fent or fear, or be dejected about, or whom to envy? Miferable comforts are all the worldly means, by which men labour in vain to deceive themselves, and mitigate their wretchednefs, compared with the everlasting confolation and good hope, which our Lord Jefus Chrift bath given us, whofe words are, to him that overcometh will I grant to fit with me in my throne; even as I also overcame, and am fet down with my Father in bis thronet. Let every one therefore of every degree fight the good fight of faith, and lay bold on eternal life, whereunto he is called‡: for these are not cunningly devised fables§ but the true fayings of God. They who have hitherto lived in fin, (and fo far we all have, that by his obedience to the law no man is juftified in the fight of God¶) let them flee to the merciful Jefus from the wrath_to_come**, acquaint themselves with bim, and be at peacett. They that once had a fenfe of religion, but have left their first love‡‡, drawn away by vicious indulgences, or temporal interests, or the inftruction that caufeth to err from the words of knowledge§§, let them remember from whence they are fallen and repent, and do their first works. They, who have hitherto persevered in piety, let them form in themselves, as they will always have room and need, a ftill completer image of Christ. And let us all inceffantly study to acquire that conftant, that affectionate and influencing attention to him, for which St. Peter celebrates the early chriftians, when he faith, whom basing not feen, ye love; in whom though now ye fee him not, yet believing ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith, even the falvation of your fouls II 2 Theff. ii. 16. § 2 Pet. i. 16. • Matth. iii. 7. + Rev. iii. 21. Tim. vi. 12. SER SERMON XLIX. THE GENUINE DOCTRINE OF THE GOSPEL, AND THE CAUSES OF THE OPPOSITION OF JEWS AND GENTILES TO IT. I COR. i. 22, 23, 24. For the Jews require a fign, and the Greeks feek after wisdom; But we preach Chrift crucified; unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Chrift the power of God, and the wisdom of God. To expect eternal life through a Saviour who died for us, is the fundamental doctrine of the Chriftian profeffion: the article, that diftinguishes our faith from all others, and with which our religion ftands or falls. The New Teftament therefore dweils much on the importance of this belief: and efpecially the epiftles of St. Paul inculcate it every where. He determined, though a man of extenfive knowledge, not to know any thing among thofe whom he inftructed, to infift on no fubject, comparatively fpeaking, fave Chrift Jefus, and bim crucified. Still both he, and the rest of the apoftles, muft plainly forefce, and they quickly experienced, as the preach-.. ers of the gofpel have done ever fince, that the prejudices of many, and the pride of all men, would find much difficulty in fubmitting to owe their falvation to another; efpecially to one, who had lived fo poor a life, and fuffered fo difgraceful a death; which would all be avoided by teaching them to afcribe the whole merit of it to themfelves. But they had not fo learned Chrift, as to handle the Word of God deceitfully They knew, that what feemed to human vanity weak and illjudged, was the true and only way to heavenly happiness. And therefore, though the Jews required a fign, &c. In * 1 Cor. ii. 2. † Eph. iv. 20. 2 Cor. iv. 2. In difcourfing on these words, I fhall endeavour to fhew, II. Whence it came to pafs, that this was to the Jews ftumbling block, and to the Greeks foolishness. III. That, notwithstanding, it places in a ftrong light both the power and the wisdom of God. I. What it is to preach Christ crucified. Now this, in one word, is to lay before men the nature and terms of that eternal falvation, of which, by his fuffering on the cross, he is become the author unto all that obey him*. More particularly it is to inftruct them in the following great truths: that there ever hath, doth, and will exist, one infinite being, petfectly wife, juft and good, the Almighty maker and ruler of the universe; who created man for the practice of piety and virtue, and for the enjoyment of everlasting life: that our first parents, by wilfully tranfgreffing a moft equitable command of his, forfeited their title to immortality, difordered the frame of their bodies and minds, and derived to us the fame corrupt and mortal nature, to which they had reduced themselves: that being in this condition through their fault, all men funk into a still worse, by committing many fins, which, however prone to them, they might have had the means of avoiding; and thus have deferved punishment here and hereafter that wickedness prevailing early, and spreading wide in the world, first the practice, then the knowledge, both of true religion and moral virtue, were in a great measure loft out of it: but that the unspeakable mercy and wifdom of the Supreme Being provided a remedy for thefe evils, intimated in general terms to the earliest offenders, promised more diftinctly in the fucceeding ages, and actually given when the proper fulness of time camet; which remedy was this. A perfon, made known under the character of the only-begotten Son of God, and one with the Father in a manner to us incomprehenfible, after teaching mankind from the beginning by various other methods, took upon him our nature, was born of a virgin, and dwelt on earth, to teach us perfonally by his word and example: condefcended, for this compaffionate purpose, to all the inconveniences of the prefent ftate of things, to numberless indignities and fufferings, and laftly, to have his life taken away by the hands of wicked men; bumbling himself unto death, VOL. II. K ever even the death of the cross*, ufually inflicted on none but the vileft and lowest of malefactors. In confideration of this meritorious goodness of his, which he engaged, before the world began thus to manifeft, the Moft High established with him a covenant of grace and favour, by which all power in heaven and earth was given himt; and provifion was made, that whoever fhould fincerely repent of the fins which he had committed, and throw himself on the promised mercy of God; whether as more obfcurely notified before the Redeemer's incarnation, or more clearly afterwards; taking the word of truth for the law of his life, and faithfully endeavouring to obey it, should not only have pardon for his paft tranfgreffions, however heinous, but the affiftance of the divine fpirit to preserve him from future ones: that a kind providence fhould turn every thing to his good, which befell him in this world, and endless felicity be his portion in the next. But then it was alfo denounced, that whoever should either flight thefe offers when duly made; or, profeffing to accept them, live unsuitably to them, Christ should be of no benefit to fuch; they should remain in their fins, with this heavy aggravation of their guilt, that they had rejected the counsel of God for their salvation; and when light was come into the world, loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evilt. This is, in brief, the doctrine of Christ crucified. The main parts of it, you fee, are two: God's goodness to us, and our duty to him: and if either be omitted, men are not taught as the truth is in Jefus§. Infifting on moral duties only, is overlooking the greatest of all duties, piety. Infifting on the duties of natural religion only, is injuriously despising those of revelation, which the fame authority hath enjoined. And laying before men all the commandments of God, only omitting to fay, how they fhall be enabled to perform them, and how they hail procure their performances, faulty as the best of them are, to be accepted, is failing them in points of the moft abfolute neceflity. But then, on the other hand, fpeaking of nothing, but Chrift and his grace, is concealing what the grace of God appeared unto all men to teach them; that denying ungodliness and worldly lufts, they should live foberly, righteously and godly in Phil. ii. 8. Matth. xxviii. 18. this this prefent world*. It is not therefore naming Chrift ever so often, or exalting his compaffion to the fallen race of Adam ever so much, or defcribing his dreadful fufferings ever fo movingly, that is, preaching him as we ought, if all be not directed to make us become like him. His own fermon on the mount is almoft entirely filled with precepts of duty; of the common duties of common life. And fo may other fermons too, yet be truly christian, even without mentioning Chrift exprefly, provided the neceflity of his aid and his merits. be understood throughout them; and the great defign of his coming, the reformation of the hearts and lives of men, be closely pursued in them. Thus then judge of our discourses: and, which is of more importance, thus judge of your own improvement. It is neither talking nor thinking highly of Christ, nor being affected in the tendereft manner with his bitter paffion and dying love, that conftitutes a believer in him, fuch as he will finally own: but herein may we have boldness in the day of judgement, if, as he was, fo are we in this werldt. Yet ftill the facrifice of him as a lamb without blemish‡, for our fins, the need we had of it, and the benefits we receive from it, are fuch capital and indifpenfible articles, that every preacher, who doth not frequently return to them, is without excufe: and every profeffor of chriftianity, who doth not live by the faith of the fon of God, who loved him, and gave himself for him, fruftrates his graces, and will come fort of his glory. Accordingly, though St. Paul himfelf hath confiderable parts of chapters, in which little, if any thing, is faid of our Saviour: yet all prepares the way for introducing him again; all points our eye to him; all makes parts of that building, the corner ftone of which is Jefus Chrift¶. Having thus explained, what preaching Chrift crucif:l is, I proceed to fhew, II. Why this doctrine was to the Jews a fumbling-block, and to the Greeks foolishness; which the words of the text, when unfolded, will tell us plainly. The Jews require a fign, and the Greeks feek after wisdom. The former had been delivered from the bondage of Egypt by figns and wonders, by a mighty hand and a firetched out arm. A glorious appearance of God upon mount Sinai had |