Our sufferings (saith one) are washed in the blood of Christ, as well as our souls. " For Christ's merits bought a blessing to the " crosses of the sons of God. Our troubles owe us a free passage u through him. Devils, and men, and crosses, are our debtors ; " and death, and all storms are our debtors, to blow our poor " tossed bark over the water freight-free : and to set the travellers " in their own known ground. Therefore we shall die, and yet " live. — I know no man hath a velvet cross, but the cross is made " of what God will have it ; but verily, howbeit, it be no war- " ran table market to buy a cross, yet I dare not say, O that I had u liberty to sell Christ's cross, lest therewith also I should sell joy, " comfort, sense of love, patience, and the kind visits of a bride- " groom. — I have but small experience of sufferings for Christ, but k* let my Judge and witness in heaven, lay my soul in the balance " of justice; if I find not a young heaven, and a little paradise of u glorious comforts, and soul-delighting love-kisses of Christ in " suffering for him and his truth. — My prison is my palace, my " sorrow is with child of joy ; my losses are rich losses, my pain " easy pain, my heavy days are holy days and happy days. I may " tell a new tale of Christ to my friends. — O what owe I to the " file, and to the hammer, and to the furnace of my Lord Jesus ! " who hath now let me see how good the wheat of Christ is, that " goes through his mill, and his oven, to be made bread for his " own table. Grace tried is better than grace, and more than " grace. It is glory in its infancy.
" Who knows the truth of grace without a trial. — O how little " getteth Christ of us, but what he winneth (to speak so) with " much toil and pains ? And how soon would faith freeze without " a cross ? Bear your cross therefore with joy.'"
Inf. 4. Did Christ die the death, yea, the worst of deaths for us? Then it follows, that our mercies arc brought forth with great difficulty ; and that which is szveet to us in the fruition, was costly, and hard to Christ in the acquisition. Surely, upon every mercy we have this motto written, The price of Blood, Col. i. 14. " In whom " we have redemption through his blood :" Upon which a late neat * writer delivers himself thus. " The way of grace is here
532 THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. SERM. XXVT.
" considerable ; life comes through death ; God comes in Christ ; " and Christ comes in blood : the choicest mercies come through " the greatest miseries ; prime favours come swimming in blood to " us. Through a red sea Israel came to Canaan. Many a man " lost bis life, and much blood shed ; the very land flowing with " milk and honey was first made to flow with blood, ere Israel " could inherit the promise. Seven nations were destroyed, ere " the land of Canaan was divided to the Israelites, Acts xiii. 19. — " Sin makes mercy so deadly hard to bring forth. To christen " every precious child, every Benjamin, Benoni, every son of " God's right-hand, a son of sorrow and death to her that brings " him forth. Adam's sweets had no bitter till he transgressed *' God's will : one mercy did not die to bring forth another, till e( he died. But oh ! how should this raise the value of our mer- w cies ? What, the price of blood, the price of precious blood, the " blood of the cross ! O what an esteem should this raise !
" Things (as the same ingenious author adds) are prized rather " as they come, than as they are. Far fetched and dear bought " makes all the price, and gives all the worth with us weak crea- " tures. Upon this ground the scripture, when it speaks of our " great fortune, tells the great price it cost, as eyeing our weak- u ness, who look more at what things cost, than at what they " are. And as knowing if any thing will take with us, this will, " To him tliat loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own, « blood, Rev. i. 5.
" Man is a legal creature, and looks much at what is given for " a thing. . What did this cost ? Why, it cost Christ's own " blood. Colour is more than the cloth with us, and scarlet colour " is a general taking colour with us : and therefore is Christ's gar- " ment dipped in blood, and he admired in this habit. Who is " this that cometh from Edom, with garments dyed red from « Bozra ?"
Beware then you abuse not any of the mercies that Christ brought forth with so many bitter pangs and throes. And let all this endear Christ more than ever to you, and make you in a deep sense of his grace and love, to say,
Thanks be to God for Jesus Christ.
SERM. XXVIT. THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. 335
Of the signal Providence, which directed and ordered the Title affixed to the cross of Christ.
And a Superscription also was written over him in letters of Greek,
and Latin, and Hebrew; This is the King of the Jews.
JlJEFORE I pass on to the Manner of Christ's death, I shall consider the title affixed to the cross; in which very much of the wisdom of Providence was discovered. It was the manner of theRomans, that the equity of their proceedings might the more clearly appear to the people, when they crucified any man, to pub- lish the cause of his death, in a table written in capital letters, and placed over the head of the crucified. And that there might be at least, a shew and face of justice in Christ's death, he also shall have his title or superscription.
The worst and most unrighteous actions labour to cover and shroud themselves under pretension of equity. Sin is so shameful a thing, that it cares not to own its name. Christ shall have a table written for him also. This writing one evangelist calls the Accusa- tion, a ma, Matth. xxvii. 37. Another calls it the Title, r/rXo;t John xix. 19. Another the Inscription or Superscription, vriypuyn so the text. And another the Superscription of his Accusation^ svr/pa<pv} r?is curias, Mark xv. 26. In short, it was a fair legible wri- ting, intended to express the fact or crime, for which the person died.
This was their usual manner, though sometimes we find it was published by the voice of the common cryer. As in the case of * Attalus the martyr, who was led about the amphitheatre, one proclaiming before him, This is Attalus the Christian, But it was customary and usual to express the crime in a written table, as the text expresses it. Wherein these three things offer themselves to your consideration.
First, The character or description of Christ, contained in that writing. And he is described by his kingly dignity : -f* This is the King of the Jews. The very office, which but a little before, they had reproached and derided, bowing the knee to him in mock- ery, saying, Hail King of the Jews : the Providence of God so orders it, that therein he shall be vindicated and honoured. This
* Euseb. Eccles. Hist. lib. 5. c. 1.
f The full title was, This is Jesus of Nazareth the King of the Jeivs. Par.
834 THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. SERM. XXVII.