God, and the Word was God. And the Word that in the beginning was with God, and was God, in the fulness of time was made flesh, and dwelt among men upon earth, who did behold his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the father, full of grace and truth. This the apostle John doth evince at great length; this he exprefly teaches, in the first chapter of his gofpel, and the firft fourteen or fifteen verfes of it. Now, this dif covery of Chrift is extremely encouraging to a finner who is under the deep conviction of fin, as was the jaylor in the text. If ye tell fuch an one, when he cries out with him, what must I do to be faved? Go, believe on God; it would give him no relief; for all his fears are from God; it is deftruction from God that is his terror. He fees the holiness, the truth, the wisdom and justice of God, all breathing out threatenings against him. Holinefs cannot look upon an impure finner. The truth of God has become furety for his destruction: the juftice of God pleads it reasonable that the finner fhould be punished; and thereby evil taken away, God's honour and the honour of his law repaired; and wifdom is so deeply interested in every one of these claims, that it feems to join with them. Hence it is that the finner is horridly àfraid of God. So far would he be from looking toward him, that like Adam, he would flee from him, and endeavour to hide himfelf. What, would fuch a poor trembling finner reply unto any who fhould bid him believe in God, fhall I believe on him who threatens me with deftruction, on him, all whofe attributes confpire, and that moft justly, my everlasting deftraction? He has told me already what I am to expect at his hand, even fure and inevitable death, in the day thou

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eatest thou shalt furely die: this God is a confuming fire, and I am as ftubble before him. On the other hand, tell fuch a convinced finnner of a man, a mere man, and bid him look to him for relief, this at firft blush appears utterly vain. What! are not all men involved in the fame calamity with me? are they not unable to fave them, felves? What! is man able to fuftain the weight of that heavy ftroke of wrath, which enraged om nipotency is ready to lay on? Thus it appears that neither mere God, nor mere man, is, fuited to give relief to the finner of whom we fpeak; but God and man united in one, appears exceedingly fuited to give him relief, There are three things which an awakened finner will fee, at the firft view, in the perfon of Chrift, (1.) He will fee him to be one that may be approached by him. When one is made fenfible of his own finfulness, fo far will he be from defiring a fight of God, that he will rather faint at the thoughts of it, fince he dreads he cannot fee him and live. Nay, fuch is the weakness of man fince the fall, that the fight even of a created angel has made fome of the most eminent faints exceedingly afraid, as we have inftances more than one in the fcripture. But there is not that dread in the fight of one that is clothed with flesh, that appears in the likeness even of fiatul, flefh, Rom. viii. 3. as to deter from approaching to him. Nay, on the contrary, will not every one in this cafe readily draw near, in expectation of relief from fuch an one, knowing him to be bone of his bone, and flesh of his flesh? This is one of the excellencies in Chrift's perfon that ravishes the heart of a finner that is looking. out for relief. (2.) The perfon of Chrift, thus confifting of the divine and human nature united

in one, appears notably fitted for undertaking the work of a days-man betwixt an angry God and rebel finners. He is equally interested in both parties: being God, he knows exactly what all the properties of God do demand of finners; and beIng man, he knows well what man's ftate is. Thus the finner's fear is removed, that there is not a days-man who fhould lay his hand upon the head of both parties, as Job expreffes it. (3.) A convinc ed finner here fees one, not only capable to know, but even to be touched with the feeling of his infirmities, who withal has wifdom and power to improve any fenfe he has of our misery to our advantage. This is what the convinced finner with admiration views in Chrift, who is the great myftery of godliness, God manifefted in the flesh.

2. The Lord Jefus Chrift is clothed with a threefold office, for the behoof and advantage of fuch as hall believe on him. He is a king, d prieft, and a prophet And each of these is exceedingly fuited to the relief of an awakened finner, as we may hear afterwards.

(1.) I fay he is a prophet; and as fuch he was promifed of old to the church by Mofes. A prophet fhall the Lord your God raife up to you from among your brethren, fays he. Because this feripture furnishes us with a full account of Chrift's prophetical office; we may take a view of it at fome length. So then that text runs, will, fays God, raife them up a prophet from among their brethren like unto thee; and I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall fpeak unto them all that I fhall command him and it shall come to pass that whosoever will not hearken to my words which he Shall speak in my name, I will require it of him, Deut. xviii. 18, 19. Now in this fcripture we

have fo full an account of Chrift's prophetical of fice, with respect to our prefent defign, that I can not better unfold this matter than by making fome remarks upon it. And, (1.) Here we fee that Chrift is indeed a prophet: for fo he is exprefly called, and as fuch he is here promifed. That it is Chrift whom Mofes here intends, the fpirit of God has long fince by the mouth of the apostle Peter fully determined, Acts iii. 22 (2.) Here we fee his call to that office. I will raise up a prophet, fays God, that is, I will call and fet one apart for that work. (3.) We fee further, his furniture for the work: I will put my words in his mouth. (4.) We fee what his work and business is it is to speak to them all that is commanded him of God; to deliver to them the whole coun fel of God for thein falvation. (5.) Here we fee, who the perfons are to whom God has a regard, in the defignation of Chrift to this office: they are finners, fenfible that it was impoffible for them to hear God ifpeak to them immediately, and yet. live; which put them upon that defire expressed in the 16th verfe of this chapter, Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God; neither let me fee this great fire any more, that I die not. (6.) We moreover fee God's defign in appointing Chrift a prophet, even a compliance with the defires and neceffities of convinced finners.. This appears plainly to be his design, if ye obferve the connexion betwixt the 15th and 16th verfes of this chapter. The Lord promifes, in the 15th ver. Chrift to be a prophet: and in the 16th he tells, that it was, according to their defires, in Hareb (7.) We may further take notice of the qualifica tions which they defire in this prophet, and which Chrift accordingly is endued with and they are,

that he be one of themselves, one who by his greatness should not be a terror to them; and that he be faithful in declaring to them all that the Lord fhould acquaint him with. Thus we fee in fome measure, and hereafter may fee more fully, of what use it is to finners, in order to their be. lieving on Christ, that he be a prophet.

(2.) The Lord Jefus Chrift is a priest for ever after the order of Melchifedek, Pfal. cx. 4. God having made him fo by an oath. And in his difcharge of this office doth no fmall part of the concernment of awakened finners ly. It is not my defign at prefent, to enter upon any large dif courfe of this office of Chrift. I muft here take notice of, and open up the nature of this office, in order to that end and scope which we now drive at, the relief of convinced finners. I fhall not stand upon a recital of all the acts which do belong to this office, of which not a few might be mentioned. There are two which deferve efpecial confideration, his oblation, and his interceffion thereupon. The first is the foundation of the fecond. Now that ye may understand what advantage flows from this office to the perfons of whom we difcourfe, I shall a little enquire, who the per fon is to whom Chrift offers facrifice, who they are for whom he doth fo, who he is that offers facrifice, and what that facrifice is that he offers: and upon the whole it will appear, of how great advantage this office is to finners, and how much he is thereby fitted to be the object of finners faith. I fhall only touch at fuch things here as are indifpenfably needful in order to lay a foundation for faith.

First, As for the perfon to whom he offers facrifice, and with whom he intercedes, no doubt