that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. And—the Father sent the Son for to be the saviour of the world."* Here is the rock of our salvation; whoever lets this go, gives up all hope. "If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: and he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world."+ Blessed truth! which, he who robs me of, is the murderer of my soul. The beloved disciple, who well understood these truths, speaking of the Divinity and the humanity, and the Divinity humbling itself to our view, says, "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled of the Word of life; For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness; and show unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us"--Our article then declares the truth when it asserts "The Son, which is the Word of the Father, begotten from everlasting of the Father, the very and eternal God, of one substance with the Father, took man's nature in the womb of the blessed virgin." The prophecy of old, "Be * 1 John iv. 10, 14. †1 John ii. 1, 2. 1 John i. 1, 2. hold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, has been fulfilled. They have called "His name Immanuel:" which, says Matthew," being interpreted, is, God with us."+ The ful ness of time has come, and "unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government-is-upon his shoulder; and his name is-called Wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty God, the Father of the everlasting age, the Prince of Peace." "Two whole and perfect natures, that is to say, the Godhead and the manhood," the Divinity and a human body and soul, "were joined together in one Person.""God was in Christ. In him dwelleth al the fulness of the Godhead. God was manifest in the flesh"-These natures are "never to be divided." Christ ascended in His humanity to Heaven; there He is our "High Priest; touched with the feeling of our infirmities;" having been "in all points tempted like as we are." There the humanity will continue. He has entered Heaven as our forerunner-as the “head-of-his body the Church." Whosoever overcometh shall sit with him in his throne, even as he also overcame, and is set down with his Father in his throne. These "two natures" formed "One Christ, very God and very man:"-as the human body and hu * Is. vii, 14. † Mat. i. 23. ‡Isaiah ix. 6. | Heb, iv. 15. § Ephes. i. 22-3. Rev. iii. 21. man soul are united, though we can not understand their union, so the Divinity and humanity are united, though we can not comprehend the manner of their union. He "truly suffered, was crucified, dead and buried," as, at large, is described in the Gospels.-And all this He did to reconcile His Father to us:"_"Surely he hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows;* all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ:tthrough him we have access by one Spirit unto the Father."+ He became "a sacrifice, not only for original guilt, but also for actual sins of men.""Christ-hath loved us, and hath given himself for us, an offering, and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour. Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many. He hath made him to be sin for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. We have redemption through his blood; even the forgiveness of sins.** By his own blood, he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.tt Now once in the end of the world, hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.‡‡ We are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once * Is. liii. 4. † 2 Cor. v. 18. ‡Eph. ii. 18. || Eph. v. 2. § Heb. ix. 28. 12 Cor. v. 21. ** Col. i. 14. tt Heb. ix. 12. ‡‡ Heb. ix. 26. for all.* We are redeemed with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:† having offered one sacrifice for sins, he hath-forever sat down on the right hand of God.”‡ "Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace, good will towards men." Can we revolve this delightful theme without calling on our souls and all within us to bless and magnify His holy name! Truly He "forgiveth all our iniquities;-He healeth all our diseases; he redeemeth our life from destruction: and crowneth us with loving kindness and tender mercies." We are deserving of utter banishment "from the presence of the Lord," if such overwhelming love shall fail to move us. We have reason to expect glorious things from Heaven, and from the goodness of God, but who could have anticipated such an infinity of love! Had we been sent, one unbroken phalanx, to perdition, we should have been dealt with in righteousness:-but-no-Heaven yields its Sovereign -Christ takes upon Him our nature, "that through death he-may-destroy him that has the power of death, and deliver them who, through fear of death, are all their life-time subject to bondage."|| Heb. x. 10. † 1 Peter i. 18, 19. ‡ Heb. x. 12. | Heb. ii. 14, 15. We behold the anger of God against sin most awfully displayed in the view of an astonished universe. We behold a monument reared to proclaim to all future eternity that God will by no means look on sin without abhorrence. We behold Heaven re-peopled after the fall of a portion of its inhabitants, and by those who are roused to the very height of gratitude, and led to feel Eternity's too short, To utter all their praise. We perceive the Justice of God vindicated; the mercy of God flowing in unparalleled abundance; and the wisdom of God shining in infinite splendour. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost. VI. The working of His mighty power, which He wrought in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly places.Eph. i. 19, 20. We have beheld the Lord Jesus Christ "crucified, dead and buried." "It is also to be believed," says the 3d Article of our Church, "that He went down into Hell." What is the warrant for this belief? In the 16th psalm |