Come to him, then, ye broken impoverished fouls, that have nothing left you but poverty, wants, and debt.-Such are to come to him,

2. As the great Physician of fouls: Matth. ix. 12. "They that be whole need not a phyfician, but they that are fick." Chrift in the gofpel comes into the world as to an hospital of fin-fick fouls, ready to administer a cure to those that will come to him for it. Our diseases are many, all of them deadly, but he is willing and able to cure them all. He is lifted up on the pole of the gofpel, and fays, "Look unto me, and be ye faved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is none else," Ifa. xlv. 22. -Such fhould come to him,

3. As the fatisfying food of the foul: Ifa. lv. 1. -3. "Ho, every one that thirfteth, come ye to the waters; and he that hath no money, come ye, buy and eat, yea, come, buy wine and milk, without money, and without price. Wherefore do ye fpend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which fatisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat that which is good, and let your foul delight itself in fatnefs. Incline your ear, and come unto me; hear, and your foul fhall. live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David." The foul is an empty thing, and has hungry and thirsty defires to be fatisfied; the creatures cannot fatisfy, Christ can: John, vi. 35. "My flesh (says he) is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed." God has made a feast of fat things in Christ, in him all the cravings of the foul may be fatisfied; there are no angels to guard the tree of life; no feal on this fountain: Zech. xiii. 1. "In that day, there fhall be a fountain opened to the house of David, and to the inhabitants of Jerufalem, for fin and for uncleannefs." There is no inclosure about this flower of

glory,

glory, Cant. ii. 1. Here is the carcafe,-where are the eagles that should gather together?Such come to Chrift,

4. As one on whom they may reft: Song, viii. 5. "Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning on her Beloved?" We are not able to do our own turn, but on him we should rely : 2 Chron. xvi. 8. "Because thou didst rely on the Lord, he delivered thine enemies into thine hand." Guilt makes the mind in a fluctuating condition. By coming to Jefus we are ftayed, as is a fhip at anchor. In, or from ourfelves, we have nothing for juftification and fanctification. God has laid help upon one that is mighty; the weary foul is welcome to rest in him.-Such come to him,

5. As one on whom they may caft their burdens: Pfal. lv. 22. "Cast thy burden on the Lord, and he fhall fuftain thee." The foul is heavy-laden, while out of Chrift; Jefus holds forth the everlafting arms, Deut. xxxiii. 27. faith fettles down on them, cafting the foul's burden upon them; Come (fays he) with all your misery, debts, beggary, and wants, I have shoulders to bear them all; I will take on the burden, ye fhall get reft.' He is content to marry the poor widow.-Such come to him,

6. As one in whom they may find refuge: Heb. vi. 18. "Who have fled for refuge, to lay hold on the hope fet before us." The law, as the avenger of blood, pursues the foul. Chrift is that city of refuge, where none can have power against them. The gates are never fhut; here is a refuge from the law, from juftice, and from the revenging wrath of God. Here is fhelter under the wings of Chrift: how willinig is he to gather his people, as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings!— Such come to him,

VOL. I.

E e

7. As

7. As one in whom the foul may at length find rest: Pfal. xxxvii. 7. " Reft in the Lord, and wait patiently for him." The foul out of Chrift is in a restless ftate, ftill fhifting from one creature to another, not finding content in any. But by coming to Chrift, the foul takes up its eternal reft in him, and he becomes a covering of the eyes to it. We are like men in a fever, ftill changing beds; like the dove out of the ark, we have no reft, till we come to Chrift.-Such come to Christ,

Mi

8. As a husband: Matth. xxii. 4. "All things are ready, come unto the marriage." Your Maker is content to be your husband, Pfal. xlv. 10. nifters are fent, as Abraham's fervant, to feek a fpoufe for Chrift. He is willing to match with the worst, the meanest of you; he feeks no dowry; he is the richeft, the most honourable, the most tender and loving husband.-Such come to Christ,

Lafly, As a powerful deliverer. Chrift ftands at our prifon-doors, as in Ifa. lxi. I. 66 proclaiming liberty to the captive, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound." All who come to him, as in 2 Cor. viii. 5. first give their own felves unto the Lord. Whofoever will come to Jefus, muft give up themselves to him. It is the work of faith, to give up the foul to Christ, that he may fave it, that he may open the prisondoors, take the prey from the mighty, and deliver the lawful captive.

THE

THE SAME SUBJECT CONTINUED.

SERMON XXI.

MATTH. xi. 28. Come unto me, all ye that labour, and are heavy-laden, and I will give you ref.

H

AVING very briefly confidered what it is to come to Chrift, by pointing out under what characters we are to come to him, and the confequent improvement which this coming denotes, in order to explain the invitation here given more particularly, I go on, as was propofed,

II. To unfold its import, viewed in the feveral parts of which the text confifts.

You will accordingly obferve, that there is in the text, the characters invited,-the labouring and heavy-laden; there is the invitation itself, come unto me by whom the invitation is given, by Chrift; and the encouragement proposed to their complying with it, I will give you reft.All these confidered complexly, in our view, import the following things.

1. That all men naturally are at a distance from God; if it were not fo, they needed not be bid E e 2

come.

come. This is not a diftance of place, but a relative distance, a distance of oppofition, which lies in these three things.

(1.) The original union between God and man is blown up; they were united in a covenant of works, whereby they had common friends and enemies. This was the firft marriage-covenant, but Adam broke it, and fo broke off from God. Hence God drove him out of paradise, as a divorced woman out of the house of her husband, spoiled. of all her ornaments.

(2.) The hearts of men are naturally turned from God, and are a mafs of enmity against him: Rom. viii. 7. "Because the carnal mind is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be." There is a perfect contrariety betwixt the nature of God and ours. first fin of Adam has been a little leaven, that hath quite foured the whole lump of mankind; fo that we are not only away, but far off from the Lord; Eph. ii. 13. "Without God in the world."

That

(3.) The foul is ftill going farther and farther from God in the whole of our life, while in that ftate: Heb. iii. 12. "Take heed, brethren, left there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God." Every fin is a ftep farther from God; therefore the gospel-call is after them that are running away, that they may return to the Lord. We are on the road leading to deftruction, and moving very swiftly, as the water, the more it runs, the farther it is removed from the fountain-head whence it came.

From what has been now obfervad, we may learn the finfulness and mifery of our natural Itate. It is our duty and privilege to be near God; to be far from him must then be our fin and mi

fery,