paled in the commonwealth of Israel; but now, says he, ye are so no more; that is, you have a portion and interest in that worship, wherewith God is well pleased.

Secondly, Positively, the apostle affirms two things of them. First, That they are fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God;' ver. 19. Secondly, That they were built up to be an holy temple,' or 'an habitation to God;' ver. 20-22. Both which relate to the solemn worship of God under the gospel. The first asserts them to be now members of the church; the latter, that by and among them God was worshipped with that divine service, which came in the room of that which was appointed in the temple, now by Christ removed and taken away.

This being the design of the Holy Ghost in this place, I shall present it in this one proposition unto you:

That it is an eminent effect and fruit of our reconciliation unto God, and among ourselves by the blood of Christ; that believers enjoy the privileges of the excellent, glorious, spiritual worship of God in Christ, revealed and required in the gospel.

I shall in the prosecution of this subject,

I. Briefly prove, That we obtain this privilege as a fruit, and upon the account of the reconciliation made by the blood of Christ.

II. Shew, That the worship of the gospel is indeed so beautiful, glorious, and excellent, that the enjoyment of it is an eminent privilege: which I shall principally manifest from the text, and in so doing open the several parts of it.

I. That believers enjoy this privilege as a fruit and effect of the death and blood of Jesus Christ, I shall confirm only with one or two places of Scripture; Heb. ix. 8. compared with chap. x. 19–22. Whilst the first tabernacle was standing, before Christ by his death had removed it, and the worship that accompanied it, which was the partition wall mentioned that he brake down, there was no immediate admission unto God; the way into the holiest, not made with hands, which we now make use of in the gospel worship, was not yet laid open; but the worshippers were kept at a great distance, making their application unto God by outward, carnal ordinances. The tabernacle being removed, now a way is made, and an entrance is given to the worship

pers, into the holiest in their worship. How is that obtained? by what means? chap. x. 19-21. it is by the blood of Jesus Christ,' by the rending of his flesh. This privilege of entering into the holiest, which is a true expressing of all gospel worship, could no otherwise be obtained for, nor granted unto believers, but by the blood of Christ. 'We enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus,' by which he prepared, perfected, or consecrated for us a new and living way' into it. Peter also gives us the same account of the rise of this privilege, 1 Epist. ii. 4, 5. That which is ascribed unto believers is, that they offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable unto God by Jesus Christ.' That is the worship whereof we speak. To fit them for, and enable them hereunto, they are made a spiritual house, a holy priesthood; they are both the temple wherein God dwells by his Spirit, and they are the priests that offer acceptable sacrifices unto him. By what means then do they attain this honour? by their coming unto Christ,' and that as he was disallowed of men and chosen of God.' Herein the apostle includes the whole mystery of his death and bloodshedding, wherein he was most openly rejected of men, and most eminently owned of God in his accomplishment of the work of reconciliation.

I shall not farther confirm the first part of the proposition, but proceed to evidence,

II. That the worship of God under the gospel is so excellent, beautiful, and glorious, that it may well be esteemed a privilege purchased by the blood of Christ, which no man can truly and really be made partaker of, but by virtue of an interest in the reconciliation by him wrought. For 'by him we have an access in one Spirit unto God.'

This, as I said, I shall evince two ways.
First, Absolutely.

Secondly, Comparatively, in reference unto any other way of worship whatever.

And the first I shall do from the text.

It is a principle deeply fixed in the minds of men, yea, ingrafted into them by nature, that the worship of God ought to be orderly, comely, beautiful, and glorious. Hence men in all ages, who have thought it incumbent on them to imagine, find out, and frame the worship of God, or any thing

thereunto belonging, have made it constantly their design to fix on things, either in themselves, or in the manner of their performance, to their judgment, beautiful, orderly, comely, and glorious. And indeed that worship may be well suspected not to be according to the mind of God, which comes short in these properties of order and beauty, comeliness and glory. I shall add unto this, only this reasonable assertion, which no man can well deny, viz. That what is so in his worship and service, God himself is the most proper judge. If then we evince not that spiritual gospel worship, in its own naked simplicity, without any other external, adventitious helper or countenance, is most orderly, comely, beautiful and glorious, the Holy Ghost in the Scripture being judge, we shall be content to seek for these things where else, as it is pretended, they may be found. To this end,

1. The first thing in general observable from these words is, that in the spiritual worship of the gospel, the whole blessed Trinity, and each Person therein distinctly, do in that economy and dispensation, wherein they act severally and peculiarly in the work of our redemption, afford distinct communion with themselves unto the souls of the worshippers. So are they all here distinctly mentioned: 'Through him,' that is, Jesus Christ, the Son of God,' we have access by one Spirit,' that good and Holy Spirit, the Holy Ghost, unto God, that is, the Father; for so is that name to be taken iπootarikoç, 'personally,' when it is mentioned in distinction from the Son and Spirit. There is no act, part, or duty of gospel worship, wherein the worshippers have not this distinct communion with each Person in the blessed Trinity. The particulars shall be afterward spoken unto.

This is the general order of gospel worship, the great rubric of our service. Here in general lieth its decency, that it respects the mediation of the Son, through whom we have access, and the supplies and assistance of the Spirit, and a regard unto God, as a Father. He that fails in any one of these, he breaks all order in gospel worship. If either we come not unto it by Jesus Christ, or perform it not in the strength of the Holy Ghost, or in it go not unto God as a Father, we transgress all the rules of this worship. This is the great canon, which if it be neglected, there is no de

cency in whatever else is done in this way. And this in general is the glory of it. Worship is certainly an act of the soul; Matt. xxii. 37. The body hath its share by concomitancy and subserviency to the direction of the mind. The acts of the mind and soul receive their advancements and glory from the object about which they are conversant. Now that in this gospel worship, is God himself in his Son and Holy Ghost, and none else. Acting faith on Christ for admission, and on the Holy Ghost for his assistance, so going on in his strength; and on God, even the Father, for acceptance, is the work of the soul in this worship. That it hath any thing more glorious to be conversant about, I am as yet to learn. But these things will be handled apart afterward. This in general is the order and glory of that worship of which we speak.

2. The same is evident from the general nature of it, that it is an access unto God. Through him we have an access to God.' There are two things herein that set forth the excellency, order, and glory of it: (1.) It brings an access; (2.) The manner of that access, intimated in the word here used, it is προσαγωγή.

(1.) It is an access, an approach, a drawing nigh unto God: so the apostle calls it, a 'drawing near;' Heb. x. 22. 'Let us draw nigh with a true heart,' that is, unto God, in the holiest; ver. 19. In the first giving out of the law, and instituting the legal worship, the people were commanded to keep at a distance, and they were not, on pain of death, so much as to touch the mount where the presence of God was; Exod. xix. 12. And accordingly they stood afar off, whilst Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was; chap. xx. 21. So not only when the high-priest went into the most holy place once a year with blood (of which afterward), but when the priests in their courses went into the holy place to burn incense daily, the people were kept without, as Luke i. 10. But this gospel worship is our access or drawing nigh to God; no interposition of veils, or any other carnal ordinance whatever. All is made open, and a new and living way of access given unto us; Heb. x. 20. And what in general can be added to set forth the glory of this worship, to a soul that knows what it is to draw nigh to God, I know not. The heathens of old derided the

Egyptians, who through many stately edifices, and with most pompous ceremonies, brought their worshippers to the image of an ape. I say no more; but let them look to it, how they will acquit themselves, who frame much of their worship in a ceremonious access to an altar, or an image. The plea of referring unto God at the last, hath been common to all idolaters of what sort soever, from the foundation of the world.

(2.) It is a pooaywyn that we have in this worship, a manuduction unto God, in order, and with much glory. It is such an access as men have to the presence of a king, when they are handed in by some favourite or great person. This, in this worship, is done by Christ. He takes the worshippers by the hand, and leads them into the presence of God; there presenting them (as we shall see), saying, Behold, I and the children which God hath given me;' Heb. ii. 13. This is the access of believers; thus do they enter into the presence of God. Some, it may be, will be ready to say, that a man may be ashamed to speak such great things as these of poor worms, who have neither order in their way, nor eloquence in their words, nor comeliness. in their worship. Let such men know that they must yet hear greater things of them; and it is meet indeed they should be in all things conformable unto Christ; and therefore have neither form, nor comeliness, nor beauty in themselves, their way, or their worship to the eyes of the world, as Isa. liii. 2. And the world knows not' them and their ways, because 'it knew not him' nor his ways; 1 John iii. 1. But if God may be allowed to judge in his own matters, the spiritual worship of the saints is glorious, since in it they have such an access, such a manuduction unto God.

3. From the immediate object of this worship, and that is God. We have an access to God. It is, as I said, the Father who is here peculiarly intended; God as God: He who is the beginning and end of all, whose nature is attended with infinite perfection: He, from whom a sovereignty over all doth proceed, is the formal object of all divine and religious worship. Hence divine worship respects, as its object, each Person of the blessed Trinity equally, not as this or that Person, but as this or that Person is God; that is the formal reason of all divine worship. But yet as the second