in mercy accepted us as his fervants in the Gospel, and supported us in our work; we faint not, are not difcouraged, do not defift from the glorious enterprize: But have renounced the hidden things o difhonesty, whatever a perfon has need to hide or be afhamed of; not walking in craftiness, not making ufe of guile, fraud or low cunning, nor handling the word of God deceitfully, not corrupting it with impure mixtures of our own, (as vintners fometimes mix their wines with bafer liquors,) not adding to it, diminishing from it, nor ftriving to accommodate it to the taste of our hearers: but by manifeftation of the truth, by speaking the whole truth clearly and plainly, commending ourselves to every ma confcience, appealing to the confciences of finners for the truth of what we fay, or rather addreffing ourselves to their confciences, aiming principally to convince and awaken these; and all this in the fight of God, knowing he is a witness to our behaviour in his work, and will fhortly call us to give an account, and therefore defiring to approve ourselves to him.

3. But if, notwithstanding the excellency of the doctrine we teach, and the plain, clear, and powerful manner in which we deliver ourselves, our gofpel alfo (for fo it fhould be tranflated), as well as the law, be bid, (xxahu, veiled or concealed, as the face of Mofes by the veil, to which he alludes) "it is hid to them that are loft, in whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them that believe not, left the light of the glorious gofpel of Chrift fhould fhine unto them." The Jews in general were ignorant of the law, and their ignorance was attended with the most fatal confequences; yet ftill they might have been faved by becoming acquainted with the gofpel; but if they were strangers to the gospel alfo, there was no remedy for them, but they were loft without hope of recovery.

recovery. The fame is affirmed concerning all mankind in general, as well as the Jews in particular. If any child of man, to whom the gospel is plainly and powerfully preached, (for what have we to do to judge those to whom it is not preached?) ftill remain ignorant of its nature, difobedient to its commands and unexperienced in its privileges and bleffings, the Apoftle pronounces in the moft exprefs terms that he is loft, loft now, and in the way to be loft for ever.

4. Surely then it highly concerns us to whom this gospel is preached, thoroughly to understand it and experience its efficacy, and to be well affured that we do fo: Surely if we are wife we shall not reft in an uncertainty here, fhall not fatisfy ourfelves with any thing short of a clear affurance that we are favingly acquainted with the gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jefus Chrift.-Now with a view to affift you in this important matter, I beg your candid and serious attention while. I enquire into

I. The Nature and Design of the Gospel..

II. The Confequences of being ignorant of it..

And first, I am to enquire into the Nature and Defign of the Gospel of Chrift.

I. It is well known that the Greek word which we tranflate gofpel, means "good news," or "glad tidings." Such the gofpel undoubtedly is to every child of man; glad tidings of great joy unto all people. Such all account it to be who are rightly informed concerning it, who know its worth and their want of it. For it is tidings of eyes to the blind, feet to the lame, health to the fick; tidings of light to them that fit in darkness, of strength to fuch as are weak and helpless, of liberty to thofe Found in mifery and iron, and of pardon and life to perfons condemned

B 6

condemned to die. In other words, it is tidings of forgiveness of fins, of holiness, and of heaven, to fuch as are notoriously guilty, utterly depraved, and altogether hell-deferving; tidings of the higheft honour and moft confummate happinefs to perfons funk into the greatest depth of infamy and wretchedness. In the gofpel we learn that God "hath visited and redeemed his people, and hath raised up an horn of falvation for us in the house of David his fervant ;-falvation from our enemies: and from the hand of all that hate us that we might ferve him without fear in righteousness and: holiness before him all the days of our life." In. fhort, by the gofpel glory is brought to God in the higheft, peace is proclaimed upon earth, and the goodwill of heaven is manifefted to men; for it discovers to us a Saviour, who is Chrift the Lord, divinely appointed and fufficiently qualified to refcue fallen man from fin and misery, and reinftate him in the favour and image of GOD.

2. But I must be a little more particular. The whole gospel proceeds on this fuppofition that mankind are in a fallen ftate, that they have loft the favour and image of GOD, and are by nature ignorant, finful, guilty and helplefs: that there is none that understandeth, that all have finned, and come fhort of the glory of God, that the whole world are guilty before God, and that we are all without ftrength t." On this foundation the gofpel is built: Take away this and it has nothing to fupport it. Deny the fall of man, his original de. pravity, the one fource of all his actual tranfgreffions, and you deny the whole gospel of Chrift, all that deferves the name of gofpel or glad tidings. For fure to deny that we are fick, is to deny we have any need of a phyfician; and if we are not

Luke i. 68-75. Rom. iii. 11-23 and v. 6. guilty

guilty and condemned, he does but infult us who offers us a pardon. Let then the fecret infidels of our day speak out; let them tell us in plain terms that they difbelieve the gospel of Chrift; let them openly avow their fentiments and reject Christianity altogether. This would be acting a far more honourable part (and they too are men of honour!) than under colour of friendship and with profeffions of regard, flyly to ftab it in the dark, and cowardly to endeavour that in secret which they dare not attempt openly,

4

3. Taking it for granted then, that mankind are loft, the gospel proposes their restoration. It is exactly fuited to our cafe: it is just such a dispen fation as we want: it is a remedy every way adequate to our disease. It offers us all that we loft in Ādam, and much more than we ever had. fhews us how we may efcape, fin, and death, and hell, and how we may recover holiness and heaven, the favour and image of GOD here, and the enjoyment of his glory for ever hereafter.

1

It

4. But all this will appear more manifeft if we confider, a little, the short but full account the apostle has given us of the gospel in the preceding chapter, where he compares it with the law. Ver. 9: he calls the Law, the miniftration of condemnation, and the gofpel the miniftration of righteoufness. By the law there, he principally means the moral law, which alone was written and engraven on ftones, ver. 7. and this he calls the ministration of condemnation, because it condemns mankind for their violation of it. Had we obferved and kept it in all points, at all times, and in all refpects, perfectly, univerfally and conftantly, inftead of condemning, it would have acquitted and rewarded us; For the law faith, He that doeth these things fhall live by them*.

*Rom. x. 5.

But

But because we have all violated it in one or more points, (and he that offends, tho' only in one point, is guilty of all *,) therefore it condemns us all. And hence the apoftle declares, As many as are of the works of the law, (or feek to be juftified by them), are under the curfe, for it is written, Curfed is every one, that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.

5. Such is the condition of all men by nature, All having finned and come short of the glory of God, all are guilty before God, children of wrath, and under fentence of condemnation to the fecond death, the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone. And the law, confidered in itfelf, in its precepts and penalties, knows no mercy, but denounces judgment without mercy. It provides no way of escape. But the gofpel does: it is a miniftration of righteoufnefs: it fhews us how we may be pardoned and accepted confiftently with the justice and truth of GOD; how we may be delivered from the curfe of the law, and yet the authority of it be preferved inviolate. Therein the day spring from on high hath vifited us, to give light to us who fat in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peacet. For therein the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, GOD's method of juftifying finners by faith in the righteousness of Chrift. Therein we learn that "God made Chrift fin (or a fin-offering) for us, though he knew no fin, that we might be made the righteoufness of God in himt:" that God hath fet him forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteoufnefs (both juftice and mercy) for the remiffion of fins that are pafts: that "Chrift hath redeemed us from the curfe of the law, being made a curfe Hence it is

for us."

* Jam. ii. ie. t Luke i. 78. § Rom. iii. 25.

Rom. i. 17.

+ 2 Cor. v. 21:

Gal. iii. 13.

that