revealed in Jefus; and his experience of divine love, fhed abroad in the heart; will be his returns of affection and gratitude to God-as an infinitely amiable Being, confidered in himself; as inconceivably gracious, to needy, guilty unworthy creatures. His language will be. What shall I render to the Lord for all his benefits? Blefs the Lord, O my foul and all that is within me blefs his holy name! Being born from above,he delights in the law of God, after the inward man ; and is habitually defirous of being more and more conformed to it, as it is a tranfcript of the divine purity, and a revelation of the divine will. Now he is furnished with that generous principle of action, love to God. The obedience he now performs, and that which God accepts, is not the fervice of a mere mercenary, in order to gain a title to life, as a reward for his work; much lefs of a flave, that is driven to it by the goad of terror-but, the obedience of a child, or of a spouse; of one who regards the divine commands as coming from a father, or from an hufband. Being dead to the larv, he lives to God.

I faid, being dead to the law. This is the cafe of none but thofe that are poor in fpirit, and have received the atonement in the blood of Chrift; thofe who rely on his work alone, as completely fufficient to procure their acceptance with God, and as perfectly fatisfying an awakened confcience, refpecting that important affair. So the apoftle; re are become dead to the law by the body of Chrift-We are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held.—In these remarkable words the be liever is defcribed as being dead to the law, and the law as dead to him. By which are fignified, that the law has no more power over a believer to exact obedience,

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obedience, as the condition of life; or to threaten vengeance against him, in cafe of difobedience; than a deceased husband has to demand obedience from a living wife; or, on account of disobedience, to threaten her with punishment-That, the real chriftian, being dead to the law, has no more expectation of juftification by his own obedience to it, than a living wife has of affiftance from a dead hufband-And that, as fhe can have no expectation of receiving any benefit from him, he being dead; fo fhe cannot rationally have any fears of suffering evil at his hand.

But though the law, as a covenant, ceafes to have any demands on them that are in Chrift Jefus ; yet, as a rule of conduct, and as in the hand of Chrift, it is of great utility to believers, and to the moft advanced faint. Nor, thus confidered, is it pollible that it fhould be deprived of its authority, or lofe its ufe. For it is no other than the rule of that obedience which the nature of God and man, and the relation subsisting between them, render neceffary. To imagine the law vacated, in this refpect, is to fuppofe that relation to cease, which has ever fubfifted, and cannot but fubfift, between the great Sovereign and his dependent creatures, who are the fubjects of his moral government. Nor, thus confidered, are its commands burdenfome, or its yoke galling, to the real chriftian. He approves of it; he delights in it, after the inward man. For, as a friend and a guide, it points out the way in which he is to manifeft his thankfulness to God for all his favours; and the new difpofition he received in regeneration, from his Law-fulfiller, inclines him to pay it the moft fincere and uninterrupted regards. The obedience he now performs is in newnefs of fpirit, and not in the olanefs of the letter.

ous.

Should any pretenders to holiness, the genuine offspring of the ancient Pharifees, object, that by faith we make void the law, our answer is ready: God forbid! Yea, rather, we establish the law, both by the doctrine and the principle of faith. By the doctrine of faith. Because we teach, that there is no Talvation for any of the children of men, without a perfect fulfilment of all its righteous demands. This, though impoffible to a fallen, enfeebled creature, was punctually performed by meffiah the furety; which, being placed to the account of a believing finner, renders him completely righteThus the law, fo far from being made void, is honoured-is magnified, and that to the highest degree. The obedience performed to the preceptive part of the law, by a divine Redeemer; and the fufferings of an incarnate God on the crofs, in conformity to its penal fanction; more highly honour it, than all the obedience which an abfolutely innocent race of creatures could ever have yielded; than all the sufferings, which the many millions of the damned can endure to eternity. By the principle of faith. For as it purifies the heart from an evil confcience, through the application of atoning blood; fo it works by love-love to God, his people, and his caufe, in fome degree conformable to the law, as the rule of righteousnefs. Hence it is that those who believe, are faid to be fanctified by that faith which is in Jefus. If any one therefore pretend to believe in Chrift, to love his name, and to enjoy communion with him, who does not pay an habitual regard to his commands; he is a liar, and the truth is not in him. For our Lord fays, If a man love me, he will keep my words. He informs us alfo, that the reason why any one does not

keep

keep his fayings, is because he does not love Him, whatever he may profefs to the contrary. That is no love, which is not productive of obedience; nor is that worthy the name of obedience, which fprings not from love. Pretenfions to love, without obedience, are glaring hypocrify; and obedience, without love, is mere flavery.

The great and heavenly bleffing of fanctification, is the fruit of our union with Chrift. In virtue of that union which fubfifts between Christ as the head, and the church as his mystical body, the chofen of God become fubjects of regenerating grace, and are poffeffed of the Holy Spirit. According to thofe emphatical and inftructive words: Without me, without vital union with me, fimilar to that of a living branch to a flourishing vine; ye can do nothing that is truly good and acceptable in the fight of God. It is by the Spirit of truth and the word of grace, that any finner is, or can be fanctified. As it is written, Ye have purified your fouls in obeying the truth, through the Spirit. Hence we read, of the fanctification of the Spirit; of the holiness of truth; and, of being fanctified by the truth*. By comparing thefe paffages together it is evident, that the divine Spirit employs evangelical truth as the appointed inftrument, in producing that holinefs in the heart and life of a chriftian, which is included in the bleffing, and fignified by the term, fanctification. For this reafon it is that our great Interceffor prays, Sanctify them through thy truth; thy word is truth and afferts, Ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto yout.

* Pet. i. 2. 2 Theff. ii. 13. Eph. iv. 24. John xvii, 19. John xvii. 17. and xv. 3.

'The

The truth of the gospel is that mirror in which we behold the gracious defigns of God refpecting us; the all-fufficiency of Chrift, and his finifhed work wrought out for the guilty. Beholding, as in a glass, the glory of the Lord; we are changed into the fume image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. As the countenance of Mofes, after his familiar converfe: with Jehovah, fhone with fuch dazzling radiance that the chofen tribes could not fteadily behold it; fo the believer, viewing the King of glory in his matchlefs beauty, derives a likenefs to the glorious Object of his views and his love. For, the more frequently he beholds Him, the more fully he knows his perfections, of which his holinefs is the ornament. The more he knows them, the more ardently he loves them. The more he loves them, the more he defires a conformity to them; for love afpires after a likeness to the beloved. The more he loves the tranfcendently amiable God, the more frequently, attentively, and delightfully will he behold him. Thus he obtains, by every frefh view, a new feature of Jehovah's glorious image*. Hence it appears, that our advances in true holinefs will always keep pace with our views of the glory of God in the face of Jefus Chrift. Or, in other words, that a life, of holinefs to the honour of Chrift, as our Kingand our God; will always bear an exact proportion to a life of faith upon him, as our Surety and our Saviour.

As the word of grace is the proper warrant and ground of faith, the more clear our conceptions are concerning its truth and certainty, the more firmly. fhall we confide in it: confequently, the fruits of

* WITSIL O Econ. Fæd. L. III. C. xii. § 11.

holiness