(2.) We resign and surrender ourselves to God. When the saints choose God for their portion, they give up themselves to God again.. Look, as in the covenant that was made between the prophet and hi» wife : Hosea iii. 3, ' Thou shalt not be for another man, so will I also be for thee,' so in the covenant that is between the Lord and us ; he is- for us, and we are to be for liim ; we take him for our portion, and give up ourselves to him again as his people. All that is God's is ours,. hi» grace, mercy, love, justice, truth, wisdom, all is made over to us; s.v.d all that is ours must be God's, our life, strength, reputation, time, parts,, estate, interests, relations, our all is his : 2 Cln-on. xxx. 8, ' Yield your- selves unto the Lord,' or give the hand unto the Lord. GckI and we do as it were strike hands, and there is a bargain made between us; all that God is and can do, so far as we can receive it, is made over to us ; and then all that we are and can do is altogether for God. We eat and drink to him, and trade to him, and set ourselves apart to live ancJ act for God. There is a mutual taking and giving ; Cant. vi. 3, ' I ana my beloved's, and my beloved is mine' Thus they may be knowaby the manner of their coming into this relation.
2. By their manner of living and walking in this relation. They glorify him as God. It was the fault of the gentiles that ' when they knew God, they glorified him not as God,' Eom. i. 21. But the people
346 SERMONS UPON HEBREWS XT. [SeR. L.
of God glorify him as God by subjection and dependence ; in respect of his snperiority and supremacy, so they profess subjection to God ; and in respect of sufficiency and ability, so they profess dependence upon God.
[1.] By subjection to him. When God gave the law, he said, ' I am the Lord thy God,' Exo<l. xx. 2. Many would depend upon God when they would not obey him; they will lean upon the Lord, and say, 'Is not the Lord among us ?' Micah iii. IL But they are (iod's people that walk in obedience to him. God is our God whether we will or no, in point of supremacy ; he hath a right to rule and govern us, and a ])Ower to punish and destroy us; but we own him as a God by a full, and free, and voluntary subjection and obedience to his laws. When the people of Israel entered into covenant with the Lord, you find : Exod. xxiv. 7, ' He took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people, and they said, All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient.' And you may observe that Moses sprinkled half the blood upon the altar and half the blood upon the people, vers. 6, 8. The covenant bindeth mutually. God doth come under an obligation to us : there is half the blood sprinkled upon the altar, and we come under an obligation to be subject to God ; there was half the blood sprinkled upon the people. Subjection is a necessary respect from the creature to the creator : God never made any creatures but he put them under some law. The angels are under a law, and they must yield him homage, love, and service. The whole frame of nature is under a law and decree that they cannot pass ; so are we under a law to God ; but we would tread out the corn, and will not endure the yoke. But as we take God for our God, so we must yield him homage, love, and service.
[2.] By dependence. Trust is the creature's best respects, and pro- per to God. There is a moderate love that we have to other things, but if we trust in them, we rob God of his proper due ; and thi.s is idolatry, for we make that our (lod which we depend upon, and have recourse to in straits and extremities, as the ' mariners called every man upon his god,' Jonah i. 5. Love is an acknowledgment of God's goodness, but trust acknowledgeth many of his attributes at once, his power, his love, his truth, his justice, and so glorifietii God as God. In the covenant God requireth obedience, but chiefly dependence, be- cause we depend upon him for strength to yield that obedience. We do not only ilepend upon him for blessings to be peiformed on his part, but likewise for strength to peiform the duties that are required on our pait. The great intent of the covenant of gi'ace is that we may be nothing in ourselves, aud look for all from God ; and therefore those p«ople whose God is the Lord, as they choose God, and give up them- selves to him, so they live in subjection to him and dependence on him.
TJiirdly. How is it to be improved?
1. To contentment and complacency in our portion. Surely we have cause to be contented. To our happiness there needeth no more than God. Can we find any want in him ? Ps. xvi. 5, 6, 'The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance, and of my cup ; thou maintainest ray lot. The lines are fallen to me in a pleasant place ; yea, I have a