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it be riches, then place those riches on high, where you can ultimately find them; but let them be the true riches. Place them in Jesus Christ, then you place them as high as God himself; and before you can be deprived of them, he must himself undergo a change. "If thou seek him," then "he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever."

VI.

I am

REV. XXI. 6.- "And he said unto me, It is done. Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely."

[PREACHED AT CAMBRIDGE, FEB. 14, 1802.]

WITHOUT detaining you by any introduction, I shall at once proceed,

I. To explain what is meant by the subject of this promise, which is couched in figurative terms.

It is evidently something extraordinary, from the solemn and magnificent manner in which it is introduced by the Being that inhabits eternity. A command is given to John to write the contents of it: "He said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the

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fountain of the water of life freely." It is certain that what is introduced by God with so much pomp and solemnity means something spiritual and divine, something that bears no sort of relation to worldly good; for it is to be conferred in full perfection after the resurrection of the dead, when "both small and great shall stand before God," and every one be judged "according to the deeds done in the body;" when "the sea shall give up the dead which are in it, and death and the grave deliver up their dead;" when the great business shall be finally settled, and "all things shall be made new. Nothing will then remain, excepting that which good men will enjoy in God,-his everlasting favour, communicated to them through Jesus Christ. His is a free gift, and therefore the proper subject of promise. Man, had he continued innocent, would have obtained a reward for his obedience; but, having incurred the divine displeasure by sin, he can only be restored by a free act of grace. Jesus Christ is the channel by whom all favours are bestowed; and he is appointed to be the "Head over all things to the Church" "of him, and to him, and through him, are all things." We are reconciled to God by his death and sacrifice. Such an illustrious sacrifice being made for sin, God will forgive and renovate sinners, and restore them to that state which they had lost by their iniquities.

The blessings which are conferred in consequence of recovering the divine favour, are frequently compared to water. Isaiah, the evangelical prophet,

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and drink."

as he is called, declares, in the name of God, "I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring," and "with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation." Again, "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters." Our blessed Lord also adopted this figure, to convey the idea of spiritual blessings. "He that believeth in me shall never thirst." " If any man thirst, let him come unto me In his discourse with the woman of Samaria, he compares them to a spring of living water, than which nothing can more properly represent the purifying, sanctifying nature of religion. They are also compared to bread, which Jesus Christ came down from heaven to give. There are many figures in this book, taken from paradise; such as, for instance, a fountain of life; alluding to that river which went out of Eden to water the garden, whence it was parted into four heads. The apostle John says, " He shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb." As man, in a state of innocence, had a tree of life, so this has a tree of life, which bears twelve manner of fruits; and, to raise our conceptions of its nature, it is said to "yield her fruit every month, and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations."

"I will give to him that is athirst." By this thirst is meant a vehement desire after the promises of the gospel; but it is proper to consider it somewhat more distinctly and at large.

First, It implies a conviction of the vanity of the world, and its utter insufficiency to constitute our bliss. Whatever individuals have sought happiness in the waters of the world,-if honest, they must confess that they have never found it. They turn from the pleasures of sense and the gaieties of youth, to the pursuits of ambition; they consider time is lost, unless it increases their fountain of influence; they dismiss all thoughts of God until old age advises them that they must quit their sins, and then they confess the vanity of their condition. But the sacred Spirit of God, the wisdom that is from above, teaches us differently, without waiting for the slow confessions of age. It teaches us, that the present state is but a passage, not a final home; that it was never fitted for us as a final end. This wisdom instructs all her children that an imperishable substance must have an imperishable good. Having obtained the true knowledge of God, the mind naturally yields itself up to his disposal,-conscious of the divine favour as that true centre to which every thing really excellent tends. Wisdom teaches true christians to look with compassion upon those who have their portion in this world. They see the world full only of fading charms,—they perceive that every thing the world calls great is nothing but a magnificent ruin, if God and religion are excluded from the prospect; and their language is, with David, “Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee."

Secondly, The thirst to which the promise is

Let

made, intends not only a conviction of the vanity of the world, but of the reality and importance of spiritual blessings. There is sufficient evidence to satisfy every reasonable man of the truth; yet this disposition of mind is sometimes stamped as enthusiasm: but let every one here consider it as that which God and scripture sanction. If you have any doubts on the subject, consider only the general tenor of the word of God, and you will find that "these are the true sayings of God:" and, from the foresight of the disposition of man to disbelieve them, he commands the apostle to write-" for these words are true and faithful.” Remember the invitations of God; "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters." those who entertain doubt, attend to the experience of the pious in every age of the world, and in every dispensation. There is, assuredly, some credit to be given to those who have attested the truth of religion. Let infidels ridicule them, or those who feel not the power of religion; but may my lot be to live with them who say with Jacob, "I have waited for thy salvation, O Lord!" God is accustomed to reward his servants by giving them present comfort, and, in anticipation of future blessedness, the heirs of heaven are sealed by the Spirit of God to the day of redemption; but to drink unmingled happiness is the privilege of those who are around the throne of God. Yet there is a river, even here, "the streams whereof make glad the city of God."

Thirdly, This thirst is to be understood as that

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