any man love not the Lord Jefus Chrift, let him be Anathema Maranatha *! Do you think, my brethren, that the apostle took pleasure in denouncing fo fevere a sentence, against all those who did not fee (as we fay) with his eyes? Had he fo little affection for finners, that he could thus confign them to deftruction by multitudes, for differing from him, in what fome perfons only deem an opinion? Rather, confider him, not as breathing out his own wishes, but as fpeaking in the name, and on the behalf of God. He knew it must be, and he declared it would be fo. It was no pleasure to him, to fee them determined to perifh. On the contrary, he had great grief and forrow of heart for them, even for the Jews, who had treated him with the greatest cruelty. Even for their fakes, he could have been content to be made an Anathema himfelft, that they might be faved. But upon the whole, he acquiefced in the will of God, and acknowledged it to be juft, right and equal, that if any man would not love the Lord Jefus Christ, after all that he had done and suffered for finners, he should be accurfed. By this

* 1 Cor. xvi. 22.

+ Rom. ix. 3.

3:

com

comparison of the apoftle's fevere language, with his compaffionate temper, I am led to digress a little farther. It suggests an apology for minifters of the gofpel in general. When we declare the terrors of the Lord, when we affure you that there is but one folid foundation for hope, and that, unless you love the Lord Jefus Chrift, you must perish; fome of our hearers account us bigoted, uncharitable and bitter. But if you could fee what paffes in fecret, how faithful ministers mourn over thofe who reject their meffage, how their disobedience cuts them to the heart, and abates the comfort they would otherwife find in your fervice; if you could believe us when we fay (I trust truly) that we are ready to impart unto you, not the gospel of God only, but our own fouls alfo, because you are dear to us *, and we long for your falvation, then, you would think more favourably of us. But after all, we cannot, we dare not, foften our meffage to please men. What we find in the word of God, we muft declare. It would be at the peril of our fouls, to speak smooth things, to prophesy deceits to you; and, so far as we

* Thef. ii. 8.

+ Ifa. xxx. 10.

Dd 4

preach

preach the truth, it will be at the peril of your fouls, if we are difregarded.

III. The benefits of this redemption extend to a numerous people, who are faid to be redeemed out of every kindred, tongue and nation. I have, upon a former occafion, offered you my fentiments concerning the extent of the virtue of that blood, which taketh away the fin of the world *. But the claufe, now before us, invites me to make a few additional obfervations, upon a subject which, I conceive, it much concerns us rightly to understand.

The redeemed of the Lord, are thofe who actually experience the power of his redemption, who are delivered from the dominion of fin and Satan, and brought into a state of liberty, peace and holiness. That the people of every kindred, nation and tongue are not redeemed, in this fenfe, univerfally, is as certain, as evidence of facts, and express declarations of fcripture, can make it. Without holiness no man fhall fee the Lord. Multitudes, thus difqualified, will be found trembling, on the left hand of the Judge, at the great day. But, a remnant will be faved, according to the election of grace. For they *Vol. I. Sermon XVI. p. 298,

who

who differ, who are redeemed to the fervice of God, while others live and die in the love and fervice of fin, do not make themselves to differ*. It becomes the potsherds of the earth, to ascribe to their Maker, the glory of his fovereignty, and to acknowledge that if they have a good hope, it is, because it pleased the Lord to make them his people, who once were not his people. Yet, a way of conceiving of the doctrines of the divine fovereignty, and of a personal election unto life, has often obtained, which seems to have a tendency to render the mind narrow, selfish and partial, and to ftreighten the exercise of that philanthropy, which the genius and fpirit of the gospel, powerfully inculcate. The best of us, perhaps, are more prone than we are aware of, to affimilate the great God to ourselves, and to frame our ideas of him, too much according to our own image. So that, often, much of a man's natural difpofition, may be observed in the views he forms of the divine perfections and conduct; as on the other hand, his conceptions of the character of God, ftrengthen and confirm him in his own. tempers and habits. There are perfons, who

* 1 Cor. iv. 7.

I

+ Hof. ii. 23.

being perfuaded in their minds (we would hope upon fure grounds) that they, themfelves, are of the elect, appear to be little concerned what may become of others. Their notions of God's fovereignty, and his right to do what he will with his own, though, often, infufficient to preserve them from repining and impatience under the common events of human life, raise them above all doubts and difficulties, on a fubject, which the apoftle speaks of as unsearchable and untraceable; where he acknowledges depths which he was unable to fathom *, all appears, to them, quite plain and easy. Where he admires and adores, they arrogantly dif pute, and determine ex cathedra, and harshly cenfure all who are not fo eagle-sighted as themselves. Methinks they who know the worth of a foul, from its vaft capacity for happiness and mifery, and its immortal duration, cannot juttly be blamed for allowing no limits, to their benevolent wishes for the falvation of mankind, but the will of God as it is, plainly, made known to us in his word. To this we are to fubmit, not as of neceffity only, but cheerfully, affured that * Rom. xi. 33.