inheritance of the saints in light. Verily this is gospel; worthy to go in company with remission of sin. And shall I conquer at last? Shall I, indeed, be delivered from the bondage and the torment of corruption? A new sensation passes through my breast. I lift up mine eyes to the hills from whence cometh my help; and with the hope of perfecting holiness in the fear of God, hail my immortality.

Fourthly. Having thus removed our guilt, and cleansed our affections, the gospel proceeds to put us in possession of adequate enjoyment. An irresistible law of our being impels us to seek happiness. Nor will a million of frustrated hopes deter from new experiments; because despair is infinitely more excruciating than the fear of fresh disappointment. But an impulse, always vehement and never successful, multiplies the materials and inlets of pain. This assertion carries with it its own proof; and the principle it assumes is verified by the history of our species. In every place, and at all times, ingenuity has been racked to meet the ravenous desires. Occupation, wealth, dignity, science, amusement, all have been tried; are all tried at this hour; and all in vain. The heart still repines: the unappeased cry is, Give, give. There is a fatal error somewhere; and the gospel detects it. Fallen away from God, we have substituted the creature in his

place.

This is the grand mistake: the fraud which sin has committed upon our nature. The gospel reveals God as the satisfying good, and brings it within our reach. It proclaims him reconciled in Christ Jesus, as our father, our friend, our portion. It introduces us into his presence with liberty to ask in the Intercessor's name, and asking, to receive, that our joy may be full. It keeps us under his eye; surrounds us with his arm; feeds us upon living bread which he gives from heaven: seals us up to an eternal inheritance; and even engages to reclaim our dead bodies from the grave, and fashion them in beauty, which shall vie with heaven! It is enough! My prayers and desires can go no further: I have got to the fountain of living waters-Return to thy rest, O my soul, for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee!

This gospel of immortality, in righteousness, purity, and bliss, would be inestimable, were it even obscure, and not to be comprehended without painful scrutiny. But I observe again,

Fifthly. That, unlike the systems of men, and contrary to their anticipations, the gospel is as simple, as it is glorious. Its primary doctrines, though capable of exercising the most disciplined talent, are adapted to the common understanding. Were they dark and abstruse, they might gratify a speculative mind, but would be lost upon

the multitude, and be unprofitable to all, as doctrines of consolation. The mass of mankind never can be profound reasoners. To omit other difficulties, they have not leisure. Instruction, to do them good, must be interesting, solemn, repeated, and plain. This is the benign office of the gospel. Her principal topics are few; they are constantly recurring in various connections; they come home to every man's condition; they have an interpreter in his bosom; they are enforced by motives which honesty can hardly mistake, and conscience will rarely dispute. Unlettered men, who love their Bible, seldom quarrel about the prominent articles of faith and duty; and as seldom do they appear among the proselytes of that meagre refinement which arrogates the title of Philosophical Christianity.

From its simplicity, moreover, the gospel derives advantages in consolation. Grief, whether in the learned or illiterate, is always simple. A man, bowed down under calamity, has no relish for investigation. His powers relax; he leans upon his comforter; his support must be without toil, or his spirit faints. Conformably to these reflections, we see, on the one hand, that the unlearned compose the bulk of Christians; the life "of whose souls is in the substantial doctrines of the cross-and on the other, that in the time of affliction even the careless lend their ear to the

voice of revelation. Precious, at all times, to believers, it is doubly precious in the hour of trial. These things prove, not only that the gospel, when understood, gives a peculiar relief in trouble, but that it is readily apprehended, being most acceptable, when we are the least inclined to critical research.

Sixthly. The gospel, so admirable for its simplicity, has also the recommendation of truth. The wretch who dreams of transport, feels a new sting in his wretchedness, when he opens his eyes and the delusion is fled. No real misery can be removed, nor any real benefit conferred, by doctrines which want the seal of certainty. And were the gospel of Jesus a human invention; or were it checked by any rational suspicion, that it may turn out to be a fable; it might retain its brilliancy, its sublimity, and even a portion of its interest; but the charm of its consolation would be gone. Nay, it would add gall to bitterness, by fostering a hope, which the next hour might laugh to scorn. But we may dismiss our anxiety: for there is no hazard of such an issue. Not only grace," but "truth," came by Jesus Christ. The gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth, were words of the Amen, the faithful and true Witness; and those which he has written in his blessed book, are pure words, as silver tried in the furnace, purified seven times. His promises can

แ

no man deny to be exceeding great; yet they derive their value to us from assurances, which, by satisfying the hardest conditions of evidence, render doubt not only inexcusable, but even criminal. By two immutable things in which it was IMPOSSIBLE FOR GOD TO LIE, we have a strong consolation who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us. Now, therefore, the promises of the gospel which are "exceeding great," are also "precious." We need not scruple to trust ourselves for this life and the life to come, upon that word which shall stand when heaven and earth pass away. Oh, it is this which makes Christianity glad tidings to the depressed and perishing! No fear of disappointment! No hope that shall make ashamed! Under the feet of evangelical faith is a covenant-promise, and that promise is everlasting Rock. Iknow, said one, whose testimony is corroborated by millions in both worlds, I know whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.

Lastly. The gospel, as a system of consolation, is perfected by the authority and energy which accompany it. The devices of man originate in his fancy, and expire with his breath. Destitute of power, they play around depravity, like shadows round the mountain top, and vanish without leaving an impression. Their effect would be incon