IX.

Phil. ii.

8, 9.

SERMON second blessing. Then propterea, "therefore God hath blessed" him, is as true a rendering as the other: then,when being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death," then comes in S. Paul's "therefore" or "wherefore," rightly: "Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow ;" that we should bow ourselves in humility and thankfulness unto him, that every tongue should confess, all tongues bless him, and bless God for him, that we might praise him in the Church, in the midst of the congregation.

Ephes. v. 27.

For, a double blessing has Christ purchased to himself-a blessing upon his person, and a blessing upon his Church. By his grace and beauty he has first purchased to himself a name, and then a Church—a glorious one, too; made himself the head of it: for it pleased God that in him should all fulness dwell; it pleased him also by that fulness "to reconcile all things to himself," to make him the head of all, the Saviour of them all; to bless him in the ordinary style of Scripture, where children are called "the blessing of the Lord;" to bless him with an everlasting seed-a Church and people to the end of the world, do the gates of hell what they can against it.

V. There remains nothing, now, but our benedixit to answer God's—our blessing to answer his: we to bless him again for all his blessings: for to that purpose is both Christ's grace, and God's blessing-all his blessings; therefore fulness of grace in him, that it might be diffused and poured out upon us; therefore diffused and poured out upon us, that we might pour out something for it; bene fecit for benedixit, some good works or other; at least benedixit for benedixit, good words for it, blessing for blessing.

Indeed, it is but benedixit here with God; but dixit et fecit, he said and it was done. Saying and doing are all one with God; should be so with us if we would be like him; our deeds as good as our words, our piety as fair as our pretences; that is the only truly blessing God.

And the likest, too, to last in sæcula, to hold for ever. Good words, and praising God in words, is but the leaves of the tree of blessing; and leaves, you know, will wither the

IX.

stock and trunk is blessing God in earnest by good works, SERMON by expressing the diffusions of this grace in our lives and actions, by imitating and conforming ourselves to the beauty of this beloved.

If he be so fair as you have seen it, how can we now but love him? If his lips so full of grace, how can we but delight to hear him, to hear his word? If blessed, how can we less than strive to be partakers of his blessing? If for ever, how can we but desire to be ever with him, perpetually attending him? If his beauty was God's blessing, let us humbly acknowledge ours comes all from him. If the grace of his lips were the blessing of God's, let us know we are not able of ourselves to speak so much as a good word as of ourselves. If, again, he was therefore blessed because he was so beautiful, and so diffused his grace, used both his beauty and eloquence, to bring about the children of men to become the children of God; let us so employ those smaller glimmerings of beauty and gifts of grace we have, to the service and glory of God and his Christ.

We dote much upon worldly beauties; we think, we talk, we dream of them; our minds and affections are ever on them, wholly after them. Why do we not so on Christ, and after him? He is the "fairest of ten thousand;" "Solomon in all his glory" not like him; none of all the sons of Adam comes near him. Why do we not then delight to look upon him, to discourse with him, to talk of him, to be ever with him? What is the reason we do not season our labours, our recreations, our retirements, our discourses, with him?

We are easily won with fair words and gracious speeches. Lo, here are lips the most eloquent that ever were: why do we not even hang upon them?-Why do we not, with the spouse in the Canticles, desire him to kiss us with the kisses of his lips, to communicate his fulness to us? Indeed, I can render no cause at all, but that we are so immersed in flesh and earthly beauties, that we cannot see the true heavenly beauty of Christ, or we do not believe it.

And yet this Jesus is everywhere to be seen; his ministers, his word, his daily grace, preventing, directing, and assisting, preserving and delivering us; the creatures plainly and evidently enough discover him daily to us.

SERMON

IX.

But to-day we have a fairer discovery and sight of him. This Jesus that is so fair, this Jesus so full of grace, this Jesus so blessed of God for ever, is this day presented to us in his blessed sacrament; there is he himself in all his beauty, all his fulness. Say we then to him, Come in, thou blessed of the Lord, come in; we have made ready and prepared the house for thee and for thy camels-for thyself and those consecrated elements that carry and convey thee. Get we our vessels ready, and shut the door to us, as the poor widow did shut out all worldly thoughts and wandering fancies, that he may pour out his oil, his grace into them, till they be full. And pour we out our souls before him in all devotion and humility, in all praise and thanksgiving. Is not the cup we are to take, the "cup of blessing," in the Apostle's style? Take we it, then, and bless him with it; "taste and see how gracious the Lord is;" see and behold how fair he is, how amiable and lovely; and be ravished with his beauty and sweetness, and never think we can be satisfied with it, with seeing, or hearing, or blessing him, but be always doing so for ever.

So shall he make us fair with his beauty, good with his grace, happy with his blessedness, bring us one day to see his face in perfect beauty, and so see his grace poured out into glory, there to bless, and praise, and magnify him for

ever.

THE SIXTH SERMON

ON

CHRISTMAS-DAY.

S. LUKE i. 68, 69.

Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people. And hath raised up an horn of salva tion for us in the house of his servant David.

X.

IT is a blessed day, our blessed Saviour's birthday; and SERMON a blessed text we have here for it-both a day and text to bless him in; a text top-full of blessings, and a day wherein they came; blessed persons, and blessed doings in the text. Blessed persons: the blessed God, our blessed Lord, blessed David; and a blessed people, for a redeemed people are so. "Blessed are the people that are in such a case.' Blessed doings in it too. God blessing, and man blessing: God visiting, redeeming, saving mightily, saving Israel: and one of Israel, in the name of all the rest, mightily blessing him for so doing to it. All these blessings as well remembered as came in the day. Never was text so fraught with blessings: never rose day so fair with blessings: never saw Israel such a one before: never shall Israel or any people see such a day again for blessings, till we come into the land of blessedness.

All that can be said to dim it is, that this is not the day that blessed Zachary gave this blessing in; it may be, nor was this the day that God gave this blessing, neither. Time itself runs upon such uneven wheels, that we are fain to borrow hours and minutes to make up the reckoning of our years and days. It is enough that we count near it; it were

X.

SERMON enough if it were a day only set apart by holy Church to recount it in, though it were nothing near it, nothing near the day when the Lord God of Israel thus visited and redeemed his people. Our business is, not to be exact chronologers of the days of our salvation, but exact performers of our duties, our thanksgivings and praises for it.

Good Zachary does it here before this redemption was fully wrought, six months before this "horn of salvation" did appear. If we do it a few days before or after, it matters not. To bless God for it, that is the business: only we must be allowed a day to do it in, either first or last; but the Church having pitched it generally everywhere much about this time, we take it as we find it; quarrel no more with the Church for doing it now, than we do with Zachary for doing it then, when he more forestalled the time than we can possibly mistake it.

Being, therefore, come hither to-day upon that accountthe account of blessing God; and having here a day of blessing, and a text of blessing, we shall divide the words into blessings too.

God's blessing and man's blessing; God's blessing man, and man's blessing God again.

I. God's blessing hath in it these particulars.

(1.) His visiting: "he hath visited." (2.) His redeeming us: "and redeemed." (3.) His saving or raising up a "salvation for us." That salvation, (4,) no mean or little one, but "a mighty salvation:" so one of our translations. A salvation (5) with a horn to hold by, "a horn of salvation:" so the other, "a sure salvation." "For us," (6,) all of us, the very people to hold by; an universal salvation. A salvation (7) "raised up ;" an eminent salvation. "Raised up" (8) in the right house, " in the house of David,” a royal, a glorious salvation. Raised up, lastly, upon a right ground too-David's relation to him: "his servant David ;" or God's goodness to his servants: a singular and especial salvation for them above the rest. This is God's blessing man, the first general with the particulars.

II. Man's blessing God is the second, and that has these: (1.) An acknowledgment of God's blessings, and his blessedness, visiting, redeeming, saving, &c. That blessings they