Thirdly, All eternal good things. Heaven, glory, and eternal life, Rom. viii. 10, 11. No such bequests as these were ever found in the testaments of princes. That which kings and nobles settle by will upon their heirs, are but trifles to what Christ hath conferred in the New Testament upon his people. And all this is confirmed and ratified by the death of Christ, so that the promise is sure, and the estate indefeasible to all the heirs of pro- mise.
How the death of Christ confirmed the New Testament is worth our enquiry. The Socinians, as they allow no other end of Christ's death, but the confirmation of the New Testament, so they affirm he did it only by way of testimony, or witness-bearing in his death. But this is a vile derogation from the efficacy of Christ's blood, to bring it down into an equality with the blood of martyrs. As if there were no more in it than w<as in their blood.
But know, reader, Christ died not only, or principally, to con- firm the Testament by his blood, as witness to the truth of those things, but his death ratified it as the death of a testator, which makes the New Testament irrevocable. And so Christ is called in this text. Look as when a man hath made his will, and is dead,
* NuMo jrrrrsentis mctu vcriculi, i. e. Without any fear of present danger. Coke** Instit. I o. cap. 10.
482 THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. SERM. XXXVIlL
that will is presently in force, and can never be recalled. Besides, the will of the dead, is sacred with men. They dare not cross it. It is certain the last will and testament of Christ is most sacred, and God will never annul or make it void. Moreover, it is not with Christ as with other testators, who die, and must trust the perform- ance of their wills with their executors, but as he died to put it in force, so he lives again to be the executor of his own testament. And all power to fulfil his will is now in his own hands, Rev. i. 18.
Inference 1. Did Christ die to confirm the New Testament, in which such legacies are bequeathed to believers. How are all be- lievers concerned then to prove the will of a dead Jesus ! My
rpi 7 , n meaning is, to clear their title to the mercies
r*i - ±-> i j. ni contained in this blessed testament. And this Christ s last will , -, n ,
t . . . may be clone two ways. iJy clearing to our-
and testament. ,J . J, . * . ~, .». . ,
selves our covenant-relations to Christ. And
by discovering those special covenant-impressions upon our hearts,
to which the promises therein contained, do belong.
First, Examine your relations to Christ. Are you his spouse ? Have you forsaken all for him ? Psal. xlv. 10. Are you ready to take your lot with him, as it falls in prosperity or adversity ? Jer. ii. % And are you loyal to Christ ! " Thou shalt be for me, and ft not for another," Hos. iii. 3. Do you yield obedience to him as your Head and Husband ? Eph. vi. 24. then you may be confi- dent you are interested in the benefits and blessings of Christ's last will and testament; for can you imagine Christ- will make a testa- ment and forget his spouse? It cannot be. If he so loved the church as to give himself for her, much more what he hath is set- tled on her. Again, are you his spiritual seed, his children by re- generation ? Are you born of the Spirit ? John iii. Do you resem- ble Christ in holiness? 1 Pet. i. 14, 15. Do you find a reverential fear of Christ carrying you to obey him in all things ? Mai. i. 6. Are you led by the Spirit of Christ ? " As many as are so led, " they are the sons of God," Rom. viii. 14. To conclude, Have you the spirit of adoption, enabling you to cry, Abba, Father ? Gal. iv. 6. that is, helping you in a gracious manner, with reverence mixed with filial confidence, to open your hearts spiritually to your Father on all occasions ? If so, you are children ; and if children, doubt not but you have a rich legacy in Christ's last will and testa- ment. He would not seal up his testament, and forget his dear children.
Secondly, You may discern your interest in the new testament or covenant (for they are substantially the same thing) by the new covenant-impressions that are made on your hearts, which are so many clear evidences of your right to the benefits it contains.
SERM. XXXV1IT. THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. 483
Such are spiritual illuminations, Jer. xxxi. 34. gracious softness and tenderness of heart, Ezek. xi. 19. the awful dread and fear of God, Jer. xxxii. 43. the copy or transcript of his Jaws on your hearts in gracious correspondent principles, Jer. xxxi. 38. These things speak you the children of the covenant, the persons on whom all these great things are settled.
Inf. 2. To conclude, it is the indispcnsible duty of all on whom Christ hath settled such mercies, to admire his love, and walk an- swerably to it.
First, Admire the love of Christ. O how intense and ardent was the love of Jesus ! who designed for you such an inheritance, with such a settlement of it upon you ! These are the mercies with which his love had travailed big from eternity, and now he sees the travail of his soul, and you also have seen somewhat of it this day. Before this love let all the saints fall down astonished, humbly professing that they owe themselves, and all they are, or shall be worth, to eternity, to this love.
Secondly, And be sure you walk becoming persons for whom Christ hath done such great things. Comfort yourselves under present abasures with your spiritual privileges, James ii. 5. and let all your rejoicing be in Christ, and what you have in him, whilst others are blessing themselves in vanity. Thus we have finished the state of Christ's humiliation, and thence proceed to the second state of his exaltation.
An Introduction to the State of Exaltation.
Having finished what I designed to speak to, about the work of redemption, so far as it was carried on by Christ in his humble state, we shall now view that blessed work as it is further advanced, and perfected in his state of exaltation.
The whole of that work was not to be finished on earth in a state of suffering and abasure, therefore the apostle makes his exaltation, in order to the finishing of the remainder of his work, so necessary a part of his priesthood, that without it he could not have been a priest, Heb. viii. 4. " If he were on earth he should " not be a priest," i. e. if he should have continued always here, and had not been raised again from the dead, and taken up into glory, he could not have been a complete and perfect priest.
For look, as it was not enough for the sacrifice to be slain with- out, and his blood left there ; but after it was shed without, it must be carried within the vail, into the most holy place before the Lord, Heb. ix. 7. so it was not sufficient that Christ shed his own blood on earth, except he carry it before the Lord into heaven, and there perform his intercession-work for us.
Moreover. God the Father stood engaged in a solemn covenant
484 THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. J5ERM. XXXVIII.