Christ, prior to the receiving, so this giving of Christ for a covenant of the people, implies the people's right, and title, and warrant to receive him. There is a twofold giving of Christ :

1. A giving of Christ in point of actual possession; and thus he is given to the elect soul in the day of believing; and this giving is the foundation of his title to all things in and through him: for, "How will he not with him freely give us all things?" Rom. viii. 32. And till a man have an interest in Christ thus, he hath no saving right to any thing, no right to a communiontable; nay, no covenant-right to the food of his common-table.

2. There is a giving of Christ in point of exhibition and gospel-offer; and thus he is given to the whole visible church, in the dispensation of the word; and this giving is a foundation of our title to receive Christ, and our claim of right to take this gift out of the hand of the giver. A right of possession none have, till they believe, and take the gift that is offered: but a right of access and warrant to believe, all have, whether they believe or not, or whether they take this gift out of God's hands or not. That Christ is God's gift to a whole visible church in this sense, is a great privilege, whatever the world think or say about it, and it is a part of my errand this day, to tell you of it: if it be disgusting doctrine to any, and will not go down, we cannot help it; it is Bible doctrine, and gospel-doctrine, and therefore we must preach it in his name, who commands us to preach the gospel to every creature. But, I think, it should be welcome doctrine to all that hear me, That Christ is given to all the people in this house, in the same manner that the manna was given to all the people of old, John vi. 32.; where Christ speaking to all the promiscuous multitude, and making a comparison betwixt himself, and the manna that fell about the tents of Israel in the wilderness, says, "My Father giveth you the true bread from heaven:" where the revelation and offer of Christ is declared to be a giving of him, before ever he be received or believed on. It is such a gift and grant, as warrants a man to believe, and

receive the gift; for this end is HE given to a perishing world: "God so loved the world that he gave his only - begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him, might not perish but have everlasting life." As the brazen serpent was given for a common-good to the whole camp of Israel, that whosoever in all the camp, being stung with the fiery-serpents looked thereto, might not die, but live; even so is Christ given as a common good to poor stung sinners, that looking to him they may be saved. Christ is given to all, in the dispensation of this gospel. And, O it should be glad tidings of great joy to all people, That to us a child is born, to us a son is given, whose name is WONDerful. This giving, in a general and definite manner, to all, in the gospel offer, may be, and is, for the most part, where there is no receiving: but there can be no receiving of Christ for salvation, where there is not this giving; for, "A man can receive nothing except it be given." This giving then, implies a right, and title, and warrant to receive: he is also given to you, that all that please the bargain, have warrant to take possession. He is your own already, man, woman, in the former sense, whether you take him or not; as he said to the Jews, "He came to his own, and his own received him not." But faith's improvement of this gift and grant, among your hands, would make him your own, in a peculiar sense, by actual possession. Thus we have the manner of his ordination, to be the covenant of the people; it is even by a free and gracious donation. The next thing here

was,

4thly, The gracious motive, ground, and reason of this divine ordination, which is just the divine will: "I WILL give." This verb must necessarily be borrowed from the former clause, "I WILL hold thine hand, and give thee for a covenant of the people." I WILL GIVE; Ö sovereign reason! No gift in the world so free as Christ: when men bestow gifts upon one another, there is some impulsive cause that excites them to it, drawn from their relation to, or interest in one another; drawn from services and favours received, or expected from each other; but no such impulsive cause here; we have no relation to God, but as his enemies; we can do him no service,

but sin against him; therefore can merit nothing from him but his curse. His reason of doing, then, must be his own sovereign will. Men may rack their wit, and dispute about the reason of God's actions: but there would be more calm reasoning in the world, about gos pel-truths, if all our reasonings did strike sail to the sovereignty of free-grace, and stoop to that: he will, because he will: "I will give thee.". I think this WILL imports, 1. A consent and agreement: the counsel of peace is concluded, parties are both agreed; I WILL. 2. A complacency and satisfaction: God is well-pleased with this device of his own infinite wisdom; well-pleased with the ransom and ransomer; "This is my beloved son, in whom I am well-pleased:" I take pleasure in giving him to be a covenant of the people; I WILL. 3. I think it imports authority: supreme authority of the eternal Godhead, three in one, is interposed in this matter, for ordaining Christ to this work: I WILL. And 4. I think it imports an express command, "I will give thee;" and of this command Christ speaks, when he says, "This commandment have I received of my Father, to lay down my life for my sheep :" And when he says, "Lo, I come to do thy will: by the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." Heb. x. 10. In a word, it imports, That the sovereign will of JEHOVAH is the reason of all. And this may lead us to, and shall make me the more brief upon,

V. The Fifth thing proposed, namely, the reasons of the doctrine; why is Christ given for a covenant of the people? And here I might shew, 1. Why he is given. 2. Why given for a covenant. 3. Why given for a covenant of the people, of the Gentiles..

1. Why is he given or exhibit by way of gift? Why, the grand reason is told already, even his sovereign will. Christ, the great ordinance of God for man's recovery, is dispensed freely, by a gratuitous gift, that salvation may be by grace, and that free grace may get the whole glory of it, from the foundation to the cope-stone, with shoutings of grace, grace unto it. The giving of Christ to all, in the gospel offer, is from sovereign grace, and

must be absolutely free and unconditional'; for what in all the world is the condition of the offer? If men be in a sinful condition, in a miserable condition, in a lost condition, that is all the condition and qualification, that I know necessary for making an offer of Christ as a saviour to them. If any clog the gospel-offer with legal terms and conditions, they encroach upon the warrant ministers have to offer Christ to all, and the warrant that all have to receive him; yea, they encroach upon sovereign grace, which hath made this grant and offer of Christ, not to devils, but to men in the most extensive terms: "To you, O men, do I call, and my voice is to the sons of men."-Again, the giving of Christ to some, in actual possession, is from sovereign grace also; for, though none can be possessed of Christ and his benefits, till by faith they receive him: yet this faith to receive, is given, as well as the gift received by it:

66

Eph. ii. 8. By grace ye are saved, through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God." It is given, by virtue of an absolute promise of the covenant; such as that, "Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power;" and so, the hand to take the gift, being itself given out of the covenant, the covenant takes hold of the man, before the man takes hold of the covenant, But, 2. Why is Christ given for a covenant? I offer you only one great reason of it: he is given for a covenant, that God might have more glory out of the covenant of works, by the second Adam's fulfilling of it, than he lost by the first Adam's breach and violation of it. The law of eternal life and death was irreversibly stated only by the covenant of works: and though we be changed, yet the covenant of works is unchangeable. And as by virtue of the stability of it, all the Christless world are condemned, cursed, and die eternally; so, by virtue of its being perfectly fulfilled by Christ, in whom only it is established, all that are in him, are freed from condemnation, and live eternally. What is the covenant of grace? I may say it is Christ's fulfilling, for us, the covenant of works. We were debtors to the mandatory and minatory part of the law, arraigned at the instance of divine justice, to pay the debt; Christ substi

tuted himself in our room, came under the law, to pay the whole debt due thereunto; and now, God gets more glory by his doing so, than he lost by our sins. Herein he glorified his sovereign Majesty, whose authority was so heinously violated by such a base creature as man is, in that he received him not into his favour, without a becoming reparation, made to his honour, by the intervention of a perfect obedience, and full satisfaction. Herein he glorified his infinite wisdom, in finding out a man to reconcile justice and mercy; to punish the sin, and yet to pardon the sinner; to take vengeance on sin, to the very uttermost, and yet, to magnify his mercy, while the sinner is justified, accepted and saved, without his own suffering. This is that, POLUTOIKILOS SOPHIA TOU THEOU, The manifold wisdom of God.' Herein he glorified his free love, goodness, and pity, in subjecting his life to such a death, and his glory to such a shame, and all to purchase such vile and worthless creatures as we are, and to redeem us from eternal woe and misery: as also, his almighty power is here glorified, in supporting the human nature of Christ under the vast load of divine wrath, and law curses.-Herein he glorified his holiness and faithfulness, in fulfilling not only the promise of the law, as a covenant of works, even the promise of eternal life, made to perfect obedience; which, though we forfeited in our own persons, yet we recover in Christ: the condition of life in the covenant of works, being perfect obedience personal, and the condition of life here being perfect obedience and imputed; and so the promise of life, upon the ground of a perfect obedience fulfilled to us in him; but also divine faithfulness is glorified, in fulfilling all the threatenings of the law, while we, who come under the sentence of death in the first Adam, undergo that death in the second Adam.In a word, herein he glorifies his justice and righteousness, in the remission of sins, through the propitiation of Christ; Rom. iii. 25. " Whom God hath set forth to be the propitiation, through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God." Herein is vindictive justice displayed, in its greatest severity, in Chsist's be

"