deserve its blessings, what could we do ? or what hope could we entertain of acquiring an interest in it ? Were an offer of salvation now made to the fallen angels upon such conditions, what would it avail them ? They, in their present state, are inca- pable of doing any thing to merit God's favour in the slightest degree : and in that same state, that state of incapacity to help ourselves, are we also. But, through mercy, no such work is required at our hands. Both Moses in the law, and St. Paul in the Gospel, concur in this salutary counsel : " Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven ? that is, to bring Christ down from above : or, Who shall descend into the deep ? that is, to bring up Christ again from the dead. But what saith it ? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth and in thine heart ; that is, the word of faith which we preach6." Yes, we do preach, that to receive every thing by faith is the office that is assigned to every child of man : and though, after we have embraced the Gospel, there is much for us to do in order to honour and adorn it, our first reception of its blessings must be altogether free, and we must stand indebted for them solely to the sovereign grace of God.
But, in truth, I say too little, if I merely affirm that the Gospel offers every thing to us freely. The fact is, that St. Paul expresses the greatest jealousy upon this head ; and declares, that if we attempt to do any thing, however good in itself, with a view, either in whole or in part, to merit salvation by it, we make void the whole Gospel : " Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing f." He tells us, that salvation must be " wholly of works, or wholly of grace g." He reminds us, that if salvation were of works, in ever so small a degree, there would, in that degree, be room for boasting : whereas boasting must be wholly and for ever excluded11; and salvation, from
e Rom. x. 5—8. f Gal. v. 2, 4.
s Rom. xi. 6. h Rom. iii. 27.