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to sinful man ?-the descendants of him who fled from his presence, when he heard his voice amid the scenes, once of happiness, but then of transgression? God has indeed declared his goodwill to man in the gift of his Son; he has manifested his love, by the most abundant provision for our spiritual and eternal welfare; and by assuring to each of his faithful servants the adoption of sons, by making us heirs of God and jointheirs with Christ, he has granted to us the privi lege of being partakers of that affection which the Son enjoys. As he has given us the privilege of crying unto him, Abba, Father, and of looking up to him as a reconciled Parent; so also has he renewed us unto holiness by his Spirit, and purified us by his grace: he can now say to every faithful Christian, Thou also art a son well beloved, and in thee also am I well pleased. Goodwill then to our fellow Christians is the natural result of our perception of this love of God. We must rejoice in the fellowship of the same family, we must entertain the affection of brothers for the sons of the same Father, and the heirs of the same promises. Thus, in the communion of saints in this vale of tears, the glory of God is celebrated, and the peace of the gospel enjoyed. Thus is echoed back, in the loudest strains, the angelic song which welcomed the birth of the Messiah, and which will continue to swell with louder tones and more united melody, till it

mingle with the song of the ransomed in heaven, "Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and to the Lamb, for ever and ever."

Now it has been objected, that these effects of Christianity are not sufficiently visible; that the earth still enjoys not that peace which the prophetic language describes, and that men exhibit not that good-will towards each other, which would justify the ascription of glory to God in the highest. Christianity is not answerable for this apparent deficiency in its power: it acts not upon man as upon a machine, or a being without intelligence or responsibility; but it addresses itself to the understanding and to the affections. If it does not produce its full effect, it is the fault of the understanding or of the affections, and not the defect of the system of Christianity. The sun shines, whether we close our eyes or open them; and who could draw a veil over his face, and then affirm that the noon-day splendour of that luminary was gone, because he had wilfully closed his eyes against its beams. But blot out the records of divine truth from the world; shut out from the moral horizon the sun of righteousness. Whither shall we go to obtain comfort and peace? Where are we to find any clear knowledge of ourselves or of our Creator, or any real purity of morals, any reasonable hope of reconciliation to God? Shall we go to the

unmingled terrors of Sinai's splendour? or shall we think to propitiate the vengeance of God, by the sacrifices of the Jewish ritual, at the time that we strip them of their only efficacy, their typical resemblance to Christ? Shall we go to the pagan rites of heathen idolatry, where sages and philosophers bowed down to the labours of their own hands, and that which their own fingers had made? Shall we go in search of holiness, to the discipline of the schools of antiquity? Their precepts are destitute of godliness, and their practice abounding in iniquities. What then is it that hath roused the general voice of man, against cruelty and oppression-against deeds of licentiousness, and against acts of impurity? What is it that hath given scope to all the charities of life, and hath taught men to live as brethren, and to bear one another's burdens? What is it that has established an intercourse between earth and heaven, and given to the future life the reality of hope? What is it that has triumphed over the evils of life, and reflected over the troubled ocean of human sorrows, the calm serenity of a heavenly rest? What is it that hath brought light out of the very darkness of the tomb, and made death's gloomy portal the gate of life? If these be the effects of philosophy, if these be the effects of the march of mere human intellect, and the progress of human civilization, then why did Greece and Rome, the abodes of worldly wisdom,

and the seats of earthly conquest, why did these sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death? The silent operations of Christianity have produced these effects; the leaven has been gradually spreading its holy influence, and the "whole lump shall yet be leavened." Instead of murmuring, that the full glory of gospel light has not yet shone, we ought to adore the wisdom and the power of that God, who has mercifully and wonderfully caused it to shine so far, as to gild our own prospects with a ray of immortality. Instead of closing our eyes against its increasing radiance, we ought to emulate that holy joy, which hailed with angelic rapture its early dawn. Thus, by admitting its influence upon our own hearts, we shall best fulfil the purpose of its revelation: we shall the most loudly re-echo those strains of celestial harmony, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good-will towards

men."

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SERMON XIX.

THE DEATH OF CHRIST A SACRIFICE.

(Good Friday.)

1 PETER ii. 24.

Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sin, should live unto righteousness.

It is recorded, that when the disciples, who were first sent forth, returned with the news of their successful mission, the heart of the Saviour was filled with gladness: "In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes; even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight." Words of deep and solemn meaning, which deserve to be treasured up in our memories, to guide us in our researches after divine truth, and

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