Now by an atonement, is meant the rendering of something equal in value in place of something else which, though due, cannot be made good; or, in other words, something that will be accepted by an offended person as a satisfaction for an insult or injury he has sustained. Thus man could not do any thing to recompense his Maker for the dishonour done to his laws by disobedience, and must have suffered the full penalty, if no means could have been found to satisfy the justice of God: but that satisfaction was made by the Son of God, who, after living a certain number of years in the country of Palestine, was put to death by the Jews" according to the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God 1.

1 "

To make this the more familiar; let us suppose that a great and populous nation has rebelled against its ruler; and that he is determined to take full and signal vengeance for the affront offered to his dignity, and for the evil introduced into the land by rebellion that, while in this state, his son entreats him to spare his people, offering to suffer any punishment, and even to lay down his life for their sake, if his father will forgive their offence, and pardon their transgression. If you suppose that the king agrees to this proposal, and accepts the satisfaction offered

1 Acts ii. 23.

by his son, you will then understand how Jesus Christ, who was with his Father before the creation of the world, became an atonement for the sins of mankind. And it having been determined that "without shedding of blood there should be no remission "," the blood of this "Lamb of God" was required "to put away the sins of the world;"-" those things which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he so fulfilled"."

m

But before this closing scene of the scheme of redemption was to take place, the other parts were to be completed. Before Christ should be put to death, he was to "fulfil the law," and teach us many things concerning the welfare of our souls: he was both to tell us what God requires at our hands, and also to shew us a pattern of obedience. Accordingly he delivered, in the course of his various discourses with his followers, and also in his reproofs of those who opposed him, many excellent principles of morality which are to be our guide in the different relations of life. He informed us plainly "what we must do to inherit eternal life;" and he brought that life more distinctly before our eyes; he disclosed to us in the clearest manner what would be the consequence of persevering in wickedness, and placed before us all the

blessed rewards of fearing God and keeping his commandments. Our duty to God, and our duty to our neighbour; our duty as rulers, and our duties as subjects, he unfolded to us in such a manner as to leave us in ignorance of nothing, which it concerns us to know: and "we that had our understanding darkened, and were alienated from the life of God, though the ignorance that was in us, have now received the knowledge of the truth."

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I said that he not only gave us rules, but set us also an example of obedience; and so truly he did. He was a pattern" as well as a teacher: "I have given you,' says he, "an example, that ye should do as I have done to you":" his life and conduct illustrated the doctrines which he preached.

After doing these things; after spending his days in doing good to mankind, and shewing them what they must do to be happy to all eternity, he yielded up his life on the cross. By that cruel death he paid "the ransom of our sins." The circumstances, deeply affecting as they are of that dreadful passage, I need not now repeat to you; you will find them written in the pages of the gospel history, and I earnestly recommend you frequently to read them

there. Let us in the mean time attend to the consequences of that crucifixion, for in that we are deeply concerned.

How then does this affect us? How are we concerned in the crucifixion of Christ Jesus? "Through his blood we have remission of sins;" and surely that is a matter of vast importance to us sinners. "In Christ," says the Apostle, "we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace."—" He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities, and the Lord laid on him the iniquities of us all." Christ hath once suffered for our sins the just for the unjust; "and his blood cleanseth us from all sin." The passages of the New Testament which declare the doctrine of remission of sin through the blood of the Saviour, are very numerous; but those which have just been read, are so clear upon the subject, that it seems unnecessary to recite more: you cannot fail to observe them as you diligently read the word of life." Let it then be considered a determined point "that God was reconciled to man when the latter was yet a sinner;" and "that Christ did really blot out the hand-writing that was against ust," and admit us into "son-ship with God."

a Col. i. 14. Isaiah liii. 1 Peter iii. 18. 1 John i. 7. Rom. v. 8. t Col. xi. 14. Gal. iv. 5.

Do you wonder, my brethren, that God's Son should appear upon earth in the likeness of man? Such an event is indeed an object of admiration: it is truly to our minds a great mystery; but, as I observed before, it is not less true on that account. That there was such a person as Jesus Christ in Judea about eighteen hundred years ago, is a matter of fact, about which there can be no reasonable dispute, since all the histories of that period mention his name; and that he proved himself "to be the Son of God with power"," by signs and wonders and mighty deeds, we also know from those who witnessed his actions. We have therefore no sound reason for doubting either of these facts.

But we profess also to believe that he united in his own person God and Man; and our belief is rested on the authority of scrip ture. "Believe me," says he, "that I am in the Father, and the Father in me *;" and again he says, "I and the Father are one;" to which assertions of Christ himself we might add many from the pen of his apostle to confirm the same doctrine. How, in deed, Christ could at the same time be both God and man, we cannot fully understand; we take it on the authority of the inspired word of God. There are many things the

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Rom. i. 4. Acts ii. 22.

* John xiv. 11.