Such affections and holy refolutions the confiderátion of our SAVIOUR's death and fufferings fhould be apt to excite in us. What grief, what love, what thankfulness should the remembrance of his dy. ing love work in us! when we confider ferioufly the many and mighty bleffings and benefits which flow to us out of his wounds, and are taking "the.cup “of falvation" into our hands, how fhould "our "fouls and all that is within us, blefs his holy name, "who pardoneth all our iniquities, and healeth all our diseases; who redeemeth our life from destruc❝tion, and crowneth us with loving-kindness and "tender mercy. To him, therefore, our gracious " and good GOD, let us give all thanks, adoration, "and praise. Amen." 15 SERMON CXCIII. The evidence of our SAVIOUR'S ACTS i. 3. To whom also be fhewed himself alive after his paffion, T HESE words comprehend in fhort the SERM, whole evidence of our SAVIOUR's refur- CXCIII. rection, which may be referred to these four heads: SERM. First, his appearance to them after his death and CXCIII. paffion. "To whom alfo he fhewed himself alive af "ter his paffion" "To whom ;" that is, to the apostles, whom St. Luke had mentioned just before. "After he had given commandment to the apostles, "whom he had chofen; to whom alfo," &c. Secondly, the proof of the reality of his appearance. To whom also he fhewed himself alive after ❝his paffion, by many infallible proofs," in woλors "TEXμnpíos, idque compluribus argumentis, faith Erafmus," and that by many certain and undoubted proofs, or arguments. Thirdly, the duration and continuance of his appearance to them. "Being feen of them forty days.' Fourthly, the fubject matter of his difcourfe with them. "And speaking of the things pertaining "to the kingdom of GOD." Each of these affords us a confiderable evidence of CHRIST's refurrection, First, his appearance to them after his death and paffion. "To whom alfo he fhewed himself alive af"ter his paffion." In which words, there are three things very confiderable, and which give great evidence to our SAVIOUR's refurrection. I. His appearance to his apostles. II. That he was really alive, and his body vitally united to his foul. III. And this after he was really dead, "after his paffion;" that is, after he was crucified, dead, and buried, he was raised to life again. I shall speak briefly of these. I. His appearance to his apoftles. "To whom alfo he fhewed himself alive." The apoftles are here only mentioned, because this is here spoken of, in or- SERM, der to their defignation and appointment to be the CXCIII. witneffes of CHRIST's refurrection to the world, as the great confirmation of that doctrine which they were to publish: but because I am confidering his appearance after his refurrection, as an evidence of the truth of it, I fhall therefore take in his appearance to others also of his difciples and followers, and confider likewise, why he only appeared to his own followers, and not alfo to the unbelieving Jews, who = had put him to death, for the full conviction of his enemies and murderers, and the converfion of that whole nation, to whom he was primarily fent. In confidering his several appearances, not only to his apostles, but to his other disciples and followers, that I may give the shortest and fulleft view of them, I fhall take them as they are briefly fumm'd up by St. Paul, 1 Cor. xv. 4, &c. where giving an account of the fum of his doctrine among the Corinthians, he tells us, that the foundation of all his preaching was the death and refurrection of CHRIST. "I delivered unto you first of all, that which "I alfo received, how that CHRIST died for our "fins according to the fcriptures, and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day ac"cording to the fcriptures." And then follows the particular evidence of his refurrection, ver. 5. “ and "that he was feen of Cephas." St. Paul here takes no notice of his first appearance to the devout women, who brought fpices and ointments to the fepulchre, "Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary "the mother of James, and other women," as we find Luke xxiv. 10. The reafon of which feems to be this, because his first appearance was in confidera SERM. tion of their piety and affection to him, and of the CXCIII. weakness of their fex, their faith being liable to be firft ftaggered; and they were only to relate it to the apoftles, and to be honoured with carrying the first news of it, not to be witnesses of it to the world; fo that this appearance was only for the private con, firmation of their faith, and therefore not particularly taken notice of by St. Paul among the publick evidences of CHRIST's refurrection. "He was feen of Cephas." This is mention'd Luke xxiv. 34. "The LORD is rifen indeed, and "hath appeared to Simon.". St. Paul goes on; "and then of the twelve." The college of the apoftles, because their number was twelve by our SAVIOUR'S inftitution, are most frequently called "the twelve," though at fome meetings fome one of them might perhaps be absent: 'tis true there was a fhort interruption by the miscarriage of Judas, from the time of our SAVIOUR'S apprehenfion to his afcenfion, and then they are called "the eleven," as before and after they are called "the twelve;" yea at this first appearance of our SAVIOUR to them, when they were but "ten," Thomas being abfent, they are called" the "eleven," Mark xvi. 14. "He appeared to the "eleven, as they fat at meat;" because they were then but "eleven" in all. And indeed in this text of St. Paul, both the vulgar tranflation, which certainly follows a very ancient copy, and St. Ambrofe there instead of "twelve," render it "eleven;" fo that St. Paul probably means our SAVIOUR'S first appearance to them, mentioned by St. Mark, where they are alfo called "the eleven," though Thomas was abfent; which is the reason why St. Paul I Lays fays afterwards at the 7th verfe, that he was SERM, "seen of all the apoftles," that is, Thomas alfo be CXCIII. ing prefent, as I fhall fhew by and by. "After that, he was feen by above five hundred "brethren at once." This was the moft folemn ap.. pearance of all, mentioned Matth. xxviii. 10. and John xxi. 1. where our SAVIOUR appointed a general meeting of all his difciples and followers. "Go "tell my brethren that they go into Galilee, and "there they fhall fee me." Ver. 16. "They went into Galilee, into a mountain, where Jesus had ap pointed them." This mountain, according to the ancient tradition, was mount Thabor. There is one confiderable difficulty concerning the greatnefs of this number of " five hundred;" namely, that after our SAVIOUR'S afcenfion, we find, Acts i. 15. that after their return from mount Olivet, (from whence our SAVIOUR afcended) to Jerufalem, the whole number of their meeting was butan hundred and twenty," for fo it is exprefly faid, the number of the names together, were "about an hundred and twenty;" that is, of the persons there met. Now we cannot reasonably fuppose, that any of thofe "five hundred," who had seen him after his refurrection, were fallen off from them. For the clear folution of this, it is to be confider'd,, that the great meeting of five hundred" was in Galilee, where our SAVIOUR's refidence chiefly. had been, and where he had preached most constant-¡ ly, and by confequence he had probably there the. greatest number of followers, which was the reafon why he chose to appear there, and appointed that place for the general meeting. After which, the apostles |