well promise this to himself; for the Father had promised it, Isa. liii. 10, 11. He shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. The latter part of John vi. 37. is Christ's promise to us, Him that cometh to me, I will in nowise cast out. Why do none but the given come to Christ? Because none can come unless they be drawn by the Father, John vi. 44, 45. Behold this blessed order. The Father gives the elect to his Son, to be redeemed; the Son, in love, lays down his life for them, and redeems them. The Father draws them to Christ, and makes them believers; Christ receives them as given, redeemed, and drawn; and thus are they saved. Christ knows them well, and therefore welcomes them.

APPLICATION. 1. This truth, That Christ knows all that are given to him, should feed and strengthen our faith, as to all the elect. Christ knows them; therefore they shall be saved. The apostle, 2 Tim. ii. 18, 19. brings in this as a ground of faith, even when damnable errors creep in, and overthrow the faith of some: Nevertheless, the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. The Lord-giver knows who are his, and whom he gives; and the Lord-receiver knows who are his, and whom he receives. The Lord knows better who are his, than the devil knows who are his, for many that the devil had as his (as all natural men are, Eph. ii. 2, 3.), and thought he was sure of as his, have been rescued by the Lord. But never did the devil prevail fully against any that are Christ's. It is a happy parenthesis in Matth. xxiv. 24. when our Lord is warning of dangerous times, by false christs, and of their great success in deceiving, he saith, that they shall deceive (if it were possible) the very elect. But it is impossible, because they are elect. There are two cases of the elect that this truth should strengthen our faith in. 1. As to the uncalled elect. Many of them are yet uncalled, and lying in the common pit of nature; but they shall be called. The gospel will be taken away from that place where none such are. All God's paine

in the gospel are taken for the elect's sakes, as Paul's pains were, 2 Tim. ii. 10. The Lord encouraged Paul to stay and labour in Corinth, by this argument, For I have much people in this city, Acts xviii. 9, 10. Some are converted already, and many more are to be converted. 2. In case of backsliding and apostasy: a sad, but no very rare case. Some that have given great witness of the truth of the grace of God in them, have, through the power of corruption, the prevalency of temptation, and the Lord's leaving of them, fallen foully, and lain long. Yet, if they be Christ's, his mark is on them, and they shall be recovered.

2. Believers, from this truth, have ground of strong consolation, both in praising and in praying: Heb. vi. 17, 18. The immutability of his counsel is declared, that we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge, to lay hold upon the hope set before us. Have you fled for refuge to Jesus Christ? Do you know it? Hath the Lord revealed it to you, that you have sought your only refuge in the shadow of Christ's wings? Then how should you rejoice and give thanks for your election? Thus the apostle did usually, Eph. i. 3, 4. 2 Thess. ii. 13. I dare not say, that no believer can be heartily thankful for Christ's grace, before he fully and surely know its highest spring: but I am sure that that believer praiseth best, that knows best that he was given to the Son. The receivings of the glorified will be the greatest; their praises will be the highest; and their knowledge of eternal love as the spring of all their grace and glory, will be the clearest. And as this doth raise praise, so doth it raise mighty prayer.

Our Lord prays for his people under this name, Thine and mine, John xvii. 9, 10. David prays for himself, under this name, Psal. cxix. 94. I am thine, save me. The clearer your knowledge be of your interest in God, and in his love, the more mighty will your pleadings with him be.

And so much for the second point.

OBSERV. 3. Christ's heart is set on the bliss of all that the Father bath given to him. And this he expresseth in this desire.

On this point, I would, I. Give some proofs of this truth. II. Show whence this heart-concern for their bliss doth Bow.

I. Proofs of this truth, That Christ's heart is set on the bliss and eternal salvation of his people, are these five :

1. Christ's covenanting for them proves this. In that day (if a day may be talked of in eternity; but we are time-creatures, and have no fit words for eternity) when this blessed company were given by the Father to the Son, the Son did undertake to do all things needful to be done, to bring them to eternal glory. He undertook and promised to take on him their nature; and in that nature to bear their sins; and, by the sacrifice of that nature for their sins, to make an expiation of their sins. In a word, he promised to do all he was required to do, and he did all he promised to the Father, for the salvation of his people. Whenever we look to this treaty, we must gather, Surely the Son of God had a great mind to the happiness of his people.

2. Christ's cheerful laying down his life for their redemption, proves how his heart was set on their salvation. It was his errand in coming into the world: John x. 10.. I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. Believers get a greater, higher, and more noble life by the second Adam, than they lost by the first Adam. This is the meaning of that much more twice mentioned by the apostle when comparing these two heads, Rom. v. 15, 17. But how doth Christ give, and his people receive this life? Even by his death. He laid down his life for his sheep, John x. 11, 15. Therefore his Father loved him, ver. 17. And thereby he proved his love to the salvation of his people, John xv. 13.

3. He proves his love to their salvation, by his sealing and confirming the covenant, the charter of their salvation, with his own blood. Compare Gal. iii. 15, 16, 17. with Heb. ix. 15, 16, 17. It is called the blood of the everlasting covenant, Heb. xiii. 20. Christ's blood was not only redeeming and purchasing blood, a just and full price both for the heirs and for the inheritance; but it was sealing blood, and confirming of that covenant, in and by which the inheritance was secured to the heirs, and the heirs secured for the inheritance. Alas! many have the Bible, and use it but little; and many use it amiss, because they know not its right name. It is well and warrantably, from its contents, called, in its title page, in all

languages, and translations, The Old and New Testament of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. But how few, in reading this title, mind the use and virtue of the blood of Jesus, which turned the covenant of God's grace into the testament of Christ, and thereby sealed and confirmed all the good words and good things in that covenant? it was a happy word we find in the Book of Martyrs, that some in the dawning of the light of the gospel in this land, near two hundred years ago, used, in calling the New Testament (a great rarity in those days) The blood of Christ. You never rightly read the gospel, nor do you understand the design of it, nor rightly believe one promise in it, till in heart you can say, "This gospel is the only charter "of my salvation, sealed with the blood of my only Saviour." If any be for another Saviour than Christ, and for another security and charter for salvation than his thus sealed testament, on their eternal peril be it. Let them try, and perish. For, as God is true, perish they shall, even all that take that course, Acts iv. 12.

4. Christ proves his love to his people's salvation by his in tercession for them. Of which this chapter is a great instance, And whereof we have so much spoke in Rom. viii. 34. Heb. vii. 25. and ix. 24. and 1 John ii. 1. This is his business in heaven. By this he prepares their place for them, John xiv. 2, 3.; and on it assures them of their possessing of it.

5. Christ gives his Spirit to his people, to prove his concern about their salvation. And we may allude to Isa. v. 4. What could have been done more? He covenanted with the Father from eternity about their salvation. He bought it for them, and them for it, in the fulness of time. The day of Christ's redeeming his people, was the flower of time, the greatest and noblest thing done since God set the clock of time a-going; for his glorious return is to be at the end of time. He turned the covenant of their salvation into a testament by his blood; and did in that testament leave all the grace and glory bought by his blood as a legacy to his people. He, when he had done this, went to heaven with his blood, Heb. ix. 12. that it might speak before God, Heb. xii. 24. for all blessings to his people. And till they get full possession of glory, he gives to them his Spirit. All that are his

have his Spirit, as surely as it is, that if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his, Rom. viii. 9, 15. Gal. iv. 6. This gift of the Spirit is a marvellous gift. None can know it, but they that receive it: John xiv. 17.: The Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. 1 John iv. 13. Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit. This gift is always given in mere love and grace, and is a sure proof of God's special love. This gift of the Spirit is an earnest of heaven, 2 Cor. i. 22. God hath sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts; and 2 Cor. v. 5. And Eph. i. 13, 14. he is called that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance, until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory He is called the first-fruits of the Spirit, Rom. viii. 23. This gift is an enriching gift. How great things doth he in and on the man! How much good doth he bring along with himself! He reveals Christ to the soul, John xvi. 14, 15.; draws the soul to Christ, unites him with Christ; dwells in the believer, and seals him to the day of redemption, Ephesians iv. 30.; comforts him till that day comes. Hence called the Comforter by our Lord, John xiv. 16, 26. xv. 26. and xvi. 7. Yet for all the richness of this gift of the Spirit, this you must know, that as soon as a man receives this gift, he sees and finds himself to be a poor, empty, and needy creature. When this eye-salve of Christ anoints a man's eyes, then he seeth what he did not before; that he is wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked, Rev. iii. 17, 18. Therefore is the Spirit of Christ in believers a Spirit of grace and of supplication, Zech. xiii. 10.; a Spirit of adoption, crying, Abba, Father, Rom. viii. 15. and Galatians iv. 6. If no man can say, that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost, 1 Cor. xii. 3.; surely no man can call the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Abba, Father, but by the Holy Ghost. The first word of the new creature is Abba. But many believers live long ere they can say Abbá confi dently. They do not consider duly, that as this relation is granted by the Lord; so it should be pleaded by believers,