disposition and behaviour; and in this we ought to imitate him to the utmost of our power.

He was to be an affectionate preacher of righteousness."Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd; he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young." And again, "The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek, he hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord-to comfort all that mourn." It is truly pleasing to contemplate, in this part of his character, the love and compassion of the Saviour; to observe him declaring the counsels of his Father, promulging his own gospel, and pointing out the road to eternal happiness-the Sun of Righteousness, like the sun in the heavens, diffusing light, health, and vigour to the souls of men wherever he appeared. Plain, close, experimental, and practical, men were charmed, or stung by the force of truth, as they embraced or rejected its divine rays. All places were alike holy to him, and wherever congregations were collected, suitable. He preached from a fishing boat, on a mountain, in a house, synagogue, or in the temple, illustrating his discourses with most apt and proper figures and similies; and afterwards explained to his disciples, in a fuller manner, the sublime mysteries of his kingdom. Thus, he fed his flock with truth and wisdom, guarding them with his mighty hand from their furious enemies, blessing and supporting his lambs, and conducting himself towards all as their wants and weaknesses required. He turned none away from him that sought his help, pardoning their sins, pouring consolation into their hearts, delivering them from the bondage of corruption, death, and hell; and giving them the sure and steadfast hope of life and immortality; and making good to them, in due time, all that he had declared and

promised to persevering love and obedience. The benefit of his ministry has been felt in succeeding ages down to the present, and unnumbered multitudes have hereby been taught that knowledge of God which brings with it eternal life. I consider the Epistles only as amplifications of the same truths, or, at least, as proceeding from the same sourse, and tending to the same blessed end. Thus, through his grace, the darkness is passed away, and the true light now shineth. May we walk therein !

Another description of the Messiah's character is, that he should suffer ignominy, pain, and death. Thus, Isaiah, “He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. He was wounded for our transgressions; he was bruised for our iniquities-He was oppressed, afflicted, cut off from the land of the living, and poured forth his soul unto death." The psalmist speaks of him as though forsaken of God; reproached and despised of men, who should laugh him to scorn, shoot out the lip, and shake the head, and upbraid him for his trust and confidence in God-that his hands and feet should be pierced, his garments be lotted for and divided: and his sufferings and death are also spoken of in other places. When we look into the life of our blessed Redeemer, we observe, that from the commencement of his ministry especially, to his death, His own countrymen pain and reproach attended him.

thought lightly of him; his mother's relations for some time disbelieved him; his townsmen were for murdering him; the priests despised him; and others laughed him to scorn: he toiled, hungered, thirsted, and was weary; tempted of the devil and tried by man; and, while some acknowledged his greatness and goodness, others considered him as a deceiver and in league with hell. But, oh, what a cup was mixed for him, and with what a baptism was he baptized! When he entered the garden of Gethsemene, he began to be sorrowful, amazed, and very heavy, and said, "My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death." And then, yet with perfect resignation, said, "O, my Father, if

it be possible, let this cup pass from me.-And being in an agony, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground;" while his prayers and supplications were accompanied with strong crying and tears, unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared, probably, in the strength afforded him by the angel. After this he was rudely apprehended, bound, and led away to his iniquitous and merciless judges; there did they spit in his face, smite, buffet, mock, blindfold, and blaspheme the Holy One of God. From this hypocritical tribunal he was led to that of a heathen, where, though pronounced innocent, he was condemned and scourged; and, after having been the sport of Herod and his men of war, and arrayed in the robes and ensigns of mock royalty, he was led away to be crucified with two malefactors, and there nailed to the accursed tree, fill our sins were perfectly expiated. Amidst the convulsions of nature and the confusion of elements, he dismissed his spirit, entered the solemn abodes of the dead, rose on the third day; and, after instructing his disciples, and by many infallible proofs giving them assurance of his glorious resurrection, he ascended, in their view, to his heavenly throne, where he shall reign in righteousness, till every foe be vanquished, and his authority be universally acknowledged.

Lastly, That he should be extolled and greatly honouréd. How paradoxical soever this may seem, it was accomplished in him. "Behold, (said the prophet,) he shall be éxalted and extolled, and be very high.-Unto us a child is born-and the government shall be upon his shoulders; and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of his government there shall be no end.Behold, your God, he will come and save you. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped; then shall the lame man leap as a hart, and the tongue of the dumb shall sing." These scriptures,

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though not wholly applicable to miraculous powers, have chiefly an eye to them. It was in the exercise of these that the Saviour discovered who he was, and by which he confirmed the truths he laboured to inculcate. To these he frequently appealed for the truth of his mission, character, and pretensions; and they were of such notoriety, and so numerous, that they were not to be denied; and all that his enemies could do, was blasphemously to ascribe them to diabolical agency. These works were far above all mere human power. What man could with a word turn water into excellent wine, stop the winds, or calm the raging seas; multiply a few cakes and small fishes to a quantity sufficient to satisfy the third day's craving appetites of thousands; heal all manner of disease, bodily or mental; bring back to life the dying and the dead; stop the progress of vegetation, or with a touch cure the leprosy; remove blindness, and cause the dumb to speak? Who like him can walk on the surface of the deep, restore the public worship when corrupted by mercenaries and sanctioned by hypocritical priests, display such glory as he manifested on the holy mount, and cast panic struck to the ground the ferocious bands sometimes attendant on the officers of justice? Who like him could awe, confound, silence, and expel devils from men possessed by them; escape, unperceived, from a lawless multitude bent on his destruction, and surrounded with numbers of proud, and captious persons; awe them by his looks and his wisdom into silence, till they are not able to ask him a single question? Who can by his own power burst the bands of death, and rise triumphant from the tomb; establish all his purposes and do all his pleasure, and then demand and obtain an entrance into the celestial regions? It is easy to answer these questions. These things belong to Christ alone. These shew his true character; and the spirit in which they were performed gives them an additional lustre. We need not be surprised at the joyful acclamations of the astonished beholders, and especially of those humble believers who looked for redemption in Israel. Thus, those

scriptures were fulfilled which spake of his extended fame and wondrous works: nor has the glory of his works and fame ceased to the present day, nor ever will. Thousands of thousands have exulted in his salvation, and praises still wait for him, the Saviour God, in Zion. To thee, blessed Redeemer, be honour and glory for ever!

OUR RECONCILIATION WITH GOD.

HAVING made these observations on the fulfilment of the scriptures in the person and character of Christ, I shall now make a few remarks on the Divine proceedings, in reconciling the world to himself, by the sufferings and death of his well-beloved Son. This important subject, which has been such a stumbling block to conceited moralists, and learned heathens; but a most sure and certain ground of hope to those who feel "they have nothing to pay," cannot, it is true, be fully explained by man; yet we are no more forbidden to enquire into it than the angels themselves, who make it, and what is connected with it, their solemn theme and meditation. We may then suppose that it was intended to set forth in the fullest manner,

1. The detestable and odious nature of sin.-Such is the perfect holiness of the great God, and such the spiritual and perfect nature of his government and laws, that whatever stands opposed to them is not only imperfect in itself, but the sole effect of the creature's degeneracy, and a high affront offered to the all-wise and glorious Creator, as being the very reverse of all wisdom, truth, goodness, and perfection. It is therefore represented, and those who commit it, under such figures as these: To the cruel venom, gall, and poison of asps and vipers-to ravenous, sick, and filthy dogs returning to their vomit, and to their loathsome, stinking carcases, when dead-the best deeds of the corrupt and wicked as filthy rags-to subtle, greedy, and destructive foxes-to the diseases of the human body-to wounds, bruises, putrifying and running sores-to poisonous hem