ment to which it refers; in a beneficial contract, like that of the Gospel, holding out a pledge and assurance to the party to be benefited, of the faithfulness of Him, who voluntarily establishes the covenant.

Thus it further appeared, that in Baptism we are made members of that mystic body of which Jesus Christ is the head; and, as such, entitled to every benefit resulting from our identification with Him, with whom we are buried in Baptism, with whom we are bound to rise from sin to righteousness of life here, and with whom, if we so rise on earth, we shall ultimately rise to the fruition of everlasting glory in heaven.

Thus it appeared again, that by putting on Christ in Baptism we assume a new character, being made the children of God by faith in him; a change of state operated by the Holy Spirit then given us, whereby we cry, Abba, Father; and the natural conse quence of the removal of that stain and stumblingblock of sin, which had put enmity between man and his Maker, alienated us from the state of friendship in which we

originally stood with our heavenly Father, and interrupted the communication of his favour to us.

Lastly, it appeared, that, as the result of this our new filiation, no less than of the pardon of sin and removal of impediments which must precede it, we become in Baptism joint heirs with Christ in the eternal life, the title to which is restored to us in that sacrament.

These, indeed, and other inferences of a like nature, deducible from the various passages in which allusion is made to Baptism in the writings of the Apostles and Evangelists, are properly to be considered, rather as descriptions of the general state of favour with God, in which our coming under covenant places us, than as directly pointing out the particular benefits conferred. They add however fresh weight to our assurance of the solidity of our previous conclusions. For the glorious titles we are in them taught to assume, of the sons of God, the members of Christ's mystic body, and joint heirs with him in his kingdom, would be tantalizing and unmeaning, but for the real benefits of

pardon, grace, and eternal life, inseparably connected with those relationships, the investiture to which is, as it were, given us in the Sacrament.

With respect to the Lord's Supper we arrived at the following results:

That the nature of the rite, combined with its appointment as a religious service, implies, first, the conveyance of spiritual support and nutriment; and secondly, the present operation of Him, to whose sole agency every spiritual work is throughout the New Testament attributed.

That the consideration of its conventional significancy, supported by the direct language of St. Paul in reference to the established rite, implies, as the immediate end and purpose of the institution, a participation in the benefits of Christ's sacrifice upon the cross; which benefits, reduced to their simple statement, appear to be, the remission of sin, and, concurrent with this, reconciliation to God, and restoration to his favour.

But further, the notion of feeding upon Christ, combined with the language of St.

Paul in reference to the communion of his body, seems to intimate a more immediate and personal union with Jesus Christ, as the result of that communion, than would perhaps at first sight seem to flow from the idea of the Sacrament, as a feast upon a sacrifice; and hence a more direct assurance of the benefits attendant upon that union; including, of necessity, a participation, after our capacity, of that Spirit, which was given to Him without measure upon earth, and which he now dispenses to the members of his mystic body from the seat of his glory in heaven; and the communication of that principle of life eternal, which he has in himself, and which we enjoy through

him.

Lastly, the more particular consideration of the rite, in connection with some remarkable passages of the Epistle to the Hebrews, in which the blood of Jesus Christ is spoken of, led us to look upon it in the light of the ratification of a new, or the renewal of a former covenant; and by consequence, as the pledge and the assurance to those who

participate in it, of the benefits guaranteed to the parties included in the covenant to which it refers.

And so far, as in Baptism, so in the Lord's Supper, the remission of sin, the gift of the Holy Ghost, and the restoration to our title to eternal life, seem to be the direct and positive benefits secured to us; as they are the distinctive inducements to embrace the religion of the Gospel; and the results of the rite, by which we maintain our connection with the church of Christ, seem to be identical with those of that, by which we are admitted into it. Of these, pardon of sin may in both be considered as the primary and fundamental benefit conveyed; the gift of the Holy Ghost as its necessary and inseparable concomitant; and the assurance of our restoration to life eternal as its implied and certain consequence.

The results thus arrived at however, though legitimately deduced, and in themselves perhaps unobjectionable, may appear to some hardly to fulfil the expectation