subject I may here anticipate one particular concerning the enjoyments of the saints; which is, that their previous experience does in many respects increase their capacity for spiritual bliss, above that of the angels. According to our present

i Heb. i, 5.

apprehensions, the measure of our
spiritual happiness is proportionable
to the measure of love shed abroad
in the heart by the Holy Ghost.
Love is indeed the very essence of
the divine nature;o
the divine nature; conformity to
which, beyond a question, consti-
tutes our ability to taste of divine
bliss. But then our love towards
God depends on our sense of the
extent of God's love and con-
descension towards us; especially in
the instance of redeeming mercy:
he who is conscious of many sins
forgiven, the same loveth much ;
"but to whom little is forgiven, the
same loveth little." In this respect
then the probationary experience of
the saints, painful and degrading as
it is in the first instance, is by di-
vine grace ultimately overruled to
enhance their sense of God's con-
descension and goodness. The
elect angels, so far as we know,
have never sinned; and therefore
have not been placed in jeopardy by
hell-deserving guilt. They have
not been plucked as brands from
the burning--they have had no
inward corruptions nor evil world
to contend against ;-they have
not come out of great tribula-
tion." Nothing so much enhances
our sense of present blessings, as the
retrospect of opposite dangers and
evils. The comforts of a fire-side
are never more appreciated, than
when we have been subjected to the
pelting and severity of a storm:
the refreshment of cooling shade is
best understood by him, who has
wandered through desert wastes,
exposed to the fury of a vertical sun.
The angels' conception of the con-
descension of God must likewise be
inferior to ours:
for we are the
immediate objects of its greatest
exhibition; they rather the specta-

j 1 John iii, 1, 2. n Ephes. ii, 6, 7.

k Heb. i, 2. 1 Rom. viii, 17. m Rev. xxi, 7. o 1 John iv, 16. p Luke vii, 47.

q Hebrews ii, 16.

r 2 Cor. vi, 18.

s Compare Rom. viii, 15, 19, and 23;

2 Cor. v, 5, 6; Gal. iv, 5, 6; Ephes. i, 13, 14. t John xx, 17. u Acts ii, 34.

v Psalm xvii, 15. w Rev. iii, 5. x 2 Cor. iv, 14.

y 1 Thess. iii, 13.

'glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever, Amen." Thus am I compelled to conclude, that man, whilst in the present corruptible body and in the separate state, hath no access to that light in which God dwells; and that he does not visibly behold the glory of God until that time when it shall be announced, Behold the tabernacle of God is with men, and he I will dwell with them."at

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But there is a yet greater depth in this part of our subject to be considered. Many expressions in Scripture lead to the conclusion, that the saints are not presented even to Christ until the period of the advent; and therefore, that in whatever way the saints, when absent from the body, are to be considered present with him and to behold him by sight and not by faith, it is not in that glorified nature which he will possess, when he comes as THE GREAT GOD AND OUR SAVIOUR." Thus it is written, that Christ sanctifies and cleanses the Church,

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z 1 Tim. vi, 16. a Rev. xxi, 3. e 2 Cor. xi, 2.

that he may present it to HIMSELF a glorious Church, &c."b He bids his disciples pray, that they may be accounted worthy to escape the last tribulation and to stand before the SON OF MAN; as if they had not been brought into his presence previously. Similar is the promise in John's Gospel,d that He will come again and receive them to HIMSELF; which it is difficult to reconcile with the notion of each believer being at death received to Christ. Agreeably with this view the Apostle says, that he had espoused the Corinthians to one husband, that he might present them as a chaste virgin to Christ.e He declares also of the Thessalonians, that they will be "his hope and crown of rejoicing ' in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming."f And St. John exhorts the saints to abide in Christ, that when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and 'not be ashamed before him at his coming."g I pretend not to reconcile these two things, though

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* There is a curious passage on this head by the ancient author of "Questions and Answers to the Orthodox," bound up in the editions of Justyn Martyr's works, and incorrectly attributed to him. Being asked, what became of those who came out of their graves after the resurrection of Jesus and went into the holy city and appeared unto many; and having stated, among other things in reply, that they went again to Hades with their bodies, in order to afford assurance to the souls there, that the resurrection of Christ was a pledge of the resurrection of all; he concludes by saying, They died not again, but continue in immortality, just as Enoch and Elijah, and are with them in paradise, still waiting a change after the manner of the resurrection of Jesus Christ; according to the words of the Apostle,-" We shall all be changed." Δι ̓ ἣν αιτιαν εδε ετελεύτησαν παλιν, αλλα μεν8σιν εν αθανασιᾳ καθαπερ ὁ Ενωχ και ὁ Ηλιας, και εισι συν αυτοις εν τῳ παραδείσῳ αναμενοντες την ηδη αιωνιαν της 75 Χρις8 ανασασεως γινονενην κατα εναλλαγήν, καθ ̓ ἦν, ως φησιν ὁ θειος αποςολος, παντες αλλαγησομεθα. Εις γαρ αθανατον τε και αφθαρτον ζωην επω γεγονε τινος ἡ αναςασις, πλην τε Σωτηρος Χρις8, διο και πρωτότοκος των νεκρων, και απαρχη των κεκοιμημένων ανηγόρευται. Question lxxxv. I give this without expressing any opinion on it, merely for the information of others.

+ Not only can no man now approach to the presence of God; but there appears to be a distinction among the angels even. For Gabriel states it to be his privilege, that he stood in the presence of God: (Luke i, 19 :) and of the angels who minister to the saints it is said, apparently by way of distinction, "In heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven." Matt. xviii, 10.

b Ephes. v, 27. f 1 Thess. ii, 19.

c Luke xxi, 36. d xiv, 3. g 1 John ii, 28.