helped to bury Christ, he made it manifest to all Israel that " his deeds were wroa-ht in God."
Let it be noted, that the two verses which conclude our Lord's address to Nicodemus are a most instructive test of the sincer ty and reality of persons who appear anxious inq[uirer3 in religion. If they are honest and true they will go on, and come to the full light of Christ. If they are not honest and sincere, but only influenced by temporary excitement, ihey will probably go back from the light, and will certainly not close with Christ and become his disciples. This should be pressed by ministers on all inquirers. " If you are true you will come to the light. If you are not true, you will go back, or stand still ; you will not draw near and close with Christ." The test will never be found to fail. Those who wish to see how ex- ceedingly weak the beginnings of grace may be in a heart, and yet be true, as it proved in the case of Nicodemus, wiil find the matter most skilfully treated in a small Avork of Perkins, little known, called "A Grain of Mustard Seed." A man may have the beginning of regeneration in his heart, and yet be so ignorant as not to know what regeneration is.
In concluding these long notes, for the length of which the immense importance of the passage must be my apology, I think we should remark that we never hear a word about Nicodemus being baptized ! This fact is a strong incidental evidence to my mind, that the baptism of water was not the subject which our Lord had in view when he told Nicodemus that he must be 1 orn of water and the Spirit.
One other thing ought to be remarked, in leaving this subject of ()ur Lord's conversation with Nicodemus. That thing is the singular fulness of matter by wliich the whole of our Lord's address is characterized. Within the space of twenty verses we read of the work of all Three Perspns in the Trinity, — the Father's love, the Son's death on the cross, and the Spirit's operation in the new birth of man, — the corruption of man's nature, the nature of regeneration, and the efficacy of faith in Christ, — the way to escape perishing in hell, the true cause of man's condemnation if ^le is lost, and the true marks of sincerity in an inquirer. A fuller sermon was never del'vered than that which was here preached to Nicodemus in one even- ing I There is hardly a single important point in divinity which is I'.ft untouched I