SERMON XV.

THE INWARD SPIRITUAL GRACE.

2 COR. iii. 7, 8.

"But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away: How shall not the ministration of the Spirit be rather glorious?"

WHEN Moses had the two tables of stone in his hands, and when he spake to the children of Israel of the Sabbath, and the tabernacle, and their ceremonial religion, there was such a glory on his countenance from his conversing with God, that he was obliged to cover it with a veil. This signified that there lay something behind the law more gracious and good than the Jews could understand; for the glory of the Gospel was mysteriously hidden under its types and shadows. How much greater, argues St. Paul, must be the glory of the Christian Church, which he calls " the ministration of the Spirit;" which is not like that of the Jews, to be done away, but is of things spiritual, heavenly, and eternal! This I endeavoured to show you on Sunday last, how the older dispensation was full of God's own language of outward signs, which contained within spiritual meanings, which is here represented by the glory behind the veil; but in the dispensation of the Spirit since our LORD's Baptism, and the descent of the HOLY GHOST on the day of Pentecost, we have a sacramental religion, wherein outward signs are made channels of Divine grace. The old veil is taken away: we understand the spiritual meaning of the symbol. But this is not all. We not only behold, as in a glass, but in beholding we are changed, says

St. Paul, "from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the LORD." That is, through this ministration the Spirit of enlightening is given; we not only, in the sacramental ministration of the Church, behold the goodness and love of CHRIST crucified, but are thereby to be transformed into the same image.

St. Paul speaks of it as a ministration :-it is like the Church of Israel of old, a ministration, an outward visible dispensation, but differing from that of old in that it is a "ministration of the Spirit." The Apostle had been saying that he was made a minister of this new covenant-not of the letter, for the letter alone killeth, but of the Spirit, which giveth life. And then he afterwards adds,

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Seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not'." St. John speaks of the same when he says, Behold, the tabernacle of GOD is with men, and He will dwell with them "." It is a tabernacle which we can behold; but in it God, Whom none can see, dwells with men. In all these descriptions of the Christian Church there is something visible, and something invisible; and both together containing the wonderful mysteries of Divine gifts. St. Paul speaks of it as a ministry so glorious, that thereby obtaining mercy we faint not; a treasure, he says, in earthen vessels, but with the excellency of the power of God. St. John, that thereby GoD HIMSELF is with us. Now such is the very nature of a Sacrament, as our Catechism proceeds to describe it. There are in a Sacrament two parts," the outward visible sign, and the inward spiritual grace;" something appearing to the senses of men, and something else apprehended by faith; viz. the covenant of God conveyed and testified by this His seal.

It is remarkable that a very early Bishop, St. Irenæus, who lived about 160 years after CHRIST, uses language very like this of the Catechism. He says of the Eucharist, that "it consists of two parts, the one earthly and the other heavenly"." St. Augustine often speaks in like manner of the invisible Spirit operating by visible Sacraments, and the like. "The Word," he says, speaking of Baptism," is added to the element, and it becomes a Sacrament, which is of itself like the Word made visible 1." Indeed, this is so evident, that if you take away

1 2 Cor. iv. I.

3 Adv. Hær. iv. 34.

2 Rev. xxi. 3.

In Joan. Tr. lxxx. 3.

either the outward sign or the inward grace; if you explain either of them away, or if you in any way separate them from each other, it ceases to be a Sacrament. We are ourselves made of body and soul, one visible, the other invisible; but if these are parted the one from the other, the man dies. So it is with a Sacrament; if you part the visible token from the invisible grace it is a Sacrament no more. Nor is this all; for where there are no Sacraments there can be no Church; and where there is no Church there can assuredly be no salvation. The candlestick is removed, to use our LORD's own words, and taken away. And HE that walketh in the midst of the candlesticks has removed His saving presence. What St. Paul calls "the ministration of the Spirit;" what St. John speaks of as the tabernacle of God," is no more in that place where the Sacraments are

not.

Now of this we may be certain, that if we have reason to be thankful for the light of the sun, and to accept it as a token of GOD's care and goodness, we have much more reason to be thankful, we have a greater proof of His goodness, in having vouchsafed to us His Church with its two Sacraments. It does not seem much to say this, because every one would at once allow that life eternal is of more importance than temporal life. Yet so weak is our faith, that it appears strange if any one acts up to this truth, as if he believed it. If the light of the sun should be obscured and hid from us for some time by cold and gloomy weather, we should be cast down; we should watch anxiously for a change, and hail it with great joy and comfort. But a heavy cloud may come over our Church, and even threaten to extinguish its light; and men in general are surprised that there should be any to take it to heart.

On this subject of the Sacraments, and the combining thereby the outward sign together with the inward grace, our Church is now as it has been from the beginning. It is in this that she is the witness and the keeper of Divine truth-has the ministry of God's Word and stewardship of His mysteries. But the attempt of the great enemy throughout all time has been to put asunder what God has joined together; to separate the sign

5 Rev. ii. 5.

from the thing signified, in order to destroy them both. The history of what are called heresies has been mainly this throughout, in various ways. We believe in CHRIST as GOD and Man, the Godhead and Manhood joined together in One Person, never to be divided; as having both the Body and the Soul of Man. We hold in one faith the visible and the invisible. Again, we believe in the Bible as the written Word of GOD, which we behold as our guide and teacher; but also at the same time in the unseen Spirit, teaching us therein as we read, and without Whose aid the written Word itself would be unprofitable. Moreover, in all parts of Scripture, we accept the very letter and the literal meaning; yet at the same time we believe it to contain deep spiritual meanings beyond the letter-hidden wisdom and mysteries which God gives good men more and more to understand. We accept the letter and the spirit also. In like manner we believe the Church to be a visible society, having a visible ministry and ordinances; at the same time, we believe in the invisible presence of CHRIST as dwelling in it, as He has promised to do unto the end. So also her ministers, we believe, must have an outward appointment, as sent and commissioned by CHRIST; but that at the same time, they ought to be inwardly called by the HOLY GHOST, and sanctified by the Holy Spirit within, for the holy trust deputed to them. So likewise of the Sacraments, we believe, not that grace may perchance go before, or may haply follow after, but that, when duly administered, and worthily received, there is an inward part as well as an outward-that GOD is tied to this by His own covenant, and that to doubt is to doubt the faithfulness of GOD. We do not say we do not believe that a Church, or a minister, or an individual Christian, may accept this or not, but we say that this is the faith once for all delivered to the Saints, and that there is no other.

Now in the points that have been mentioned, and in many others of a like nature, the Church has always held the two together the body as it were and the soul of religion; but in the meanwhile men and parties, heresies and sects, as they are called, have been falling off from her, some on one side, some on the other some have taken the outward sign and reject the thing signified; some take the thing signified but set aside the outward sign; but all will in some way set them asunder. For instance,

just now there is a system of infidelity putting itself forth, which for the most part sets aside the written Word of GOD, and refuses credence to it, but professes to believe that the HOLY SPIRIT HIMSELF will guide men sufficiently without it. This bas often appeared in many shapes. Again, there are many modern unbelievers who on the other hand pretend to receive the written Scriptures, but do not believe in CHRIST, as GOD; making thereby the Scriptures themselves to be but a dead letter. The one of these deny the letter, the other the spirit.

So is it likewise with the Sacraments. One sect which arose about two hundred years ago, called Quakers, altogether rejects Sacraments, Baptism and the Lord's Supper, and with them it might almost be said all outward form of worship, professing to be guided by the Spirit. And many other sects have in a great degree made a separation between the sign and the spiritual grace; keeping in some manner something of the outward form, but holding the grace of God to be almost entirely independent of it. Now one thing is to be observed of these forms of religion, that they have no sure stay or continuance: being as it were of the earth earthly, they are subject to all human changes; any one of them may be for a time "in great prosperity and flourishing like a green bay tree;" but soon after the Church will have to say of it, I went by, and, lo, he was gone: I sought him, but his place could no where be found"." Nor is this change merely in their outward form so much as in their principles; for if they are not absorbed and pass off into some other system of religion, they almost invariably end in denying the Son of GOD. They all run up into this at last. In the meanwhile no one corruption ever stands by itself in religion; but it appears as if the evil spirit of error, when he obtains a full entrance always takes with him other spirits of error, worse than himself.

What I would wish to point out in these things, is that the Church of GOD alone, so far as she continues the same from the beginning, keeps the whole truth in all its parts, adheres to the letter and the spirit, to the outward sign and the inward thing signified; -the visible Church and the mystery of godliness;" whereas religions that are erroneous or false, or which fall short of the

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6 Ps. xxxvii. 36, 37.

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