SERM.

X.

Nor has this Method been made Ufe of by him, only as adapted to this or that particular Difpenfation; but is an Institution that commenced from the Fall of Man, and fuch as will continue till his Confummation in Glory. In the Ante-diluvian World, when the Spirit of GOD had for a long Time ftrove with the Sons of Men, he raised up Noah, a Preacher of Righteousness, as the laft and likelieft Means to reclaim them, Gen. vi. compared with 2 Pet. ii. 5. After the Flood, when the Earth was again overSpread by the Sons of Noah, GOD chose to himself a particular Family, the Holy Patri archs, thofe lively Examples of Faith and Righteousness, whom he appointed and ftiled his Prophets and his Anointed, Gen. xx. 7. Pfalm cv. 15. making them as it were itinerant Preachers of his Word, whitherfoever they went. After this again, when the Lord felected the Children of Ifrael to be a peculiar Treafure to him above all People, and conftituted them a Kingdom of Priests, and an Holy Nation, Exod. xix. 5, 6. yet even these were not permitted to receive the Word from God himself; but Mofes only was called up to the Mount, and to him alone GoD gave the Law, making him the Inftrument

of

X.

of conveying it to the People. See Exod. SER M. xix. 20, &c. In the Body of which, as all other Things were provided for which tenda ed to the Good of Mankind, or the Worship of God; fo particular Inftruation were given for expounding the Word, which was made the peculiar Office of the Priests and Levites, Levit. x. xi. xxiv. 8. xxxiii. 10.

Deut. xvii. 9, 10.
And when these fail-

ed in their Duty, God raised up those extra-
ordinary Meffengers of his Word, the Pro-
phets, by whom, as the holy Penman tells
us, he at fundry Times, and in divers Man-
ners, Spake in Time paft unto the Fathers,
Heb. i. 1. And when these again could not
prevail, GOD faw there was Occafion for a
more powerful Preacher; and therefore the
Fullness of Time being come, the Son of GOD
himself must descend from Heaven, and be-
come the Minifter of his own Word.
ob! the Depth of the Riches of the Wisdom
and Knowledge of GOD! Behold the Son
of GOD, first to qualify himself for the Of-
fice he had undertaken, clothed himself in
Flesh and Blood, and fo became the Son of
Man. And thus in the Likeness of Man, he
gave the World his new Law, the Precepts
of the Gofpel; for the Promulgation of which

But

he

X.

SER M. he provided, just before his Afcenfion, by appointing his Apostles to go and teach it to all Nations, Matt. xxviii. 19. These in Obedience to his Word, difperfed themselves all over the World, and by Virtue of their Preaching it was, and of others fent by them, that as many as were ordained to Life, believed, Acts xxxiii. 48. Infomuch that though fome, through the peculiar Grace of GOD, were, by the fecret Whisperings of the Holy Spirit, firft inwardly moved to receive the Word; yet Man was ftill, by the fame Grace of GoD, the conftant Inftrument of conveying it to them. Thus when the Ethiopian Eunuch was reading Efaias's Prophecy with a Defire to understand it, Philip was fent to him by the Spirit to expound it, Acts viii. 27, &c. whereas the fame Spirit, that had disposed him to read it, could doubtlefs have enlightened him to understand it, had not the Wisdom of GOD thought the Evangelist a properer Minister for that Of fice. Thus again, in the wonderful Conver fion of St. Paul, though the Lord Jefus himfelf vouchfafed to call him, yet he sent him to Ananias to know what he should do, Acts ix. And though an Angel was fent from Heaven, to testify to Cornelius his Acceptance with GOD;

X.

GOD; yet he had no Commiffion to inftruct SER M. him in the Faith; but Simon Peter must be fent for to perform that Office, Acts x. But I need not tire you with Inftances of this Nature: I shall only just observe to you once for all, that as this Inftitution ever has been the constant Method of God's conveying his Word to us; fo the Apostle affures it ever will be, till the Confummation of all Things. For be gave fome Apostles, and fome Prophets, and fome Evangelifts, and fome Paftors and Teachers, for the perfecting (or rather for the fitting out) of the Saints to the Work of the Miniftry, for the edifying of the Body of Chrift: till we all come in the Unity of the Faith, and of the Knowledge of the Son of GOD, unto the Measure of the Stature of the Fullness of Christ, Ephef. iv. 11, 12, 13.

Having thus proved the Fact, viz. that GOD, in communicating to us his Mind, and in revealing his Word, makes Ufe of the Ministry of Man like unto ourselves; I fhall now proceed to fhew that this is an unspeakable Favour.

Had Man indeed retained his Innocence and Integrity; to have converfed with GOD would have been his greatest Happiness. His whole Nature would have been conformable

SERM.
.X.

to the Divine Will, and his chief Delight to imitate the Perfections of his Creator.

This

must consequently have rendered the Prefence of the Deity a defirable Bleffing, fince it is natural to covet the Prefence of those we love and imitate. So that God himself would have been the Meffenger of his own Laws, and at once have encouraged and quickened our Obedience. But this, to our Grief and Shame, is only reflecting upon a Happiness, once in our Power, but now forfeited and loft: The Cafe is otherwife, and Man is fallen: Who no fooner became confcious of Difobedience and Guilt, but he found his whole Nature alienated from his original Purity, and transformed from the Image of his Maker. The natural Confequence of which must be, that Man, thus deformed, muft fhun the Prefence of a perfect and glorious Deity; thus confcious of Guilt and Shame, must avoid the Wrath of an angry Judge. And therefore when our firft Parents became fenfible of their Nakednefs, no wonder that they endeavoured to hide themselves from the Prefence of the Lord, Gen. iii. 8. Nor is it at all difficult to account, why the fame Dread of the Divine Majefty that first seized Adam, should still

hold