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Father judgeth no man, but bath commit- SER M. ted all judgment unto the Son: and ver. 26; As the Father bath Life in Himself, so bath be given to the Son to have Life in Himfelf: And hath given him Authority to execute judgment alfo, because he is the Son of Man and ver. 19; Verily 1 fay unto you, The Son can do nothing of Himself, but what he feeth the Father do; for what things foever He doth, thefe alfo doth the Son likewife. In the fame manner with thefe declarations of our Lord concerning kimfelf, do the Apostles alfo fpeak of Him in their Epiftles. Whom God hath appointed Heir of all things, faith St Paul, Heb. i. 2, and ch. ii. 8; Thou haft put all things in Subjection under his Feet. And ftill more largely and particularly, Phil. ii. 9; Wherefore God alfo has highly exalted him, and given him a Name which is above every Name; that at the Name of Jefus every knee should bow, (should become subject to His Dominion,) of things in Heaven, and things in Earth ; and things under the Earth; And that every tongue should confefs (in acknowledgment of That Subjection,) that Jefus Chrift is Lord to the glo

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SERM.ry of God the Father; and Eph. i. 20; be raised Chrift from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places; Far above all Principalities and Powers, and Might and Dominion, and every Name that is named, not only in this World, but also in that which is to come; And bath put all things under his Feet, and gave him to be the Head over all things to the Church. And accordingly upon account of this derivation of our Lord's Power, by way of Delegation from the Father, it is, that the fame Apostle declares; 1 Cor. xv. 24; that at the End, he Shall deliver up again the Kingdom to God, even the Father, when he shall have put down all Rule and all Authority and Power: For when he faith, All things are put under him, it is manifeft that He is excepted, which did put all things under him: And when all things fhall be fubdued unto him, then fall the Son alfo himself be fubject unto Him that put all things under him, that God (even the Father) may be all in all. It may here juftly be thought a Difficulty, how in This place it is declared, that our Lord fhall at the End de

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liver up the Kingdom to the Father yet in other Paffages before-mentioned it is expreffly affirmed, that he shall rule for ever, and of his Kingdom there fhall be no End. But the Anfwer is obvious; that, when it is faid, his Kingdom fhall have no End, and that it is a Kingdom which skall never be deftroyed; the meaning is, that it shall never be prevailed over by any oppofite Power, but shall fubdue all things to itself; In which Subjection of all things to him, it is yet manifeft that He cannot 1 Cor. xv. be included, by whofe original Power they 27 were All made fubject to him: But as our Lord was at first fent forth by the good Fleasure of the Father, fo unto Him thall he at laft return again; and when, by the Power of Judgment committed unto him, he fhall have brought many Sons unto glory, he fhall, together with Them, deliver up again the Power itself also into the hands of the Father, when he prefents them faultless before the prefence of his glory, and inftates them in the eternal Kingdom of their heavenly Father: In which Kingdom of the Father, He himfelf fhall continue to reign over them that

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SERM.a R M. are faved, as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, for ever and ever. The Socinian Writers, from these and some other the like Texts of Scripture, have very unreafonably prefumed to collect, that our Saviour was no greater a Person than a mere Man, born of the Virgin Mary without any former Existence, and exalted by the Power of God to this State of Dignity in Heaven: But This their Inference (I fay) is very unreasonable: For though the Derivation of our Lord's Power from the Father, muft and ought to be acknowledged ; that all mens confeffing Jefus to be Lord, may be (as St Paul directs) to the glory of God the Father; yet from those other Texts of Scripture, wherein it is affirmed that by Chrift God created all things; that he was in the Form of God, before he appeared in the Form of a Servant ; that he was with God, and had Glory with God before the World was; from thefe Texts, I fay, it undeniably appears, that our Lord's having all Power, given him both in Heaven and Earth, cannot fignify the original Exaltation, of One who had no Being before he was

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born of the Virgin; but the Exalta-S ER M, tion of Him into the Form of God, IV. who voluntarily emptied himself himself of m that Glory he had before, and with unparalleled Humility took upon himfelf the Form of a Servant, and suffered in that Form for our Sakes; and Therefore was worthy to receive Power and Riches and Wisdom, and firength and honour, and glory and bleffing, because he was flain, and redeemed us to God by his Rev. v. own Blood, out of every Tongue and Kin-ver. 9 and dred and People and Nation.

3dly, THE next thing obfervable in the Text, is the Commiffion our Saviour grants his Difciples, upon his having received all Power in Heaven and Earth: Go Ye therefore, and Teach all Nations. The Word, therefore, is the Afcertaining of Their Authority, from the Security of his own. All Power is given unto Me; Go Ye therefore, and teach all Nations. This particular is more fully expreffed by St John, ch. xx. 21; As my Father bath fent me, even fo fend I you :- whofoever Sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whofoever Sins ye retain, they are re

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