To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame and am set down with my Father in his throne. Verse 21.

I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end; I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. Chap. 21: 6, 7.

O serious inquirer! Is not thy heart replete with rapture in the contemplation of these heavenly promises? Yes, thou repliest, if I could only be made partaker of them; but I am so insignificant, so poor and despicable, that I fear I may at last be rejected. I answer: Come as thou art; cast thyself down in thy humility at the feet of thy Saviour; bring neither money nor recompense, but surrender thyself unconditionally, that he may display his boundless mercy towards thee; hear now, all that is divine calleth upon thee; the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst, come. And whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely. Chap.

22: 17.

Now, faithful soul, contemplate all these heavenly promises, consider that God has tendered thee more than thou canst ask. What now is the language of thy heart? Art thou fully determined in thy humility to fol

low Christ under the cross? Art thou now willing to take the doctrine and conduct of Christ for the rule of thy life? Art thou willing now, not only to reign with Christ, but also to suffer with him? Answerest thou with Peter, Lord, to whom shall I go? thou hast the words of eternal life. John 6: 68. Well then, if such is thy mind, dismiss thy diffidence, discard thy manfearing spirit, and confess, by word and deed, the Lord Jesus in the midst of an adulterous and sinful generation; let thy speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt (Col. 4: 6); let thy works and conversation shine as a light to the world, that they may glorify thy Father who is in heaven, (Matt. 5: 16,) so shalt thou be led by the Spirit in the way of all truth, and receive of the fulness of Jesus grace for grace, (John 1: 16,) to enable thee to live a constant, victorious and triumphant life in God, in whom all the promises are to thee Yea and Amen, to the glory of God. 2 Cor. 1: 20. To him alone be the praise for ever and ever.

V.

Amen.

Beloved reader, forasmuch as I have, in my plain manner, by the grace of God dispensed unto me, briefly illustrated the beginning of this sermon, and as it is absolutely necessary for us to be made partakers of the above cited blessings, in order to understand the remaining part, I will, by the help of God,

proceed in the consideration of the same, hoping that every reader may be benefitted by a perusal.

Christ speaketh in this manner: Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets; I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Verses 17: 18.

Now, he is not come to destroy, but to fulfil. Why so? Because none of Adam's posterity was able to fulfil the righteousness of the law; for in Adam we are all transgressors; so that by the deeds of the law no flesh could be justified (Rom. 3: 20. Gal. 3: 11); but we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Gal. 3: 23.

Now, Christ is not come to annul the law, that is, to abolish the original righteousness of the law; for by it is the knowledge of sin (Rom. 3: 20) but to fulfil it. In what way then did Christ fulfil the law? In the first place, no man was found able to keep the law or comply with its requisitions; for the law demanded a perfect righteousness. Therefore we were all by the law under the curse. But Christ, who knew no sin, and in whose mouth was found no guile, has, in the first place, in his whole walk, complied with the conditions of the law, which required a per

fect holiness, and an irreproachable obedience, such as Christ alone was capable of rendering.

But, secondly, inasmuch as Christ took upon him the weakness inherited by us from Adam's transgression, and bore our sins, he had, in our stead and for our sins, to fall under the curse of the law, and be hanged upon a tree, so that he became a curse for us and redeemed us from the curse of the law; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree. Deut. 21: 23. In this manner he hath put away sin by offering up a perfect sacrifice (Heb. 9: 26); that as by the offence of one, judgment came upon all men to condemnation, even so by the righteousness of one, the free gift came upon all men unto justification. Rom. 5: 18. For by the perfect sacrifice of this second Adam, the original righteousness which stood against the first Adam and his posterity, is fulfilled, so that God hath set forth Christ to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are passed, through the forbearance of God; to declare at this time his righteousness; that he might be just and the justifier of him that believeth in Jesus. Rom. 3..

Reader, mark this, that as Christ came in the likeness of sinful flesh, and was made sin for us, so hath he by sin condemned sin in the flesh, namely, original sin; not that he himself hath sinned, but that he hath taken

our sins upon him, (mark) that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit. Rom. 8.

For Christ was himself perfect God and perfect man. As touching his humanity, he was holy, righteous, without spot, and blameless; but for our sakes became he poor and weak, undergoing trials and temptations, that he might be touched with the feelings of our infirmities, and be a merciful and faithful high priest to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. Heb. 2: 17, 18. Chap. 4:15. In his divine attributes he was invincible, though as a son of Adam or a sinner, (yet holy and blameless) he suffered the cursed death of the cross, whereby he was made a perfect sacrifice for sin. Yet it was impossible for death to confine him; he rose again, and triumphed over sin, death and the devil; for in that he suffered death, he hath by his obedience fulfilled the righteousness and satisfied the demands of the law; and, moreover, destroyed him that had the power of death, that is the devil, and delivered them who through fear of death were all their life time subject to bondage. Heb. 2; 14, 15.

Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night (Rev. 12: 10); for as long