III. He is the Mediator both for Jews and Gentiles. I. Jesus is the only Mediator. True, there had been many before the days of the man Christ Jesus; Moses was a mediator, Deut. v. 5. And we know not as there is an impropriety in saying that the prophets often acted in this capacity. They were certainly often commissioned to declare the great purposes of God, and to lead the people back to their Creator. But Jesus is the last and only Mediator between God and men. No other will ever be needed.

II. That Jesus is a suitable, constant, and willing Mediator. He possesses every qualification for the great work which he was sent to accomplish. He is suitable, because he needed not to atone for himself. 'He was tempted in all points as we are, and yet without sin.' This Mediator was constant and faithful. He never faltered in his great work, from the very commencement. He interceded with man till the very last moment of his ministry upon the earth. The world never saw such a Mediator before. compassion, such purity, such love, was never before exhibited. Even his last breath was spent in pleading for his enemies: Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.'

Such

III. Jesus was Mediator both for Jews and Gentiles. God sent him to reconcile all hearts, or, to use the language of an Apostle, 'for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; and that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby.'* A glorious object indeed; one worthy of a God. For on any other supposition than universal reconciliation, it

seems exceedingly difficult to understand the office of Mediator between God and men. Admit that Jews and Gentiles are ultimately 'to be gathered together in Christ,' and all seems plain. Then the whole mediatorial character of Jesus corresponds not only with the character of the Father who sent him, but with his own character as displayed during his ministry on the earth. Such then appears to be the nature of the mediatorial office.

In closing, we must observe, that there is a moral grandeur connected with the office of the Mediator, which no language can possibly describe. It rises from viewing the immensity of creation. When we view the unnumbered worlds, and systems of worlds, we are lost in surprise and wonder that so much care should be extended to that which we inhabit. God looked down from his throne and saw a rebellious world, and then commissioned his own Son to go and bring it back to holiness and truth. The Son, ever ready to 'do the Father's will, came on this errand of mercy, though he knew there was no other way to effect a reconciliation than to lay down his own life. How benevolent does God appear in this work! What a loveliness in the character of the Mediator! The great work has been commenced. It will go on till 'every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.' 'For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; and, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.'*

* Col. i. 19, 20.

LV. MESSIAH.

"We have found the Messias; which is, being interpreted, the Christ.' John i. 41.

THIS title is found in three other instances in our common version:. Dan. ix. 25, 26. John iv. 25. A very excellent critic says, that 'the word translated anointed in 1 Sam. xxiv. 6. is, as in other places, in Hebrew, Messiah, and in the Greek of the Seventy, Christ.' 'It deserves to be remarked,' he adds, 'that in the English translation of the Old Testament, the word is always rendered anointed, to whomsoever applied, except in the two verses of Daniel. In the New Testament, the corresponding Greek word is always rendered Christ, and commonly without the article.' 'But the most eminent use and application of the word is when it is employed as the title of that sublime Personage typified and predicted from the beginning, who was to prove, in the most exalted sense, the Redeemer and Lord of God's people. Those of the prophets who seem more especially to have appropriated this title, formerly more common, to the Mediator of the New Covenant, were the royal prophet David, Psa. ii. 2; Isaiah, chap. lxi. 1; and Daniel, chap. ix. 25, 26. The first represents him as anointed of God King of God's heritage; the second, as set apart and consecrated to be the messenger of good tidings to the inhabitants of the earth; the third,

as appointed to make expiation for the sins of the people.'*

Long before the Messiah appeared, there was a general expectation of such a personage, as appears evident from the testimonies of Tacitus,† Suetonius,‡ and Josephus.

The first great object of the Son of God in his ministry was to prove that he was the true Messiah. It was the first great truth presented to those who were desirous of becoming his disciples, and a reception of this truth was sufficient in the primitive age to constitute one a believer in the Messiah. True, other points were urged by the Messiah, but this was the first and most prominent in his teachings. For

*The Four Gospels. By GEORGE CAMPBELL. Vol. i. dis. v. part iv. 'The generality had a strong persuasion, that it was contained in the ancient writings of the priests, that AT THAT VERY TIME the East should prevail; and that some who should come out of Judea should obtain the empire of the world.'-TACITUS, History, chap. xiii.

'There had been for a long time all over the East a constant persuasion, that it was (recorded) in the Fates (books of the Fates, decrees, or foretellings) that AT THAT TIME Some who should come out of Judea should obtain universal dominion.'-SUETONIUS, Vespasian, chap. iv.

That which chiefly excited them (the Jews) to war, was an ambiguous prophecy, which was also found in the sacred books, that at that time some one within their country should arise, that should obtain the empire of the whole world. For this they had received (by tradition,) that it was spoken of one of their nation; and many wise men (or Chachams) were deceived with the interpretation. But in truth Vespasian's empire was designed in this prophecy; who was created emperor (of Rome) in Judea.'-JOSEPH. de Bello, lib. vii. cap. 31.

See the account of the conversion of the Eunuch, Acts viii. 20, and the strong declaration of Peter, in reply to the question of his Master, 'Whom do men say that I, the Son of man, am?' Matt. xvi. 13-16.

the benefit of the reader, we will sum up the various
tests presented by our Lord to prove his Messiahship;
for he did not attempt to establish this by mere decla-
ration. Now when John had heard in the prison
the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, and
said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do
we look for another? Jesus answered and said unto
them, Go and show John again those things which
ye
do hear and see: the blind receive their sight, and
the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf
hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the
gospel preached to them.'* Such was the way Jesus
proved himself to be the Messiah. How different
from the dogmatizing spirit of many of his professed
followers! The following were the principal points
urged by the Messiah to establish his claims:

I. The testimony of Moses, John v. 45-47.
II. The prediction of the prophets, Luke xxiv. 27.
III. The testimony of John, John v. 33.

IV. His own works, John v. 36. x. 37, 38.

V. His doctrine, ib. vii. 16.

VI. That he sought not his own glory, ib. vii. 18. VII. That a trial of his doctrine would prove whether he came from God, or whether he spake of himself, ib. 17.

VIII. The testimony of the Father, Matt. iii. 17.

What a mass of evidence is here presented! To make the least attempt to enlarge on either of these statements would fill volumes. In viewing these infallible proofs, it seems as if there could not be an infidel or an unbelieving Jew on the face of the whole

* Matt. xi. 2-5. See Works of WILLIAM PALEY, vol. v. ser. xv.