Christ was never more lovely to his church than when he was most deformed for his church ; ' there was no fonn nor beauty in him,' Isa. liii. 2, when he hung upon the cross. Oh ! there was a beauty to a guilty soul, to see his surety enduring the wrath of God, overcoming all his enemies, and nailing the law to his cross. And that should endear Chiist to us above all things. He should be the dearer to us, the more vile and base he was made for us, and he should be most lovely in our eyes, when he was least lovely in his own, and when he was deformed, when our sins were upon him. We should consider those times especially. The world is most offended at that, that a Christian most joys in. ' God forbid that I should joy in any- thing but in the cross of Christ,' Gal. vi. 14, saith St Paul ; so we should joy in and love that especially in Christ.
Now this love of God in Christ, and this love of Christ, is expressed to us in the Scriptui-es at large ; it is published by the ministry, sealed by the sacrament. It is too large an argument for me to wade into. I need but only give you a touch and taste of it.
Now, that that makes the house of God so beautiful, then, is the love of God, and the love of Christ shewed and manifested, and the jjresence of God, of Christ, and of the Hob/ Ghost in the church. Take it for the persons ; God the Father, as he hath revealed himself a Father in Chi-ist, he is among the people of God in the church, and there is God the Son, and the Holy Ghost, dispensing graces and comfort there. It is the presence of the king that makes the court, and it is the presence of God in the church that makes it so glorious and so excellent as it is. ' Glorious things are spoken of thee, thou city of God,' Ps. Ixxxvii. 3,
The church likewise is beautiful in regard of the anrjels, that are alivay attending in our assemblies, and see how we cany ourselves. Here is not only the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost distributing gi-ace and mercy, but Ukewise the blessed angels, as pure instruments are in our assemblies. Therefore in the cm-tains, in the hangings of the ark, there were pictures of cherubins, to shew that the angels attend about the church, especially the church gathered together ; for God more respects the church gathered to- gether than any several member. We are all temples severally, but espe- cially the church is the temple when it is met together. Now by the cherubins in the curtains of the tabernacle, was set forth the angels' at- tendance upon the church. They are servants to do good to the church ; and they are fellow-students with us. They study the mysteries of salvation, the I)eauty of God, the wonderful transcendent love, and grace, and mercy of God to his church, as it is in 1 Pet. i. 10, 11. ' The angels pry into the
282 A BREATHING AFTEE GOD.
mysteries of salvation ; ' they are students with us of those blessed mysteries. Something is revealed to them, some grace and mercy to the church, that they knew not before experimentally.
And it is beautiful likewise in regard of the church itself. The people of God themselves are beautiful ; for order is beautiful. Now it is an orderly thing to see many together to submit themselves to the ordinance of God. * The glory of a king is in the multitude of subjects,' Prov. xiv. 28 ; and it is a glorious thing for God to have many subjects meekly meeting to- gether to attend his pleasure. An army is a beautiful thing, because of the order, and of the weU disposed ranks that are within it. In this regard the church is beautiful.
That which makes the house of God beautiful more especially, is the means of salvation : not only God's presence, but the means, solemn and public prayer, the word and sacraments, and likewise the government, that should be in purging the church, — all make the church of God beautiful and lovely. All the ordinances of God in the church of God have a dehght in them to spiritual senses.
1. As for the ordl nance of the uvrd, it is wondrous delightful, 'sweeter than the honeycomb,' Ps. xix. 10, especially the ordinance unfolding tlie word, the word as it is preached, which is the ' opening of the box.' A box of sweet ointment, if it be not opened, it casts not a sweet savour all the house over ; but when the box is opened, the savour comes over all the house. So the pubUshing of the word in the ordinance, is the opening of the box, the lifting up of the brazen serpent. If the serpent were [not] lift up for the wounded person, he could not behold it. Now [that] Christ is lift up in the ordinance, every wounded soul may look to Christ. The preaching of the word, is the lifting up of the banner of Christ's love. As it is in the Canticles, Christ's love as a banner draws all after him. "When the beauty of Christ is unfolded, it draws the wounded, hungry soul unto him. The preaching of the word doth that that shews the sweet love of God in Jesus Christ. This makes the ordinance of the ministry so sweet. The ordinance of the ministiy is that that distributes the portion to every child of God. The ministers of God are stewards, as it were, to distribute comfort and reproof to whom it belongs. Now where there is a convenient distributing of the portion to every one, that makes the ordinance of God so beautiful, when the waters of life are derived from the spring of the Scriptm'e to eveiy particular man's use. The word, in the application ot it, is a sweet thing. For good things, the nearer they are brought home, the more delightful they are. This ordinance of preaching, it lays open the ' riches of Christ.' There may be a gi'eat deal of riches wrapped up in a treasury, but this opens the treasury, as St Paul saith, ' to lay open the unsearchable riches of Christ,' Eph. iii. 8. The ministry of the word is ordained to lay open the treasure to God's people, that they may know what riches they have by Christ ; and the end of the ministry is to win the people's love to Christ. Therefore they come between the bride and bride- groom to procure the marriage ; therefore they lay open that that procures the contract here, and the consummation in heaven ; so to woo for Chiist, and ' beseech them to be reconciled to God,' 2 Cor. v. 20. This is the end of the ministry. This makes the church of God so beautiful, that it hath this ordinance in it, to bring God, and Christ, and his people together : to contract them together. There be rich mmes in the Scripture, but they must be digged up. The ministry serves to dig up those mines. God hath therefore set apart this calUng of the ministiy, to shew what belongs