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which he himself hath adorned them with; "Turn away thine eyes from me; for they have overcome me," Song vi. 5. These are the words of Christ to his spouse, the church of true believers: Thine eyes; that is, the beauty and lustre of thy graces: Christ is in a manner charmed and ravished with the graces of his own Spirit in his people; Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse; thou hast ravished my heart, with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy neck," Song iv. 9. (2.) By the efficacy of their prayers; the prayers of faith holds his hands, as it were, and will not let him go; as one says, Ligat omnipotentem, vincit invicibilem: It binds him that is omnipotent, and overcomes him 'that is invincible.' He suffers a wholly humble wrestler to command him; "Ask of me things to come, concerning my sons and concerning the works of my hands command ye me," Isa. xlv. 11. It is said of Jacob, "He held him, and would not let him go, till he blessed him" and hence he is said, as a prince, to have prevailed with God, and to have had power over the angel; and so much was signified in the change of his name from JACOB to ISRAEL. How prevalent was Moses' prayer, when God said, "Let me alone!" How powerful was the prayer of Elijah and Elisha! God gives himself up to be bound and held by their prayers; and thus "The King is held in the galleries."

This victory in prevailing with God, is the great foundation of all other victories. They that can conquer God, and bring him to their will, may soon conquer every thing else: having him for their friend, they need not care who be their enemies. They that can prevail with God, and have power with the Most High, may grapple with all encounters; and are vastly more than conquerors over all other things, But now,

III. The third general head, was, To speak to the ground of this conquest; it is through Christ we are more than conquerors. How?" Through him that loved us;" even through this glorious and mighty Lover.This name of Christ, as our Lover, through whom we are more than conquerors, imports these following things.

1. The humble frame of the believing conqueror. To boast of being more than conquerors, looks very big; and seems to smell of self-confidence and presumption: therefore it is here corrected and qualified, namely, "through him that loved us ;" and through his strength and power. The conquest we have over sin and suffering is not from ourselves, or our own strength; no: we may say," Thanks be to God which gives us the victory," 1 Cor. xv. 57. And as Paul, 2 Tim. iv. 17. "No man stood with me, nevertheless, the Lord stood by me, and strengthened me;" and it is through him strengthening that we can do all things: "I laboured more abundantly than they all; yet not I, but the grace of God, which was with me." When we are in a chearful frame, we are ready, with Peter, to be too confident of our own strength; and this is dangerous: for then we grieve his Spirit by presumption; and he is thereby provoked to grieve our spirit by desertion, and withdrawing of his Spirit from us: to prevent this in Paul, a thorn in his flesh, and messenger of Satan was sent to buffet him; because it is better to be under the power of an affliction, than under the power of a lust.

2. The expression imports a suitable name and title given to the Captain of salvation, through whom we are more than conquerors: he is described from his love; and, indeed, by this name, as our Lover and Friend, he is best known to us. This name we frequently meet with in the sacred records; " He loved his church, and gave himself for it, Eph. v. 25. Who loved me, and gave himself for me, Gal. ii. 20. Who loved

us, and washed us in his blood," Rev. i. 5. The apostle mentions troubles and afflictions, things seemingly opposite to love: therefore it was pertinent, for the preventing of mistakes, to set forth Christ in his love.

3. It imports, that love was the spring that moved him to make us conquerors, and more than conquerors. Love made him take on our nature, 2 Cor. viii. 9. "Though he was rich, yet, you know, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that he became poor, that we through his poverty might be rich;" that is, though he was God, yet he became man, in rich grace and love towards

us;

Though he was in the form of God, and thought it no robbery to be equal with God; yet he took upon him the form of a servant, and made himself of no reputation," Phil. ii. 6, 7. And indeed, that he should marry our nature to his own, and take it into the union and subsistence of his own divine person, it was the lowest abasement on his part, and the highest advancement on ours; "In this was manifested the love of Christ towards us." His being born, living, dying, raising, and redeeming us, were all the effects and results of his love, whereby we become conquerors.

4." Through him that loved us," it imports the power and efficacy of his love, and the conquering nature thereof his love was strong as death, and conquered death, and came off victorious; and through him this last enemy shall be destroyed: for, his love conquered all the curses of the law; he being made a curse for us, it conquered the wrath of God, and underwent this for us. This love of his conquers all our guilt, and takes us, with all the guilt we have. His love conquers our unwillingness to take him, and conquers our willingness to depart from him. Here was the greatest difficulty and obstacle imaginable, yet love came skipping over all these mountains. His love hath fought the battle and gained it, so as we have nothing ado, but chase and pursue the conquered foe.

5. "Through him that loved us," it imports, that love is the principle of his assistance that he gives us in the war. Not only did love buy the weapons, for he bought grace at the rate of his precions blood; but love confers and puts on the weapons. His love rubs off the rust off the weapons: when they are out of use, he blows on our graces with a fresh gale, a rouzing northwind, or a refreshing south-wind; he gives strength to exercise grace, and to go from strength to strength; and carries on the victory to perfection, making the feeble as David, and David as the angel of the Lord, Zech. xii. 8. Our strength is God alone. There are three things that in love he gives us for our assistance in the conquest over sin and affliction both, namely, his example, his word, his Spirit.

(1.) His example; 1 Pet. ii. 21. "Christ hath suffered for us, leaving us an example, that we should follow his steps." He hath conquered before us, having spoiled principalities and powers, and made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in his cross, Col. ii. 15. He tells us," In the world ye shall have tribulation ; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world ;" and therefore we are required to keep our eye upon him; Looking unto Jesus, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, and despised the shame, &c. Consider him that endured the contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be weary and faint in your minds," Heb. xii. 2, 3. His victory makes for ours.

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(2.) His word is what in love he gives us; and in this he goes forth conquering and to conquer; it is his chariot of triumph; "Now, thanks be to God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, making known the savour of his knowledge by us in every place," 2 Cor. ii. 14. Hence it is said, I John ii. 14. "Ye are strong and the word of God abideth in you;" and that in all the kinds of it, threatenings, precepts, and promises. This was the weapon whereby Christ foiled Satan, so and so it is written; and so must we overcome, even by the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

(3.) The Spirit is what in love he gives for our assistance in the war.-He enables us to conquer by his Spirit, that dwelleth in us. The apostle John, speaking of Antichrist and seducing spirits, says, "Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world," J John iv. 4. It is by this victorious Spirit of Christ, that first we ourselves are conquered, and then are conquerors, and enabled to conquer all other things: we are first conquered and overcome in the powerful work of conversion; and then, by the same Spirit, he works in us all conquering and commanding graces, whereby we may be able to overcome. He works the grace of faith, which is a conquering grace; for, "This is the victory whereby we overcome the world, even our faith," 1 John v. 4. This faith doth, by apprehending and laying hold on Christ, and drawing strength and

virtue from him: whatever power there is in Christ himself, that power is interpretatively in faith, which is nothing but an improving, and making use of that power of Christ. He works love, which is another conquering grace; for, "Love is strong as death;" and constrains the soul to fight under the banner of love, and overcome. He works humility: and as there is nothing nearer ruin than pride; so nothing is nearer victory than humility; God himself resists the proud, and gives battle against it; but he gives grace to the humble, and success with it. He works also the grace of patience; and this earnestly encounters with the greatest evils; he conquers that suffers.

6. "Through him that loved us, we are more than conquerors," it imports, that the faith of his love influ ences the conquest: whenever we look to the banner of love, that he causes to be carried over our head, then we conquer, and are more than conquerors, "in all these things; even in all tribulations and distresses: I think there is an emphasis here, intimating, the believer's safety in the midst of trouble, under the broad banner of love; here is not only a conquest over all these things; but a conquest, and more than a conquest, in all these things, even while we are in the midst of them. Why? because our heavenly Lover spreads his banner of love over us: and it is a banner so extensive that it stretches itself over all these things, while we are in the midst of them, so as we are not only safe from them, when they are over; but safe in them, while they are burning like fire about us, and we like the burning bush amidst the fire. Why, the banner of love that is over us, is over all these things that would annoy us; over all the flames of the fiery furnace that would consume us. His love is extensive love, that spreads itself over all these things, that in them all we may be conquerors, and more than conquerors, Let these tribulations, be never so extensive, never so high, never so deep, never so broad, never so long, the love of Christ is more extensive, being a love that hath a height, a depth, a breadth, and a length unutterable; even as high as heaven, as deep as hell, as broad as time, as long as eternity.