to lay out my self for him. The Scripture saies, He ever liveth to make Intercession for you. He laies out his whol Eternity for you. Me thinks we have here before us, the greatest argument in the world for to make us to walk closely with God in Christ: For, shall the Lord Jesus Christ, spend of his Eternity for me? and shall not I spend of my whol time for him? He Ever liveth: he Ever liveth to make interceffion. Before the world was made, his delight was in the habitable parts of the earth, among the children of men. He laid out himself in delighting upon you before the world was made. Well, in due time, he comes down into the world; and here while he was upon the earth, he laid out himself fully for you. Then he dies, and goes up to Heaven, and (saies he) I go to prepare a place for you. He was at work for you, before the world began; Then he comes down upon the Earth, and here he spends all his time for you: And now that he is gone to Heaven; the text faith, Heever liveth to make interceffion for you: he spends offall his Eternity for you. Oh! does not the Lord Jesus grutch me Eternity, to spend off his Eternity for my Youl? and hall I grutch the Lord Jesus Christ a little time, to spend a little time for him? Surely, people don't think what Christ is doing in Heaven for them, (you that are Saints especially) if you did, you could not be padling in the world so much. Shall the Lord Jesus Chrift be appearing in Heaven for me? and shall I be digging in the world? Shall he be making mention of my name unto God the Father, and interceding for me? and shall I be finning against him? shall I be contending with his children? shall I now be joyning with his Enemies? thall I be oppofing his waies? Oh! if people would but think, what the Lord Iefus Chrift is doing in Heaven for them, they would not rebel so in the world against him as they do. Wherefore, that you may be kept from your fins, & kept fio the world, think of these things. The Apostle saies, These things have I written unto ye, that ye fin not: and if any man fin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And fo fay say I to you, I have been here delivering to you this DoArine, concerning the Priestly Office of lesus Chrift: and these things have I preach't unto you, that you fin not. And therefore, that you may be kept from fin, and your hearts made more Holy; think of the Priestly Office of lefus Chrift, he is gone into Heaven to make interceffion for you. And thus have I discovered the Second Particular of the Priestly Office of lesus Chrift. A Third follows. 6666666666666 あのののののののの 66 Preached at Stepney May, 9. 1647. SERMON III. HEBREWS 2. 17, 18. Wherefore in all things it behoved him, to be made like unto bis brethren, that he might be a merciful, and faithful HighPriest, in things pertaining to godliness, to make reconciliation for the fins of the people. For in that He himself bath Suffered being tempted, be is able to fuccour them that are tempted. مله E have found already, That the work of the High-Priest was, and is, To Satisfie, and to Intercede for the fins of the peo Wple. Now if we inquire further, we shall find also, That the work of the High Priest was, and now is, To offer up the gifts of the people unto God: To present our, Prayers, Praises, Duties, Services, and all spiritual Performances unto God the Father, and to procure acceptance of him. This was done thus: In the times of Moses in the Tabernacle there were two Parts, or Courts (as we reade in the 9. Chapter of the Hebrews) In the one which was called, The Holy of Holiest; there was the Ark, the Mercy-Seat, the Cherubims of glory, and the golden Censer. In the other, there was the Brasen-Altar, upon which they offered Sacrifices, there was the Table of Shewbread, the golden Candlestick, and the golden Altar, upon which incense was: This is expresly laid down in the 2,3, and 4. verses of that 9. of Hebrews: For there was a Tabernacle Opened, and applied from CHRISTS Priestly-Office nacle made, the first wherein was the candlestick and the table and the sbew-bread; which is called the Sanctuary. And after the second vail, the Tabernacle which is called the holiest of all, which bad the golden Censer, and the ark of the Covenant, overlaidround about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aarons red that budded, and the tables of the Covenant; And over it is the Cherubims of glory shadowing the Mercy-Seat. And as every day, morning and evening, there was a lamb offered, a sacrifice for the fins of the people, upon the Brasen Altar; So every day, morning and evening, there was incense also, upon the golden Altar: which was performed while the people were without at prayer, mingling that incense with their prayers; As it is in the 1. Chap. of Luke, the 8, 9, and 10. verses. It came to passe that while he (that is, Zacharias) executed the Priests Office before God in the order of bis course, according to the custom of the Priests Office, bis lot was to burn incense when he went into the Temple of the Lord: and the whol multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incenfe. So that the incenfe, was at a time when they were sweetly mingling their prayers and the incenfe together. But now, although that there was a sacrifice every day, yet once in the yeer, the High Priest came, and he took the blood of the Sacrifice, and carried it into the Holy of Holiest, and sprinkled the Mercy-Seat therewith. And although there was incenfe too, from the Golden Altar every day, yet once in the yeer the High-Prieft came, and he took the golden Censer, and putting incense into it from off the golden Altar, went into the Holy of Holiest and caused a cloud of perfume to arise upon the Mercy-Seat. All which was a great Type of Jesus Christ our High-Prieft: who though he offered up himself a facrifice once for fin without, yet when he died, and ascended, he carried the vertue of that his blood into the Holy of Holiest, into Heaven, and sprinkled the Mercy-Seat therewith: Although he began to make Interceffion while he lived, as we reade in the 17. of Jobn; yet when he ascended up into Heaven, the Holy of Holiest, then he did take his golden Center, and 53 Quest. 1 Anfw. I. and carried his Interceffion into Heaven, causing a cloud of Now that I may open and cleer this great Gofpel-Mystery, First, What Jesus Christ, our High Priest, doth, when be does Thirdly, That he doth improve all that his own acceptance, for our acceptance; planting all our Duties upon his own Acceptance, upon that Acceptance that he hath with the Father. Fourthly, What abundance of acceptance therefore we bave, in all our Duties by him. Fiftly, How this doth conduce to our Grace, and to our Com fort? First, What doth our Lord and Saviour Christ, our great High-Priest, when be offers-up our Gifts unto God the Fa ther? Firft, He doth take our persons, and carries them in unto God the Father, in a most unperceivable way to us. He knows, that if our Persons be not first accepted, our Duty cannot be accepted, Love me, and love my Duty; love me, and love my Service: hate me, and hate my Service. In the Covenant of |