the Doctor, and his friends, and seems so perfe&ly incredible to them, is the grand fubje&t of all St. John's writings, and furnishes him, (as it does the Other Apoftles) with master for the highest admiration and praife! In this, fayshe, (Chap. iv. 9) was 'manifetted the love of God towards us, 'because that God fent his only begotten Son (an Unique in the creation, an only one, as Dr. '6 Priefley terms him) into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and fent his Son to be the propitiation for our fins! Beloved, "if God fo loved us, we ought alfo to love one another. We have seen, and do teftify, that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the 'world.'

Though, as the Doctor expreffes it (ibid)" he "exifted before all creatures, yea, from Eternity,

by an eternal derivation from his eternal Father, though "he was the immediate Maker of the "world, and of all things vifible and invifible, "and appeared in a divine character to the Patri"archs and Prophets," yet, that he was born of the virgin Mary, and made man, is a doctrine which is now and has been in every age, fince Chriftianity was firft eftabiifhed in the world, the grand foundation, as well as object of the faith of the people of God, the fource of their love, and matter of their wonder and praife.That the Logos, the Wifdom and Word, which was in the beginning with God and was God, that Wildom and Word, by which all things were made, hath been made flesh, and hath dwelt among us, while men beheld his glory, the glory of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth! That when he was rich for our fakes he became poor, that we, through his poverty, might be made rich!

That when in the form of God, and, as the

Apoftle

Apoftle declares, equal with God, as being his very Word and Wifdom, he emptied himfelf, taking the form of a fervant, being made in the likeness of men! that, when he was found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself still further, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the crois! This great mystery of godlinefs, while it hath filled them with wonder and amazement, at the condefcenfion and love of this divine and adorable Saviour, hath convinced them that, mean and worthless as they are, when compared with creatures of a more exalted rank, they are, however, not overlooked by their Maker, amidst the immenfity of his nobler works. On the contrary, they fee that they fand high in his esteem, and are the objects of his peculiar love, and tender compaffions.

What God may, or may not have done for other creatures, in other worlds, they know not, and therefore pretend not to fay, but they do not think their ignorance in this point, can juftify their difbelieving a fact fufficiently authenticated, and, in confequence thereof, their ungratefully rejecting what, they have good proof, God, in infinite goodnefs, hath done for themselves, though they may not be able to affign a reason for his preferring of them to others, fhould there be a preference in the cafe. They confider that other Beings, in other worlds, either may not have fallen as they have done, and, therefore, may not have needed to be vifited, in a fimilar manner, by a divine Redeemer; or, if they have, that fome circumftances in their cafe might render their defection more inexcufable, and that therefore the divine wifdom might not fee fit to afford them the help he hath afforded man, formed out of the duft of the earth, weak and› frail, even in his beft eftate, and feduced by the fubtilty

fubtilty and fraud of his more powerful and crafty adverlary.

Be this as it will, their firm belief of a mystery they cannot fathom, that God has been manifeft in the flef, that to them a child has been born, to them a Son has been given, whofe name is wonderful, Counfallor, the Mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of peace, Immanuel, God with us ;-their conviction of this, I fay, while it lays a foundation for the most absolute confidence in, and entire dependance upon their God and Saviour for whatever they want for time and eternity; it binds their hearts to him, as by a thousand ties, and becomes a most powerful and perpetual obligation to love and obedience. This love of Chrift conftraineth them, while they thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead, and that he died for all, that they who live, (viz. who live through his death) fhould not, henceforth, live unto themfelves, but to him that died for them, and rofe again. In the mean time, that the Father fent the Son, his living Word and Wifdom, to be the Saviour of the world, that he fo loved the world as to give his only begotten Son, that whofoever believeth in him fhould not perish, but have everlafting life, is matter of equal praife, and equally excites their admiration, and provokes their gratitude. And, while with St. Paul, they render thanks unto God for his unfpeakable gif, they fee every reafon to conclude with the fame inspired Apostle, that he who hath not with-held his own Son, but hath freely delivered him up unto death for us all, will, with him, alfo freely give us all things! Thus, the doctrine of the incarnation of the divine Word, though a fubject of cavil, to the reafoning pride of vain and all affuming Philofophy, is a firm ground of confidence, and perpetual fource of confolation to the humble and devout follower of Jefus, the

Hule

little child, to whom it hath pleafed our heavenly. Father, the Lord of heaven and earth, to reveal those things which he hath hid from the wife and prudent!

66

But, fays the Doctor, (ibid)" it cannot but be "thought a little extraordinary, that there fhould be no trace of the Apostles having ever regarded "their Master in this high light. For, being Jews, they would certainly confider him, at first, as a "man, like themselves, fince no Jew ever expected 66 any other for their Meffiah. Indeed, it can "never be thought that Peter and others would "have made fo free with our Lord, as they fome

times did, if they had confidered him as their "Maker." In anfwer to this, I would observe, what fort of a Meffiah the Jews expected may be gathered, not only from the Scriptures of the Prophets, which gave birth to that expectation, but from the ancient Chaldee, or Jewish Paraphrafe on those Scriptures, which expreffes their faith, at the time when the Meffiah was expected. very Not to refer to any other paffage, their comment on Ifaiah ix. 6, is fufficient to put this matter be yond difpute, and is as follows, "The Prophet faith

to the house of David, that a child is born to "us, a Son is given to us, and he hath taken the "Law upon himself, that he might keep it; and, "his name shall be called God, before the face (or "from the face) of the admirable Counsel; the "Man that abideth for ever; the Meffiah, "whofe peace fhall be multiplied upon us in "his days."

As to the Apoftles, whether there be "any' trace of their having ever regarded their Mafter in this high light," the prefent quotations from their writings fhew. And, as to St. Peter, in particular, once a Jew, and no doubt well acquainted with the notions of his countrymen, refpecting the person and office of the Meffiah,

he

he hath spoken for himself already. In what light he might view his Mafter, when he fift became his difciple, I will not fay, but that he confidered him as more than a man, when he wrote his Epiftles, is evident, from the many paffages we have quoted from them; which, if understood of a mere man, appear to be absolute nonsense.

The fame must be faid of the Epiftles of the other Apoftles. Many paffages in them all, as thefe Letters demonstratë, are truly nonfenfical, if interpreted of a mere man; and these, not a few detached and unconnected fentences, but whole paragraphs and fellions, yea, entire chapters, the principal doctrine of which is moft irrational, as well as the argumentation perfectly inconclufive, on the Socinian hypothefis. For inftance, what makes a greater figure in the writings of St. John, or is more frequently mentioned or expatiated upon, than the doctrine of the great love of God, manifefted in his fending his Son into the world, that we might live through him. But, if what he advances, upon this fubject, be understood of a mere man, how unworthy is it, I will not fay of the infpiration of an Apoftle, but of the reason and common sense of a man? We need not go far to feek examples of this. I appeal to the paffage laft quoted. Only fuppofe it to be spoken of a mere man, and how infipid and unmeaning! nay, how abfurd and ridiculous does it appear!' In this was manifefted the love of God towards us, because that God fent (a mere man, whom I • term) his only begotten Son into the world, (not that we are to fuppofe he had any existence prior to his being fent) that we might live through him, (that is, through his teaching and example!) Herein is love! not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and fent (a mere man called)

'his