of his surety: so that all in heaven, and all in hell too, are constrained to say, " Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty ; just and true are thy ways, thou King of Saints g."]
That we may make a practical use of the Divine character we shall,
II. Shew how to make it a source of comfort to the soul
If the Deity is an object of terror to any, it must arise either from an erroneous idea of his character, or from an opposition of mind to it. In order then to derive comfort from it, we must,
1. Get a just and comprehensive view of the Divine perfections —
[If, as is too often the case, we paint to ourselves a God all mercy, who will never vindicate the honour of his law, nor ever fulfil his threatenings against sin or sinners, we may allay our fears for the present, but we can never bring peace or com- fort into the soul: for, as we have no foundation for such an idea of the Deity, we never can divest ourselves of the appre- hension that we may be mistaken, and that we may find him at last such a Being as the Scriptures represent him. On the other hand, if we view nothing but his justice, he must of necessity appear terrible in our eyes, because we cannot but know that we are transgressors of his law. But if we regard him as he is set forth in his word, and particularly as he ap- pears in the person of Christ, then do we find in him all that is great and good, yea all that our souls can wish for, or our necessities require — ]
2. Get our own hearts suitably affected with them —
[Whilst the majesty of God should fill us with holy awe, and his power make us fearful of incurring his displeasure, these exalted perfections should encourage an affiance in him, as an almighty Helper, and an all-sufficient Protector. His very sovereignty should lead us to apply to him for mercy, because he will be most glorified in shewing mercy to the chief of sinners. Of course, a view of his love, his mercy, and his truth, must inspire us with holy confidence, and dispel all the fears which conscious unworthiness must create : we should therefore contemplate them with unceasing care, as the grounds of our hope, and the sources of our eternal welfare. Nor is it of small moment to have our minds impressed with a sense of his wisdom and goodness in all his providential dealings. It
s Rev. xv. 3.
232.] god's regard for his people. 477
is by that that we shall have our minds composed under all the most afflictive dispensations, and encouraged to expect a happy
issue out of the most calamitous events In a word,
the representations which God has given of himself will then be most delightful to us, when our hearts are most filled with humility and love.]
Application —
[" Hear now, O ye heavens ! and give ear, O earth ! " say whether these views of the Deity do not tend to the happiness of man? O that God would " shine into all our hearts, to give us the knowledge of his glory in the face of Jesus Christ ! " then should our " meditation of him be sweet," and our fruits abound to the praise and glory of his grace.]