fine our thoughts to what is revealed of the same in the gospel. It would be well for us to go over our election union. Our representative union. Our marriage union. Our covenant union. Our manifestative union. Our glory union: and consider what must flow in upon us, sooner or later in consequence of the same. When our Lord removes us to Himself, and we see Him face to face in Heaven, the glory of all these unions will not flow in upon us. We shall then be only in the state of glory. This is our first remove from the state of grace. It will be a most blessed one: nor can we at present have adequate conceptions of it-To be delivered from the whole body, and freed entirely and for ever from the whole inherency of sin, this will be most glorious, and such a blessing as we only can at present anticipate-To be on this presented by Christ, before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, immediately on our entrance into Heaven, this will be most glorious and divine. After having been in this state for a season, to be removed into another, which will be the case: for the resurrection state differs from the glory state: whilst both are states of glory, yet there is a distinction in them, and the one will be more glorious than the other: as in the one we shall only be glorious in our souls, and in the other we shall be as truly glorious in our bodies, as they will be like the glorious body of our Lord. It is then we shall be like Him. It is then we shall see Him as He is : for our bodies as well as our souls will then be fitted for the real vision of Him; so that we shall have His full shine on us, which will fill our spiritual bodies, as well as our minds, through and through with His glory. He will shine upon us, and within us, as our Head of Glory. He will fill us with the reflection of the same. We shall shine forth therein, just as we shone forth in Him, in eternal predestination before all worlds, in all the glory and perfection of our divine adoption and sonship. know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. Where, and on whatsoever the sun shines, it leaves its glory on the same-Christ shining on the souls and bodies of his saints in the resurrection morn, and during the resurrection state, he will put his own glory on them: so that they will be like Him. This will be increasing blessedness unto them. Believers, think on these words, We shall be like him. Then will be accomplished in us, all the effects of what our Lord expresses in these words to his Divine Father. "That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me." Surely this must be the glory union, which is to shine forth most brightly from Christ on his whole church at the last day. Then it is he will give and present his church, to the Father, and that in the same glory in which he received them at his hands, before the foundation of the world. It is then we shall see the God-Man, as he is, and this will everlastingly satisfy us. Then the glory union will break forth upon the saints, so that he shall be glorified in them, and appear wonderful. This will make them as truly glorious, and like Christ, and as conformable to his glory, as can be admitted of: for the church can never have the Personal glory of Christ on her. No: it cannot be, any more than she can the

We

essential glory of Christ. She will be admitted to see Christ in his Personal Glory; but she cannot partake of it. "Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world." Christ's Personal glory is his ultimate glory and the beholding Him in his glory as God-Man, will be the ultimate glory and blessedness of his saints. The glory he will put on them, is a glory suited to them as his members: and this will be everlastingly sufficient. And that they may never centre in their own communicated glory, blessedness, and perfection, they will be raised up and be admitted to see Christ in his Personal glory, which will so swallow up the whole of their minds, as that God in all his Persons and perfections, will be to them All in All. I have gone through this subject to the best of my ability; yet the whole is so much, and so far beyond me, that though I have the scriptures before me, I am vastly short of comprehending what is revealed in them concerning these great, glorious, and most divine subjects. You will therefore pardon me. Study these subjects for yourselves. It will be of very great use and benefit to you. The Lord forgive what is amiss. The Lord bless what is good in his sight. Amen.

SERMON XXXVI.

And

every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.-1 JOHN iii. 3.

In the two former verses the apostle had been speaking on these important subjects-on the manifestation of the divine Father's love to us, in adoption, so as to bestow on us the title of sons, and making us such. We are acknowledged and dealt with by God as such; yet carnal, earthly minded professors, neither esteem, nor love us, but hate us on this account, and for our profession of the same; which is very easily accounted for-They knew not Christ-They know not us. If they had known Him, they would have known us. Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. It is a blessing beyond our estimation, that we should be graced by God with the title,sons of God. It becomes us to consider the love from whence it originates. As to what the world think or say of us, it is not worth our notice. They only deal with us, and by us, as they did with and by our most blessed Lord: they knew Him not: so neither do they us. This may well carry us above all, to be informed of what you really are in the view of, and as it respects your relation to God himself. Beloved, now are we, at this very time, and in the present state you are now in, the sons of God. You are at present, in this present evil world: there's no visible discovery to you, or others, of the glorious condition which awaits you; of the

glory which ere long will be revealed in you: of what you are to be the partakers of. It doth not yet appear what we shall be. It is only by faith, and the earnest, witness, and testimony of the Spirit, in the word of truth; and in perfect harmony with the same, his bearing testimony to our spirits concerning what is written in them; that we look for the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ. And we inwardly know, and are assured, that when Christ shall appear, we shall be made like unto Him: we ground it upon this, we are the called according to God's purpose. And whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the first-born among many brethren. We are fully persuaded, that as we now bear the image of the earthly Adam in our present mortal bodies, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Adam. And this likewise in complete holiness and happiness. For we shall see him as he is. We shall then enjoy him in the most immediate, intimate, personal, and intuitive manner: we shall behold Him in his manhood, in all his glory: this is what Job spake of when he said, "I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; or not a stranger.' Job xix. 25-27. The confession respects his seeing God in our nature: or, his glorious Redeemer in a body like our own, as it respects the reality of it, at the last day. These words are to the same effect, "As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness." Psa. xvii. 15. When the saint should see the Person of Christ at the resurrection-morn, he would then be satisfied: not with his conformity to Him, but with Christ, the image of the invisible God. As in these two verses which begin this present chapter, Christ is not expressly mentioned, it may be asked, why I have applied the he to Christ, without giving a reason for the same? My friends, it is most certain, our Lord is to appear. It is not the Father, nor the Spirit: yet our Lord is not mentioned in the text, but by the term he: so that I con-cluded it might be, the question would be proposed; and for my own satisfaction, and your's also, I would refer back to the 28th verse of the former chapter, where you read these words, "And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming." This I think will give you complete satisfaction. The words of my present text are in close connection with the former ones: and may be considered as expressing the fruits and effects, which the hope, and expectation of the appearing of Christ, and seeing Him as he is, and of being like unto Him, produceth in the hearts and lives of such, as are interested in Christ, and have this real and blessed apprehension of the subject. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. I will set before you the particulars contained in the words thus.

1. Christ the Person spoken of under the term him, and as the object of the saints' hope, that when he shall appear he will be seen by them, and they shall be made like unto Him.

2. What effect the true knowledge of this vastly important article of our most holy faith, hath on every one that rightly receives and embraces it. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.

3. What is contained in this?

I conceive under these particulars, we may have some general outlines of the verse now before us. May the Lord bless the same, so as that we may be profited thereby. Amen."

A true gospel hope, of seeing Christ; of being made like unto Him, of seeing Him as He is, hath its most blessed effect on the minds of saints. Such, depending on the sure and certain accomplishment of all this, in the Lord's time, and in the Lord's way, cannot but shun all evil, and aim after the utmost perfection of practical holiness; hereby proving their meetness for that state, into the which they are to be introduced by Christ, at his coming, and in his kingdom; that so they may hereby have as glorious a perception of the same, as they possibly can before their personal introduction into it.

I am

1. To consider the Person of Christ as spoken of, under the term him and as the object of the saints' hope. And that, when he shall appear he will be seen by them, and they shall be made like unto Him. All this is included in the former verse, and it is the foundation of the present verse; which is only carried into this, and exemplified in the experience thereof. The former words were, Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. Then follows these words: And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.

:

Now it is very evident Christ is spoken of, as the Person that shall appear. His appearance is the object of the saints' hope. It was so in an especial sense, in the apostolic day. This was a great means of increasing their personal holiness—of making them very spiritual in all manner of conversation and godliness. It was this which kept them looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God. If it had, and actually produced these effects in them, the same true apprehensions of the coming of Christ, would most certainly produce the same, in us, in our lives and conversations. It could not be otherwise. The saints addressed by John, were saints indeed. Their true saintship consisted in their true and supernatural knowledge of Christ, and of the Father in Him and in the supernatural communion they had, and held with them, by the influence and indwelling of the Holy Ghost. Christ was their All. His glories had attracted them. His love had yielded an heaven unto them. His salvation was the subject of their song. They found themselves under everlasting obligations unto Him. Therefore their very expectation of his appearing, of their seeing Him face to face, of their seeing Him as he is, of their being with Him, of their being like Him, was very refreshing to their minds. It at some times, transported them: at other times it exhilarated them and again it encouraged them, and carried them above, and beyond all their present experiences, afflictions, and distresses. "For I reckon" (says one of them) "that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." Rom. viii. 18. "Our conversation, or citizenship is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour,. the Lord Jesus Christ." Phil. iii. 20. "When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall also ye with him in glory." Col. iii. 4. appear turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God; And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus,

"Ye

which delivered us from the wrath to come.” 1 Thess. i. 9, 10. From these quotations, and others might be added, it appears that the coming and appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, Personally and visibly, was the object of the hope of saints. It is called by the apostle that blessed hope. "Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ." Tit. ii. 13. Real saints happily enjoy the prospect and anticipation of this hope. They were encouraged in the expectation of this hope in their observances of the ordinances of baptism and the Lord's supper. By the one they were led to commemorate the sufferings, death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now most assuredly if he rose to immortal life, death can have no more dominion over him. If he lives then, it must be in glory everlasting. If he be on his throne, at the right hand of the Majesty on high, invested with all power in heaven and in earth, He must reign, till he hath put all things under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. The ordinance of the supper, which is a solemn memorial and celebration of the sacrifice and death of Christ, is to remain in the church until the Lord come. A full proof the Lord will come. Or the apostle had never said, "For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew, or shew ye the Lord's death till he come." 1 Cor. xi. 26. But when shall he come? At the appointed time. What will he do at his coming? Raise the bodies of the elect dead. Change the living saints. Set fire to this world, and hereby dissolve it. Make new heavens and a new earth. Introduce the saints into it. Then give them all up, most completely perfected to the Divine Father, as a glorious church, without spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing. As in Adam all die, or as all in Adam die, even so all in Christ shall be made alive. But there will be an order in the resurrection. Christ the first fruits is risen. When he rose, some of the saints were raised together with him, in their bodies to life everlasting, and a state of immortality: yet there is a vast term of time run out, and will still run on between the resurrection of Christ the head, aud those saints who were then raised in their bodies, and the general resurrection of the just. So says the apostle. every man in his own order: Christ the first fruits." He is risen. He ensures the whole harvest. He is the earnest of the same. He hath consecrated the whole. Afterward, at the appointed season, then they that are Christ's at his coming, will be raised. Then cometh the end, when he, i. e. Christ, shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule, and all authority, and power. For he must reign till he hath put all enemies under his feet. It is God the Father is spoken of as He who is to put all things under the feet of Christ, and our Lord must reign till all enemies are made his footstool. Even death itself shall be destroyed: which will be by the resurrection of the bodies of the elect from the grave of death to die no more: and by the change which will pass on the bodies of the living Elect, so as they will thereby become immortal. It is written in the 8th Psalm concerning the God-Man, the glorious head and only Mediator, that the Divine Father hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith, all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him. The Divine Father gave and appointed Christ, God-Man, to the whole of his work and office of Mediation when he hath so completed the execution of the same, as that every

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