HIS fake he will bestow whatever he asks upon those who love him and believe on him. When he presents that body in which he fuffered fo much-When he pleads the merit and fufficiency of that facrifice which he offered up-When he urges the memory of the fhame, the pain, and the curfed death he underwent, to fatisfy the justice of God, and to magnify his law, how prevalent inuft his fuit be? Can the Father turn a deaf ear to his beloved Son, whilft he enforces his plea with fuch powerful reasonings? Can he behold the prints of that bloody punishment which himfelf inflicted upon him, and be infenfible of their merit? Now that the moft rigorous demands of ftern juftice are answered, will not mercy be awakened at the intreaty of such a fuitor? It were abfurd to think fo. No, the Father's love to our Redeemer, nay, impartial juftice itself, fecures the fuccefs of the Saviour's interceffion, though God were more averse to a reconciliation, than the most gloomy felf-tormenting mind can conceive.

We have a famous ftory recorded of two brothers at Athens, which, as it ferves to illuftrate what I have been saying, I shall brief

ly

ly relate it to you: One of them, for some high misdemeanour, was condemned to lofe his life, and was going to be led to execution, when his brother, who had loft his hand in the defence of his country, and had been a great mean of gaining a victory which was of the laft importance to the ftate, came fuddenly into the court; and without faying a word,. but barely holding up his mutilated arm, fo prevailed with the judges by this remembrance of what he had formerly done, that they instantly discharged the delinquent brother, though he had forfeited his life. Thus far does the interceffion of man prevail with men; and fhall not the conftant prefentation of the Lamb that was flain, for fo our Saviour's appearance in Heaven is described in the book of Revelations, fhall not this be as operative and powerful with the loving Father? The Redeemer thus pleads, "Behold "me, O my. Father, Behold me in a form "thus different from that in which I origi

nally was! Behold me now dwelling in "human flesh which I have afsumed; and "how it was treated for the atonement of

ત

people; and now let not all my fufferings "be in vain, but for my fake receive them "into thy favour, and beftow upon them "thofe bleffings which have coft me fo "much." Can any confider the force of this interceffion, and yet doubt of its success? Let us, in the

III. Place, join both thefe together, viz. The affured love of the Father; and, The conftant prevailing interceffion of the Son; and, O how great is the amount ! Either of them fingly give us good ground to hope; but when the two are united, How certain,. how infallible is our affurance? When the advocate's plea is juft and fairly urged, when the judge is fufficiently qualified and perfectly well difpofed, how fafe is the client, how fecure of fuccefs? If God himself loves you, and the Redeemer never leaves importuning him for you, how is it poffible that your prayers fhould be rejected, or any of your interefls mifcarry? It is needlefs to infift any longer in the proof of this; the conclufion is fo ftrong and evident, that you must all of

you

you have made it before I could fpeak it. I fhall therefore fuggeft to you, in a few particulars, the natural ufe and improvement of this comfortable fubject.

And now my dear brethren, upon the review of all that has been faid, Is not this the fecret language of your hearts: These, indeed, are bleffed news, but what intereft have I in them? Does the comfort of them belong to me in particular or not? This is as it fhould be. In fo far you are on the road to the best and most neceffary improvement that I can fuggeft to you. The Scriptures will inform you, that this is the childrens bread, in which the dogs can pretend no fhare. You fee it is not a common privilege. It is peculiar to thofe who love the Redeemer," and "believe that he is come out from God.' This is the test.

Here, then, is the great and important question, which, in the name of the living God, the fearcher of hearts, I put to every foul who now hears me. Is it your character, or is it not? I do not afk you, if you believe

the exiftence of a God; or even the truth of the Christian religion. This is a faith which may go down with you to Hell, where the devils themselves believe and tremble.*

Neither do I afk

If you, you have felt fome paffing motions of love to Chrift; fome faint defires after an interest in him.

There is a defire of the flothful, fays Solomon, that kills him, while it only serves to increase his prefent uneafinefs, and his after punishment. But do you really know Christ, and love him in fincerity? Do you cordially approve of the methods of his saving grace? Do you know what it is to lay down your guilty fouls, as under the effufion of his blood, and the covert of his righteoufnefs? Do you know what it is to ftrip yourfelves of pride and self-confidence in his fight, that your nackedness may be clothed with his moft perfect righteousness? Do you know what it is to bow to his fceptre, as his obedient fubjects; to take the law of your direction from his mouth, and to rejoice that you have fuch a governor or inftructor? And do you feel the neceffity of a conftant appli