ment which Christ has offered! In the view of its acceptable- ness to God, and in direct reference to the meat-offering, it is thus noticed by St. Paul ; " He gave himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour e." And, as having laid, by his own death, the foundation of his spiritual temple, he is said to be "precious unto man also, even unto all them that believe f."
Moreover the efficacy of his atonement is as immutable as God himself. In this, as well as in every other respect, " Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, to-day, and for everg." The virtue of his blood to cleanse from sin, was not more powerful in the day when it purified three thousand converts, than it is at this hour, and shall be to all who trust in ith.]
2. In reference to our services- —
[Let the ideas of savouriness and perpetuity be transferred to these also, and it will appear that this exposition is not dictated by fancy, but by the Scriptures themselves.
A mere formal service, destitute of life and power, may be justly spoken of in the same humiliating terms as a false pro- fessor, " It is not fit for the land, nor yet for the dunghill1." Hence our Lord says, in reference to the very injunction before us, " Every sacrifice shall be salted with salt. Salt is good: but if the salt have lost its saltness, wherewith will you season it? Have salt within yourselves11." What can this mean, but that there should be a life and power in all our services, an heavenliness and spirituality in our whole deportment? We should have in ourselves1, and present to Godm, and diffuse on all around usn, a " savour of the knowledge of Christ."
Nor is the continuance or perpetuity of our services less strongly marked: for in addition to the remarkable expressions of our Lord before cited0, St. Paul directs, that our " speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt?" There never ought to be one hour's intermission to the divine life, not one moment when we have lost the savour and relish of divine things.]
In order to a due improvement of this subject, let us reduce it to practice — 1. Let us take of Christ's sacrifice, and both pre- sent it to God, and feed upon it in our souls —
[All the Lord's people are " kings and priests unto Godq: " all therefore have a right to present to him this offering, and to feed upon it: both of these things may be done by faith;
e Eph. v. 2. f 1 Pet. ii. 7. e Heb. xiii. 8.
i> 1 John i. 7. * Luke xiv. 34, 35. k Mark ix. 49, 50.
1 Matt. xvi. 23. m 2 Cor. ii. 15. » 2 Cor. ii. 14.
0 Mark ix. 49, 50. P Col. iv. 0. «J Rev. i. 6.