4. THE manifeftation of the Eternal Son, in human nature, and his fuffering as a propitiation for our fin may be pronounced an important part of this wisdom. We believe and do teftify that the Father fent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. The union of our nature to the divine in the perfon of Immanuel; his fubftitution in our room; his fuffering for our offences, and rifing again for our juftification form a chief part of this counfel of God. The apostle preached firft of all, and laft of all, confidered it as the alpha and omega of all his administrations that Chrift died for our fins, and was buried, and rofe again the third day. This doctrine is alfo myfterious; What is his name, or what is his fon's name, if thou canft tell? Prophets and apoftles, inspired men and unfinning angels, in contemplating the incarnation of the Son of God, pronounce it THE "that he who was

GLORY THAT EXCELLETH;

Eternal should be made in time, the infinite fhould become finite, the immortal fhould become mortal, and yet continue eternal, immortal and infinite, is an expreffion of wifdom and goodness, in which God will be adored and glorified through eternity." The evangelic Ifaiah, foretelling his appearance in the flesh, announces his name to be WONDERFUL, containing natures fo immenfely diftin&t and different that language can neither exprefs, nor imagination conceive it. An apostle inspired with a more abundant measure of the illuminating fpirit, exclaims,

Without controversy, great is the mystery of godlinefs; God was manifeft in the flesh. But this part of the divine wisdom, however mysterious, must be openly proclaimed. The advent of the Meffiah into our world, and our redemption through his cross is fo interwoven with every page of revelation that to overlook this would be virtually to fhun declaring the whole counfel of God. All the divine decrees from eternity, the facrifices which bled on ten thousand altars from the foundation of the world, all the prophecies of ́the old teftament and promises of the new, pointed either immediately or remotely to the fufferings of Chrift and the glory that should follow. Immanuel, God man, the wifdom, the righteoufness, the fanctification, the redemption, the advocate of his people is verily the alpha and omega of fcripture; he is not only the cornerftone on which the church is founded, but the top-ftone which binds together each part of this immortal building. Woe to that preacher who does not make this wisdom of God in a mystery, Jefus in his atonement and interceffion, the beginning and ending of every difcourfe; Woe to that hearer who does not rejoice in him as all his falvation and all his defire. Better for both of them they had never been born.

5. OUR fanctification by the power of divine. grace and our progress to perfection amidst ten thousand difcouragements is another part of this

wifdom. The spirit Jehovah is uniformly fet forth as the great agent renewing the election of grace, and preparing them for the service of God, and the enjoyment of glory. They are born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. We are changed into the fame image with Chrift the first born, from glory to glory as by the Lord the fpirit. As he finifhed the natural world at the creation of all things, moved upon the waters, rendered them productive, cauling them to abound with innumerable varieties of fith, he, as an almighty agent, finifhes the fpiritual creation, he breathes upon the foul which has lain in darkness and death, and raifes it to fpiritual and immortal life; he infufes new light into the understanding, new love into the heart, new defires into the affections; in fhort, he renews the whole fpirit, and foul, and body, and sanctifies them as a living temple for himself. They are his workmanship, each member of the inner man is as really formed by his omnipotent operations as the members of the outer man, created in Chrift Fefus unto good works which God hath before ordained that we fhould walk in them. This part of the divine wifdom is also a mystery. We cannot comprehend the mode of our natural generation; we cannot conceive how the bones grow in the womb of her that is with child, much lefs can we.comprehend the mode of our fpiritual generation; how the divine fpirit breathes gently, yet irri

fiftibly upon the foul; conftraining it to Jefus with the cords of love, yet commanding it with. the energy and majefty of a God. He who commands the light to fhine out of darkness, shines upon the heart, giving the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jefus Chrift. There is no violence done to the fubjects of his operations, no restraint either upon the understanding, or the heart, yet there is no poflibility of refifting. He speaks and the change is mightily effected; the man acts as freely now in clofing with Jefus for falvation, and running the way of his commandments, as formerly in going the high road of difobedience and deftruction. That faviour who was once without comeliness or form now appears altogether lovely; the generation of the upright who were formerly the object of his fcorn and derifion, he now regards as the excellent of the earth; that bible which in times paft appeared barren and uninterefting is now the fubject of his daily and delightful meditations; and thofe ordinances which were once infupportably tedious, are now the joy and rejoicing of his heart. All this change is wrought upon the finner by an agent which he cannot fee, in a manner which he cannot understand, and by the inftrumentality of that word which thousands read and hear without any faving effect. The wind bloweth where it lifteth, we hear the found thereof, but cannot tell whence it cometh, or whither it goeth, fo is every one that is born of

the fpirit. But this doctrinehowever mysterious must be taught. As we ought to vindicate the glory of Jefus by avowing the neceffity and allfufficiency of his righteoufnefs for reconciliation, we ought to vindicate the glory of the spirit by avowing the neceffity and the efficacy of his grace for our fanctification. Not by works of righteoufnefs which we have done, but according to his mercy he faves by the washing of regeneration, even the renewing of the Holy Ghoft. There is an intimate co-operation of all the divine perfons in effeating the recovery of man. The Father devifes the plan, the Son lays down the price, and the Spirit, in equal fovereignty and grace, engages to confummate this falvation, by giving to all the chofen an intereft in Jefus and his covenant mercies. Now, to confound the offices of thefe ever-bleffed agents is like throwing up a building without arranging the materials which muft leave it a confufed, unfightly pile; to exhibit the office of either divine perfon, and omit the others is like attempting to erect an arch without carrying on the various parts, which neceffarily defaces the beauty, and destroys the ftrength of the whole. God the fpirit ought therefore to be preached in his fanétifying, faving operations; he fhould be held forth to view as an independent, infinite being, working in his people both to will and to do of his good pleafure. One apoftle therefore reprefents believers as elect according to the fore-knowledge of God the Fa