you behold him as soon as the word came with power to his soul : in the sight of all, he rises to newness of life. The House of God is the first place that he affects, in order that he may honour his heavenly Benefactor ; and there, with a joy unknown before, he puts forth all his energies in the service of his God. Thus it was in the day of Pentecost : and thus it will be, though in different degrees, in all who truly believe in Christ.]
And what is blessedness, if this be not ?
[If the healing of the man's body was such a source of joy, what must the healing of the soul be? The truth is, that s'n is the one source of all the misery that is upon earth: and the restoration of men to a measure of their pristine holiness in Paradise will restore them also, in the same proportion, to their pristine happiness. Holiness, in so far as it" is wrought in the soul, is the commencement of heaven upon earth.]
See then here,
1. What Christianity really is —
[It is thought, by the generality, to be a plan devised and executed for the salvation of men from destruction. But this is a very low and contracted view of Christianity. It is a plan for the remedying of all the evil which sin has done : for re- storing the Divine image to the soul, as well as for rescuing it from perdition. I pray you, brethren, to view it in this light ; and to remember, that heaven itself would be no blessing to you, if sin had possession of your soul ]
2. What is the blessing now offered unto you —
[If Jesus was sent, in the first p lace, to the Jews, he is now sent to you : and the blessing which he first offered to them, he now offers to you. It is in this sense that " men are to be blessed in him ; and for this shall all nations call him blessed1." Do not, I entreat you, suffer your minds to be drawn aside by earthly vanities. What have they ever done for you? or what can they do ? If you were elevated to the highest rank, and put into possession of all that the world could give you, what would it all effect in a way of permanent and solid hap- piness ? You would soon be forced to give the same testimony respecting it as Solomon did, that it is all " vanity and vexation of spirit." But where did you ever find a person give such a testimony respecting holiness? Where did you ever find a man who was not happy in proportion as his in-dwelling sins were mortified, and all heavenly graces were exercised in his
1 Ps. lxxii. 17.