One mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus....1 Tim. ii. 5.

O, MY fellow-sinners, I heartily congratulate your soul and my own for this blessed truth! Lord, help us to live upon it in our consciences from day to day: for it is not a speculative, but an experimental truth: it enters into the very essence of our faith, is the very life of our hope, lies at the foundation of our peace, and is the very source of every blessing and comfort. If we are not continually looking to this ONE mediator, JESUS, we lose the peace of faith, the comfort of hope, the fellowship of love, and get into perplexity of mind: then, we do not draw nigh to God with confidence, stand before him with boldness, nor cheerfully walk with him in love and holiness. Consider, 1st. A mediator stands as a middle person, interposing between two parties at variance, to make peace and reconciliation: this Christ hath perfectly done: he hath for ever made peace by the blood of his cross....Col. i. 20. Sin was the cause of variance between God and us: but Christ hath put away sin by the sacrifice of himself....Heb. ix. 26. Thus the work of reconciliation is finished respecting God. But, 2d. Jesus hath a work to do with us; for we are naturally alienated from God and enemies to him in our minds: this is manifest by our wicked ways: but, says the apos

tle, " you hath he now reconciled."....Col. i. 21. Is it so with you?

Has Christ by the persuasive eloquence of his tongue, the affecting oratory of his love, and the sweet power of his Spirit conquered the rebellion of your will, subdued the stubborn pride of your heart, and gained your affections for God? Yes, say you: but I am such a miserable sinner, I fear God will not receive me; I have so much sin in me, I think he cannot be reconciled to me and at peace with me. Nay, but if Jesus had not been a mediator for miserable sinners full of sin, Paul had been damned, all the apostles in hell, and every saint now in glory would have been in endless torment: all the comfort of Christ's mediation is enjoyed by faith. 3d. Christ lives to keep up perfect reconciliation between God and us. O that is a most precious word: "For if when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life."....Rom. v. 10. Look back to the atonement of Christ on the cross; look up to the intercession of Christ at the right hand of a reconciled God; look forward and see heaven open to receive you, and the arms of a loving Father to embrace you.

When sin and satan me assault,
And strive to break my peace:
I dare not say, I have no fault,
But Christ shall me release.
VOL. II.

Christ ever stands before the throne,

His precious work to plead: (gone: Hence guilt and wrath from me are Christ brings the peace I need. M.

A a

Fear ye not. Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. Exod. xiv. 13.

Now were the people of God in a great strait, even at their wits' end: perish they must, to all human appearance. A wide ocean is before them. Inaccessible mountains surround them. An enraged monarch pursues them: death in various shapes presents itself to them: yet, for all this, says Moses, "fear not.” Peevish 'unbelief and carnal reason might suggest, what! not be afraid, when inevitable destruction must be our doom? Why will Moses talk to us after this mad, enthusiastic rate? But, in the view of apparent destruction, Moses tells them of certain salvation, and commands them to stand still and behold it: we do not hear one word from Moses to soothe their fears or comfort their minds, from any considerations of what they were in themselves, what good works they had done, what terms and conditions they had performed to entitle them to the Lord's favor, &c. No; but they were at this very moment indulging carnal reason and the murmurs of unbelief: "Why hast thou brought us forth? Better to serve the Egyptians, than to perish here," &c. Hence observe, 1st. In times of difficulty, in seasons of distress, when sin rages, conscience accuses, the law condemns, carnal reason suggests, unbelief prevails, and we poor sinners are at our wits' end; seeing justice pursuing, all hope and help failing, and despair at the door, then the salvation of Jesus is to be looked unto: in such seasons how doth this quell our fears, compose and comfort our minds! But, 2d. What is it to STAND STILL and see the salvation of the Lord? Is it to cease from prayer and all other means of grace, and, as some say, be still; stir not hand or foot in the way of duty? No; for, contrary to this, the Lord ordered the people to "go forward." What is it then, but in the midst of fears, in the sight of dangers, and in the dread of destruction, to cease from all self-confidence, to attend to the voice of the Lord, to rely upon his gracious promises, and quietly to hope for his great deliverance; for, O precious word! says Moses, "The Lord shall fight for you :" and what then? "Ye shall hold your peace." How soon, how effectually did the Lord do this? He both destroyed their enemies, saved them, silenced all their unbelieving fears and unreasonable murmurings: they saw their enemies no more for ever. Stand still, O soul, admire, adore, love, and confide in a gracious, wonder-working, sinner-saving Lord: look on thine enemies as the foes of thy Lord: he has promised their destruction and thy salvation. Rejoice to think of that day when thou shalt see thy Lord in glory, and thine enemies no more for ever.

Stand still my soul, salvation view,
As finish'd by thy Lord,

Reject thy fears, believe anew
Thy Lord's supporting word.

I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God, for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness....Isa. lxi. 10.

It would be surprising to see a malefactor going to execution, singing and rejoicing all the way. But, if when he came to the fatal place, he should produce the king's free pardon, with royal promises of being admitted to his presence, and appearing at court in the richest robes of the king's providing, our wonder would cease; we should own that he really had abundant cause for joy. Come, my fellow-condemned malefactors, though sin has stripped you of your innocent dress of righteous clothing; though you are under the sentence of death; yet behold, here is a pardon for you, the best robe to put upon you, and a sure promise of admission into the king's presence in it. Read it and rejoice. GRACE REIGNS THROUGH RIGHTEOUSNESS UNTO ETERNAL LIFE....Rom. v. 21. The God of righteousness clothes us naked sinners with the garments of salvation, and adorns us with the robe of righteousness, which our heavenly bridegroom wrought out for us this is the blessing of being married to Christ by faith; this is the joy of faith; this causes joy of soul, and great rejoicing in THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. When all sense of comfort and feelings of joy in nature are dead; yet, in Jesus our covenant head, we have a neverfailing source of comfort, and an inexhaustible spring of joy:: faith leaves nature behind, with all its sins and miseries; it looks neither to works nor worthiness in self, but considers what Christ is to the soul, and what the soul is in him, righteous, perfectly and. everlastingly righteous. O then joy, great joy springs up; see the claim of faith, MY God. Though faith doth not cause the Lord to become our God, nor adopt us into his family; yet it claims that peculiar and precious interest in him, which the word of his gracereveals. The Father draws us by his Spirit to his Son for righteousness; the Spirit bears witness that we are righteous in his Son : then faith makes the claim, boasts of it, and glories in it: then Jesus has our hearts and our hopes; our affections are placed on him; our hopes.center in him. Then we find our God in Christ; we call him my God; Abba, Father: we are at peace with, and joyful in him; we proclaim our joy in our God. What! clothed with the garments of salvation, which we wrought not; covered with the robe of righteousness, which we spun not, and not be joyful? O believers be ashamed of your unbelief, it damps your joy: it. withholds the glory of your heart.

Rejoice, my soul, thy Jesus praise,
And walk before him all thy days;

When naked, poor, and destitute,.
He fed and cloth'd thee with rich suit.

Every one that useth milk, is unskilful in the word of righ teousness, for he is a babe....Heb. v. 13.

THIS is a sharp reproof: as then, so now there are many who need it. The word rendered UNSKILFUL, in the margin of our bibles is, hath NO EXPERIENCE. Christian experience is much talked of, too little understood: many furnish out a long detail of experience which they have had of one thing and another, but you can find nothing of the word of righteousness in it. It all begins in self, ends in self, and tends to exalt self. O, there is a great deal of self-seeking, self-soothing and self-complacency in what is called christian experience: but real christian experience is that inward proof or trial which our minds have of THE WORD OF RIGHTEOUSNESS; how the belief of it has brought relief to our guilty consciences, ease to our troubled souls, and rest to our weary minds. From hence, Christ the sum and substance of the word of righteousness becomes precious, sin hateful, ourselves vile, our righteousness filthy rags, the world contemptible, the path of duty pleasant, the way of holiness delightful, and fellowship with God most highly estimable to our souls: this is christian experience indeed; but all experience which is talked of, that does not arise from the word, is not agreeable to the word, and is not supported by the word of righteousness, is fancy, whim and delusion. Many use milk and are babes; they are unskilful, have no experience of the word of righteousness, God's everlasting, electing love and covenant grace to sinners in Christ, his full and free justification of them without their works by the righteousness of Christ, yet saving them to all good works by the grace of Christ; the sovereign efficacy of the Spirit in bringing them to Christ, and their certain perseverance and sure salvation, being kept by the power of God through faith in Christ. Though the word of righteousness holds forth these glorious truths as plainly as though wrote with a sun-beam, yet such babes cannot bear them; their stomachs heave against them; their spirit rises with indignation at them; they can only feed upon milk and pap like babes; they wrangle and cry and puke like babes if you put strong meat into their mouths: therefore, they cannot, they do not grow strong in the Lord Jesus Christ; they are content with the first principles of christianity; they are not going on to perfection, and growing up into Christ Jesus in ALL THINGS. O, get beyond such babish experience; prize highly the word of righteousness; bring all your experience to it: draw all your comfort from it; judge of your state by it; be clothed with humility; fight not against God's sovereign purposes, council and covenant; put on that Spirit, and pray to the Lord, "That which I see not, teach thou me."....Job xxxiv. 32.

Saul said to David, thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth; and he a man of war from his youth....1 Sam. xvii. 33.

WE frequently use the phrase, CARNAL REASON: what do we mean by it? Just what Saul here uses to David: it is the reason of the flesh; it consults the nature and appearance of things only; it judges of and determines events according to human probability entirely; it looks to no other or higher cause than nature and sense. Now, had David listened to, and obeyed this sort of reasoning, he would have brought no honor to his God, nor wrought deliverance for his people; but observe, O my soul, David opposed faith to this carnal reasoning, and by faith overcomes it: there is not one word of the Lord in Saul's mouth; but David introduces, "the Lord, the deliverer." Like Paul," he conferred not with flesh and blood." ....Gal. i. 16. But being valiant in faith, he goes forth against his gigantic foe, in the name, relies upon the power of an omnipotent Lord, and thus he obtains a glorious victory: most excellent lesson for us. Christian, ever consider your carnal reason as a home-bred enemy, a domestic foe that opposes your Lord's truths, with, how can these things be? It disputes your Lord's commands, with, hath the Lord forbid this? Doth he require that? It dares cavil against the mysteries of grace, and wants them to be explained to the judgment of carnal conception, or else cries, reject them as absurdities. How often has this enemy put you to the stand when you should have followed your Lord? How often caused your hands to hang down when they should have been lifted up to the Lord? How often caused you to lay aside the weapons of your warfare, when you should have fought the good fight of faith? Treat it as an enemy to your Lord's glory, and your soul's comfort: refuse it audience; remember the antidote against it is, simple faith in divine truth: this brings the enjoyment of God into the heart; engages his power in one's defence; arms the soul with fortitude against every enemy which carnal reason represents as too formidable to stand against: yea, faith takes up this triumphing cry, "More than conqueror, in all these things, through Christ who hath loved us."....Rom. viii. 37. And boldly challenges, "who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect?"....Rom. viii. 33. O that little word ELECT, how does carnal reason fight against it!

My reason proud resists my faith,
And oft dejects my heart:
Instead of trusting what God saith,
Our souls at dangers start.

This is a sin, we should confess,

And cry unto the Lord, [bless, With strength'ning faith our souls to And courage from his word.