our obedience acceptable to God, and easy and pleasant to ourselves? Answer: by a sense of his love to us, in our redemption, and not otherwise. Both St. Paul and St.

John give this answer, Rom. v. 5: "And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost, which is given unto us." And St. John says, in his first Epistle, iv. 19, "We love him, because he first loved us."

SECTION LXI.

Chap. xiv. ver. 25-31.

CHRIST LEAVES HIS PEACE WITH HIS DISCIPLES.

25. These things I have spoken unto you, being yet present with you.

26. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said

unto you.

The things which Christ taught them are upon record in their writings, for our benefit. But still this is not enough. Whatever we learn from them or remember savingly, is by the Holy Ghost. And farther, he is always ready to do his office in us; and if we are ignorant, or forgetful of saving truth, it is because we do not put ourselves in his hands.

27. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

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Christ leaves to his disciples a most inestimable gift, peace." Relief from the guilt of sin, which was lying on the conscience, and from the power of it in our hearts. This peace is our best cordial in the troubles of life, and our great support in the hour of death: that which Jesus purchased for us with his blood, and gives his Spirit to

work in us; a peace of God which passeth all understanding, and yet little valued or sought after.

"Not as the world giveth, give I unto you." The men of this world, when they pay us compliment, or wish us peace, mean little by it, and it is, at the best, but a wish: indeed, the world itself is a known cheat, and gives nothing of what it promises, no solid and lasting comfort, nothing but empty hopes, false peace, and ruinous joys. Men, under the gospel, have their choice of this, or the peace of Christ.

"Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." They had much to do and suffer, but his peace would enable them to bear up against all.

28. Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.

Christ says, I go to glory, which I had with him before the world was, John xvii. 5. And Christ says, that he goes away, in order that the Spirit might be sent, chap. xvi. 7. "For my Father is greater than I," in my present state of humiliation, and before the coming of the Holy Spirit, which will be a greater manifestation of the divine power, and followed with greater effects than you now see.

According to this interpretation, which arises naturally from the context, here is nothing asserted of any difference, or essential inequality, between the Father and the Son. The Father is greater, but only in a certain respect; namely, as sending the Spirit, or greater than the Son in the days of his humanity, and under a lower dispensation. And in this respect, the Son, equally joined with the Father in the act of sending the Holy Spirit, was greater than himself.

29. And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe.

With greater comfort, and assurance; as all do, from the experience of the work of the Holy Spirit in themselves.

30. Hereafter I will not talk much with you for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.

Hereafter "I shall not," rather than, "will not talk much with you." He hereby intimates to them, that he was just about to leave them, which they did not well understand. "For the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me." No right in me, or power over me, on account of sin; for which all others die, and must have died eternally, if He who had no sin, had not died for them. O! let sin go. Let us see here, who governs the world by it, and what is the hold which Satan has of

us.

31. But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I do. Arise, let us go hence.

Jesus showed his love to the Father, as he desires we should show our love to him, by keeping his commandments. But let us think, and lay it deeply to heart. Why does he thus magnify his love and obedience, in laying down his life, both freely and by command from the Father? All this was for the sake of wretched mankind, who were perishing in sin, to deliver them from the curse of it, and to bring them to glory.

"Arise, let us go hence." From the place where they were to the city of Jerusalem. And what follows in the three next chapters, was another discourse, at another time, namely, at the paschal supper in Jerusalem, and immediately before he went over the brook Cedron. (Chap. xviii. 1.)

SECTION LXII.

Chap. xv. ver. 1–8.

THE PARABLE OF THE VINE AND ITS BRANCHES.

1. I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.

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Christ, in effect, says, I make glad the heart of man, in a much higher and better sense than the natural vine does. And we must of all necessity be grafted into him, and be preserved in a fruit-bearing state, by the Father.

2. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.

Let us observe carefully, not Christ himself, is here the branch, he needed no purging; but it is spoken of his body, the members. And as parts of him, and receiving vital influence from him, we must and shall be like him, in all things. And further, let us learn, that in order to be in a fruit-bearing state, we must be in him.

If we, as branches, bear not fruit, then we perish. Our baptism is lost, Christ is lost, our souls are lost for ever.

Who is the Christian? Answer. The man who is always improving, who has his heart upon Christ's purging, and gives himself wholly up to him for it, refusing no means, however sharp, for that end.

3. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.

By his word bringing them to himself. And he says, ye are clean, because they were already in him by faith, and he knew they would go on to perfection.

4. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.

5. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit for without me ye can do nothing.

This implies, that with him we can do everything. This is a thunder-clap to all natural men. Both the will, and the deed, are from him; and we can perform nothing like an acceptable obedience, but by union with him in the spirit of regeneration. Those who do, and are willing to do the most, are the most convinced of this. They know that

they could as soon raise a dead body to life, as renew themselves to the image of God, in righteousness, and true holiness and this knowledge keeps them close to Christ, in faith, prayer, and waiting. All others are blinded, and either think doing to be needless, or take a false measure of themselves, and their work. This one text well applied, is sufficient to bring all men to Christ.

6. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.

This is appealing to our sense and practice for the justice and equity of God's proceedings with us. He knows what a useless, dead branch is fit for, and what to do with it, as well as you. If you would escape this sentence, you must knit with the stock.

7. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.

If this is the case with us, then we shall ask, and ask nothing but what we ought, and we shall have whatever we ask. Let us think of a happier condition, if we can imagine any such. Prayer is indeed one fruit of our union with Christ, and without it we can have no other.

8. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

By bearing much fruit, we answer the design of God in our creation; which, speaking after the manner of men, is his glory. And let us take notice, that God is not glorified with the praises of the tongue, without fruit, and much fruit, in the life, from union with Christ.

"So shall ye be my disciples:" not in name only, but in deed, and in truth. He will never alter these words; it is impossible that we should become his disciples in any other way; and therefore we had need to bethink ourselves whether it is our great aim to be fruitful under him.