" gathered, and kept by the Good Shepherd," even by him who " ransomed us" with a price, and " laid down his life for
the sheep" - — We too, in coming to Zion, the heavenly
Jerusalem, may expect a full enjoyment of all the same bene- fits ; all of us, as "a royal priesthood," being partakers of
God's altar, and living upon the sacrifice there offered —
Absurd and impious beyond measure are the modes adopted amongst us for expressing our joy at the glad tidings of re- demption : (carnal feastings and dances are very ill suited to express the feelings of a soul redeemed by the incarnation and death of the Son of God :) but to " delight our souls in fat- ness," and to " satiate ourselves with the goodness of the Lord," is the employment which I would commend to every one of you to the latest hour of your lives ]
On a review of this subject we are naturally led to
1. Whence is it that the Gospel produces so little effect in the present day ?
[The glad tidings of redemption through the blood of Christ are professedly proclaimed by all who have entered into the ministerial office : yet in many places no change whatever is wrought in the manners and habits of the people. What can be the reason of this? Has the Gospel lost its power ? No: but there is some essential defect in the ministration of it: in many places the doctrine of the cross is not made sufficiently promi- nent ; yea, in some, it is kept almost out of sight; and no other use is made of the atonement and righteousness of Christ than to supply the defects of man's obedience. And where Christ is more fully preached, he is often represented as purchasing only a pardon for our past sins, and then as leaving us to " maintain our warfare at our own cost," and work out our sal- vation by our own arm : whereas the Scripture speaks of him as not only redeeming his people, but " gathering them" by his own care, and "keeping them" by his own power through faith unto everlasting salvation d. Now a mutilated Gospel is in reality no Gospel : salvation must be preached as altogether of grace through faith : the whole glory of it belongs to God: nor will he ever honour any ministry that robs him of it.
But even where the Gospel is most faithfully preached, it produces, in comparison of the apostolic age, but little effect. The reason of this we apprehend to be, that our hearers, being Christians in name, and educated in a profession of Christian doctrines, are ready to imagine that they are Christians in deed, and that they have a saving acquaintance with the Gospel : they are, like the Laodiceans of old, " rich and increased with
(i 1 Pet. i. 5.