each may make it the principle of his own life, saying, "Christ has died for me." We know how careless we are; we know how soon we forget the evil of our lives, how fondly we remember the good. We know how the world is ever with us, how alive are all our feelings to its influence, how readily we can be glad or sorry, angry or appeased, full of hope or full of fear, as outward things, and earthly, smile on us or thwart us. And we know also, and all idolatry has been but an example of this feeling, that God is hard to find; that the invisible, the incomprehensible, comes not within the range of our senses or of our minds; over both the condition of our nature has drawn too thick a veil. Therefore we do need a high priest, who may be to us in the place of God, and lead us to God when perfected. Therefore Christ crucified, when we take the words in all their fulness, is all that we need; and without him we are nothing. He is one whom we can understand and love; we can conceive of him in his life; we can conceive of him as crucified: and still, because he is still the Son of Man, we can also conceive of him as risen and ascended into heaven. With him we may commune, for his words are before us; and not only the words, but even he who spoke them: he, through the descriptions of his disciples, is, in a manner, before us too. And when he tells us that he has died for us through the love of

God, what does it not say, both of our own evil and of God's goodness! What does it not say of the danger which is ever near us, and of the safety and happiness in which we may stand, by keeping fast hold on the thought of Christ! He has perfected us; that is, the work is complete, if we would but believe it; but till we do believe it, it is in us not completed. It is complete in us when our hearts are softened, and God, and Christ, and our own sin, are fully before us; but as they pass away, so it becomes again undone. It becomes undone, because then we do not believe; another belief is ruling in our hearts; the belief that we may follow our own ways, and live safely without God. And for how many hours, and how many days, and weeks, and months, does this belief, this belief of evil, this unbelief of good, rule within us! and how naturally does it keep the veil upon our hearts; that veil which, without Christ, will remain on them for ever-the veil between us and God. But when we shall turn to the Lord, the veil shall be taken away; when we believe in Christ, we shall also believe in God; when we believe in God, the Father of Christ, we shall know and feel what is meant by infinite holiness and infinite love; and by the one offering of our high priest once offered, we shall feel that we who were dead are made alive-that we are now for ever perfected.

SERMON XI.

CHRIST OUR ONLY PRIEST.

HEBREWS, vii. 25.

He is able to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

IN my Sermon on Friday, I spoke of Christ's Priesthood, especially as it was shown in his sacrifice of himself once for all. The other part of a priest's office is that of intercession; and this part Christ is now performing, and will perform, to the end of the world. But this word, "intercession," must not be understood in that limited sense in which we commonly take it, when we mean by it no more than making a prayer or request in another's behalf. Properly, the whole office of a priest may be expressed by intercession; for intercession means the coming in between two parties;— and as regards a priest, it is the coming in between God and men, to bring them, as it were, into the

presence of God, which, by themselves, they were unworthy to approach. Sacrifice, therefore, no less than prayer, is, in this sense, an act of the priest's intercession: but as from being the greatest act of it, it came to be considered as distinct, so in the text, and elsewhere, intercession means all the acts of a priest's office, except sacrifice; every means by which he introduces or commends men to the favour of God, without reckoning the single means of sacrifice.

In this sense it is that the life of Christ,-not his life on earth in the flesh, but his eternal life since his resurrection,-is sometimes spoken of as being the direct cause of our salvation, even more than his death. "If when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more being reconciled shall we be saved by his life." By his death we were made God's people; by his life we are continued so, even to the end. And the meaning of this is, that through Him we may at all times offer our prayers to God with confidence, and that through Him also we receive that Holy Spirit which alone makes us abide in Him, and in his likeness for ever. For this, I think, is the great act of Christ's intercession, that through Him, and as his redeemed, we receive the gift of his Holy Spirit. And thus he does most fully introduce us into the presence of

God, giving us that wedding garment, that robe of holiness, not imputed only, but real and personal, though imperfectly, without which, all who presume to claim a place in God's kingdom, because Christ has purchased it for them, will assuredly be cast out as false pretenders.

On the other great part of his priestly office, Christ entered as on this day by his resurrection from the dead. And it is no less necessary to come to God through him as our intercessor, and as receiving through him his Holy Spirit, than to come to God through him as our only and perfect sacrifice. So that, in all our relations with God, Christ, our High Priest, should ever be present with our minds, as alone giving us access to God, and alone purifying our hearts by his Spirit. In him we have all that we need; and as he is our Priest, without whom we have no boldness to come before the throne of grace, so he is our only Priest, and all others who do in any way pretend to be priests like him, are thieves and robbers, from hearing whom, may he, by his Spirit of truth, save his true sheep for evermore!

But I may be asked why I dwell upon this? Are these the times, or is this the congregation, which require to be warned against priestcraft and superstition? We may be careless, profane, proud, it may be, and rebellious; but surely we are