1. To adore him —
f Job iv. 18. and xv. 15. s 1 Sam. ii. 8.
[Frequently does this expression occur in the Holy Scrip- tures, " O Lord, who is like unto thee ?" And continually should the thought be in our minds. It is impossible to know any thing of the condescension and grace of God, and not be lost in wonder and in praise. We say not that livelier emotions of joy are wrong; but they are always to be suspected, if they be not blended with a considerable measure of self-lothing and self-abhorrence. Profound adoration seems to be the proper posture of a redeemed soul. O ye poor, whose station is so low that the greater part of your fellow-creatures would scarcely deign to notice you, think what love God has shewn towards you, if he has made you rich in faith and heirs of his kingdom11
— And ye whose character has been so degraded as to
have almost resembled that of the Corinthians, think what reason you have to adore your God, if it can be said of you, as of them, " But ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God1." Above all, ye drooping and desponding souls, who once were ready to say, " There is no hope," what thanks can ye give for those rich assurances and consolations which now form a very foretaste of heaven in your souls ? And in all these changes, consider chiefly the means which have been used to effect them. It is not by a mere act of mercy that God has wrought these things for you, but by taking on himself your miseries, that ye may be partakers of his glory. To view the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ aright, you must bear in mind, that " though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be richV Yes: " He was made sin for you, that you might be made the righteousness of God in him1." O bless him, praise him, magnify him, and adore him, and let all that is within you bless his holy name.]
2. To trust in him —
[The greatest discouragements of the saints arise from a view of their own unworthiness. But God, if I may so speak, loves to see you in the dust and on the dunghill. The lower you are abased before him, the more he delights to exalt you. He even derives to himself a glory from the very depths to which he condescends for you. Add not then to all your other sins, that most hateful one of limiting his mercy. If your " sins have ever so much abounded, his grace will much more abound," if only ye seek it in Christ Jesus, your Mediator and Redeemer. If you attempt to measure God's love and mercy by any created standard, you must of necessity dishonour him exceedingly : for there is nothing finite that will admit of a comparison with him who is infinite. As for his mercy, he most of all is grieved to
h Jam. ii. 5. i 1 Cor. vi. 9—11.
k 2 Cor. viii. 9. » 2 Cor. v. 21.