His own people in particular may discern unnumbered instances of his goodness in his dispensations towards them— His most afflictive as well as his more pleasing dispensations afford them much occasion for gratitude and thanksgiving-] 2. As a God of grace [Jesus is the one fountain of spiritual blessings to his churchd Neither prophets nor apostles had any grace but from hime To him must we ascribe every good disposition that is in our hearts What reason then have his faithful followers to bless his name! How thankful should they be that he called them by his grace! That he so distinguished them, not only from the fallen angels, but from multitudes of the human race! With what gratitude should they acknowledge his continued kindness! Though they have often turned back from him, he has not cast them off Yea rather, he has "healed their backslidings and loved them freely" Surely, every blessing they receive, and every victory they gain, should fill them with admiring thoughts of his good ness Let every soul then comply with that injunction of the Psalmisth And, like him, repeat the wish, which a sense of his mercies must inspire-] If we have just conceptions of his goodness we shall be more able to behold II. His beauty The world behold "no beauty nor comeliness in" the face of Jesus-- But the saints of "old saw his glory as the glory of the only-begotten of the Father" This we also may see, if we survey 1. In his divine character him ["We cannot by searching find out the Almighty to perfection". c Ps. cxix. 75. f Phil. ii. 13. Heb. xii. 2. i Ps. cvii. 8, 15, 21, 31. d Eph. i. 22. g 2 Cor. ii. 14. e John i. 16. Ps. cxlv. 7. Little do we know of the greatness of his majesty, or the thunder of his powerk We cannot comprehend his unsearchable wisdom, his unspotted holiness, his inviolable truth and faithfulness We can scarcely form any idea of the inflexibility of his justice, the extent of his mercy, or the heights and depths of his love We know that Jesus is the brightness of his Father's glory, and the express image of his person But when we attempt to delineate that image, we only "darken counsel by words without knowledge""_—_—_—_—_ His glory is more than the feeble language of mortality can express-] 2. In his human character [Here we look at him, as the Jews at Moses when his face was veiled And can contemplate him more easily, because he shines with a less radiant lustre Doubtless while he lay in the manger the virtues of his mind beamed forth in his countenance Nor is it to be wondered at that the Jewish doctors were so filled with admiration at him while he was yet a child But principally must we view him during the course of his ministry What marvellous compassion did he manifest to the souls and bodies of men! Not one applied to him for bodily or spiritual health without obtaining his request And when many were hardened in their sins he wept over themP Yea, he even pleaded the cause of those who mocked and reviled him on the cross His zeal for God was ardent and unremitted It was Father" "his meat and drink to do the will of his heavenly Nor could any thing for one moment divert or deter him from the prosecution of his work His meekness, patience, fortitude were altogether invinci ble Whatever was amiable and excellent in man abounded in him He was not merely virtuous, but virtue itself incarnate k Job. xxvi. 14. a Job xxxviii. 2. 4 Luke xxiii. 34. Eph. iii. 19. • Luke ii. 46, 47. m Heb. i. 3. Nor, though continually tried in the hottest furnace, was there found in him the smallest imperfection or alloys-] 3. In his mediatorial character man! [With what readiness did he become a surety for sinful What astonishing condescension did he manifest in uniting himself to our nature! How cheerfully did he go forth to meet the sufferings that were appointed for him In the garden and on the cross, when to the eye of sense "his visage was marred more than any man's," his beauty was most conspicuous to the eye of faith His obedience unto death was the fruit of his love, and the price of our redemption— How beautiful is he now in the eyes of those who behold his glory! And how will he "be admired and glorified by all" in the last day! Satan must have blinded us indeed if we be yet insensible to his charms" If we be true believers, he cannot but be precious to our souls-] APPLICATION 1. To those who have never yet beheld the goodness and beauty of the Lord [We speak not now to those who seek his face, and long to enjoy him For though their sorrow endure for a night, joy will come to them in the morning But they, who pant not after him, are miserably ignorant of his excellency Their views of Christ are different from those of the most competent judges And different from what they will shortly be in the eternal world Let such persons diligently consider the Saviour's cha racter And cry to God for that Spirit whose office it is to reveal Christ unto us s John xiv. 30. t Ps. xl. 7, 8. u 2 Cor. iv. 4. * 1 Pet. ii. 7. y To the Father he is "chosen and precious," 1 Pet. ii. 4.; to the angels, the subject of their praise, Rev. v. 11, 12.; to saints of old, an object of great desire, Hag. ii. 7. John viii. 56.; to all pious men at this time, their supreme good, Phil. iii. 7, 8. Then shall they both see the King in his beauty, and be changed into his image] 2. To those whose eyes have been opened to behold him [Let your meditations of him be more sweet and frequent However much you know of him, there are unsearchable depths unfathomed Let your determination therefore accord with that of Davida View him as appointing your trials, and dispensing your mercies Consider him as the fountain from whence you are to have supplies of grace Look to him as the example which you are continually to follow Above all, rely on him as expiating your guilt, and interceding for you Thus will you glory in him as your "friend and your be loved" And at last will see him as he is and be like him for ever] z Isai. xxxiii. 17. 2 Cor. iii. 18. a Ps. xxvii. 4. CCVII. THE NATURE OF THE GOSPEL. Isai. lii. 7. How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth! IN order to understand the prophetic writings we must always bear in mind that they have a spiritual or mystical sense, as well as a plain and literal one-The words before us, in their primary meaning, evidently refer to the joy, with which the proclamation of Cyrus, when he permitted the captive Jews to return from Babylon to their native country, would be received-But they certainly relate also to the deliverance announced to us under the gospel dispensation; for it is in this view that they are quoted by the apostle Paul-We shall take occasion from them to shew I. What the gospel is It is described with sufficient accuracy in the text: it is 1. A proclamation of "peace and salvation" to man [The gospel supposes men to have offended God, and to be obnoxious to his everlasting displeasure-It further sup poses that they have no way of conciliating the divine favour, or of warding off the stroke of his indignation-Coming to men in this helpless, and hopeless state, it publisheth tidings of peace and salvation: it represents sin as expiated by the atoning blood of Jesus; and God as reconciled to all who will trust in his meritorious and all-prevailing sacrifice-This is the view which St. Paul himself gives us of the gospel; in preaching of which gospel ministers resemble the messengers sent to Babylon, who had nothing to do but to proclaim a full and free deliverance to the wretched captives"] 2. A declaration of Christ's power and grace [The Chaldeans, who so grievously oppressed their Jewish captives, may justly represent to us the bitter and tyrannical dominion of sin and satan; and Cyrus, who, without fee or reward, liberated them from their bondage, may be considered as the agent and representative of the Deity-As therefore the messengers would not fail to remind the Jews that Cyrus, the one author of their happiness, would continue to them his protection and favour while they maintained their allegiance to him; so, in preaching the gospel, we are to declare, that Christ, to whom we owe the beginnings of our liberty, will complete our deliverance, and continue to us all the tokens of his love, provided we yield him, as we are in duty bound, a willing and unreserved obedience-Thus did Christ himself preach the gospel, saying, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand-] If we view the gospel in this light, we shall see immediately II. That it is a ground of joy By a beautiful figure, the very steps of the messenger hastening over the distant mountains are represented as inspiring us with joy. That the gospel itself is a source of joy, appears in that 1. It has been considered so from the first moment of its promulgation [Abraham, two thousand years before its promulgation, b 2 Cor. v. 18-20. ⚫ Comp. Mark i. 14, 15. with Matt. iv. 17: |