foul in its fallen and difordered ftate, immerfed in fin, and expofed to wrath; an alien from the common-wealth of Ifrael, a stranger to the covenant of promife, having no lively, well-grounded hope, without Chrift, and without God in the world: it leaves it devoid of the true grace of Chrift, the real love of God, and enobling and comforting communion of the Holy Ghofl. Such, not having? received the Spirit of Chrift, are none of his, and not belonging to Chrift, not having the Son, they have not the Father, and not having the Father, have neither the true God nor eternal life. He that hath the Son, indeed, hath life, but he that hath not the Spirit, as we have juft feen, hath not the, Son, and therefore hath not life, but abideth in death, and is in the high road to death eternal. Nor will his pretended regard to the Father fave him: for he that honoureth not the Son, efpecially in his mediatorial character, and in the offices he bears for a loft world; he that believeth not on him with a living faith, as made of God unto him wisdom, righteoufnefs, fanclification and redemption, honoureth not the Father, who hath appointed him to fuftain thofe offices and characters for our falvation.

10. I faid with a living faith, for it is not a cold, languid, lifeless affent to the truths of the gofpel, that will fave us; nor fuch a dependence on Chrift, and on the promifes of God through him, as being neither preceded by repentance, nor accompanied with love, leaves the foul as a withered branch upon a tree, or a dead member in a body. But the faith that muft fave us, is a lively, vigorous, active, and powerful principle, which, coming to. Jefus, and confiding in him for falvation, unites the foul to him, fo that it derives out of his fulnefs grace upon grace, and becomes fruitful in every holy temper, word, and work. 11. By

11. By this faith we receive Chrift in all his offices and characters. Viewing him as a teacher come from God, the Prophet like unto Mofes, whom on pain of eternal destruction we are commanded to hear, whofe every word is veracity and truth, whofe doctrine is as infallible as it is extraordinary; with the fimplicity and teachableness of little children, we fit at his feet, and with humble reverence and dutiful submission, we hear and receive the gracious words that proceed out of his mouth, defiring above all things to be doers of the word, as well as hearers. Confidering him as the High-Priest of our profeffion, a great HighPrieft paffed into the heavens, Jefus the Son of God; a Prieft for ever after the order of Melchifedek, who by one offering of himself, once made, hath perfected for ever them that are fanctified, and who, when he had by himself purged our fins, for ever fat down on the right hand of the Majefty on high, expecting till his enemies be made his footfool: confidering him (I fay) in his priestly office, delivered for our offences, raifed for our juftification, and appearing in the prefence of God, our advocate and interceffor, we come with boldness to a throne of grace, and thus obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. By the help of this grace, he who is thus made of God unto us, wisdom and righteousness, is alfo made of God unto us, fanctification and redemp tion: he who is heard with fubmiffive reverence as a Prophet, and relied on with loving confidence as a Prieft, is alfo received with obedient loyalty as a King. His kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy, is fet up in our hearts, and his holy, juft, and good laws, are made the rule of our lives from day to day. He reigns in us, and reigns over us; his love is the principle, his will the rule, and his glory the end of our words and actions;

as

and

and we live no longer to ourselves, but to Him that died for us, and refe again.

12. Thus, being in Chrift, we are new creatures, old things are paffed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jefus Chrift, and hath given to his Apoftles and fervants the ministry of reconciliation, to wit, that God was in Chrift reconciling the world to himself, not imputing their trefpaffes unto them: for he hath made him to be fin, (viz. a fin-offering for us who knew no fin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him, might be juftified, and made righteous through him. Though, therefore, in time past, we might be foolish, disobedient, deceived, ferving divers lufts and pleafures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another, yet the kindnefs and love of God our Saviour toward man appearing, not by works of righteousness which we had done, but according to his mercy, he faved us by the washing of regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Ghoft, fhed on us abundantly through Jefus Chrift our Saviour, that being juftified by his grace we might be made heirs, according to the hope of eternal life. Thus the Father, Son, and Holy Ghoft, are acknowledged in their feveral offices and characters, and each performs his proper work in faving our loft fouls. We worship one God in and through one Mediator, by the infpiration and aid of one Spirit, without perplexing ourselves with curious enquiries after, and vain reasonings about, what we can no more know in this world, than a child in its infancy can underftand how the feveral offices, powers, and prerogatives of the King, Lords, and Commons, conftitute one fupreme and legiflative authority in Great-Britain. And with the fimplicity of a child, and the loyalty of a good fubject of the

King of heaven, who commands our hearts, and governs our lives in and through his Son, and by his Spirit, we confefs with our lips, what we believe in our hearts, that though in the Church and in the world there are diverfities of gifts, it is the fame Spirit from whom they all proceed; and though there are differences of adminiftrations, or offices to be fuftained, by the fervants of Chrift, it is the fume Lord that appoints them all; and though there are diverfities of operations, or effects produced, it is the fame God, who worketh all in all, through that Lord, and by that Spirit.

13. It is true, fome acquaintance with the per fons, as well as offices of the facred Three, into whofe name we have been baptized, is very defirable, and indeed abfolutely needful, to lay a foundation for that Chriftian experience and practice, thofe devout and benevolent affections and holy and righteous actions, fo necellary in order to our pleafing God here, or enjoying him hereafter. And, in particular, it feenis impoffible we fhould apply to Chrift, even in his Mediatorial character, in which character he is most frequently held forth to us in Scripture, without confidering him as God manifeft in the flesh, a perfon in whom dwells all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. For what is a Mediator, at least, an invifible Mediator, a Mediator in heaven, that is, a mere man, or a mere creature, circumfcribed in his being, and confined in his prefence and operations? Who can have no access to us, nor we to him? Can neither fee, nor hear, nor he.p us; and to whom, as being unfeen, and at a diflance, we can neither fignify our wants, nor with any confidence look up for a fupply of them ? A Mediator, who cannot be prefent with us at all times, and in all places, in private and in public,

at

at home and abroad, by fea and by land, night and day, in England and in China, throughout the habitable globe ?-Surely Omniprefence, and Omniscience, at leaft, yea, and Omnipotence too, are neceffary to the character of a compleat Mediator-a Mediator between God and all man-· kind. And fuch is the Mediator in whom we truft: Where two or three (fays he) are met in my name, I am there in the midst of them: Lo! I am with you, always, even unto the end of the world: Behold, I ftand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will fup with him, and he with me: All the churches fhall know that I am he that Jearcheth the reins and the heart.

14. Not that his human nature (for he is "perfect man, of a reasonable foul, and human flesh fubfifting") can be thus prefent in all places, and acquainted with all things. This is not fuppofed, I believe, by any. No; thefe manifeftly divine perfections are afcribed to the eternal word of the Father, the indwelling Deity, to which his humanity is joined by a close and indiffoluble union, and by which alone he is every where present, acquainted with every thing, has all power in heaven and earth, and will judge men and angels at the last day.

15. Accordingly, thofe that deny this perfect, everlasting union of Deity with manhood, do, in general, alfo deny his Mediation, and confider him merely in the character of a teacher fent from God, who, by his doctrine and example, directs us in the will of God, and in the way to his kingdom, but who neither made any atonement for our fins, nor intercedes for our fouls. Nay, and if they follow Dr. Priestley, they will not put any great confidence in him, even in the character of a Prophet, perfuaded he was liable to err, even in that

B.