every period, and in every condition of life, we behold Him a perfect pattern of every poffible excellence.

We have already contemplated the bleffed Jefus in his original glory, before the world was, and in all the wonders of his humiliation to the level of humanity we have beheld Him in all the affecting intereft of infancy and childhood, born in a ftable, laid in a manger, aimed at by the dagger of a ruffian, driven into exile, meekly retiring into obfcurity, filently increafing in wisdom and ftature, and in favour with God and man. From the age of twelve to thirty years, that is for more than half the period which He tabernacled among men, Povidence has seen meet to withhold all traces of his hiftory. With in the short space of about three years is comprized the detail of all the things which Jefus did, and taught, and fuffered as the Saviour of mankind. To this eventful era we are now brought forward, and we enter on the contemplation of it with mixed emotions of wonder, reverence and joy.

Stand by, ye princes and potentates of the earth; the King of kings is about to make his public entry. What is the confecration of a prelate, the coronation of an emperor, the voice of a trumpet, the anointing with oil, compared to the majefty, folemnity and importance of the fcene difplayed on the banks of the Jordan! Bend your heads and cover your faces, “ye angels that excel in ftrength," He whom you are all commanded to worship is here. Behold he cometh from Nazareth of Galilee, to the baptifm of John; the greater to be baptized by the lefs. Eighteen years haft thou now paffed, Jefus of Nazareth! unfeen, unknown, unregarded; under the humble appellation of the carpenter's fon, partaking perhaps of the labours of his occupation, faring fimply, fubmitting to authority, unmortified by fubjection to poverty, neglect and reproach; and thus haft thou become a gentle and filent, but a severe reprover of the reftleffness of ambition, of the thirst of diftin&ion, of the impetuo fity of appetite, of impatience of restraint. The Saviour of the world, my friends, was pleafed to pals through the fucceffive ftages of human life, that he might fanctify and inftruct every age of man. He became an infant of days, that He might fanctify infancy, and ftamp importance and respect upon it; he fhewed himfelt in the temple at the age of twelve, that he might fanctify, and inftruct that more advanced period of life in the duty of frequenting the house of God, and of reforting to age, office and experience for the lessons of wisdom. He advanced to maturity to fanctify, and infruct grown men to practise self-denial, felf-government, to be con-tent with their lot, to reprefs inordinate defire, to aim at emi

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nence by learning to become ufeful. "He that believeth shall not make hafte." He remained thus long in the fhade, that He might teach his difciples to bear obfcurity and retirement, and to cease from premature afpiring. He emerges at length into the light, the feafon of open and beneficial exertion being come, that he might correct a fpirit of indolence, irrefolution and affected humility; and to tell every man, that he is fent into the world to act an important part, that he is entrusted with talents for the employment of which he is accountable, that God and his fellow creatures have claims upon him, which he muft fatisfy at his peril.

The approach of Jefus to Jordan is perceived and announc ed by the Baptift. The Spirit which enabled Simeon to difcern the Saviour in the perfon of a little child, when prefented in the temple, now discloses to the eye of the Prophet, who came in the spirit and power of Elias, the fame divine Perfon on the eve of entering upon his public miniftry. He fufpends for a moment the employment of teaching and bap tizing the multitude, in which he was engaged, to point out to them "the Lamb of God which taketh away the fin of the World." "As the people were in expectation, and all men mufed in their hearts of John. whether he were the Chrift or not John arfwered, faying unto them all. I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloofe: he fhall baptize you with the Holy Ghoft, and with fire."

John, at firft, modeftly declines the exercife of his office in a cafe fo very extraordinary. Hitherto he had taught only the ignorant and vicious and baptized only the impure, in the view of preparing them to receive the bleffings of the approaching kingdom of heaven; felf-righteous Pharifees, unbelieving, profligate Sadducees, rapacious publicans, feditious, violent and difcontented foldiers, fuch were the men who came to his baptifm. But here the application is made by Him" who is holy, harmless, undefiled, feparate from finners who did no fin, neither was guile found in his lips.' This, prophet as he was, confounds all the Baptift's ideas of propriety, and he exclaims: "I have need to be baptized of thee, and comeft thou to me ?" The reply of Chrift unfolds his fpirit, and conveys to us many a useful leffon: “Suffer it to be so now for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness.' Perfect purity can fuffer no contamination from intercourse with the unclean; the impure pollute each other, and the contagion spreads. Conformity in things innocent and lawful is

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a duty imposed by decency, kindnefs and regard to peace: difTent merely for the fake of diffent is a mixture of pride and bigotry. That may be admitted under peculiar circumstances, which is not to be drawn into a precedent, nor established as a general rule. A public character is concerned to ftudy his own dignity, and the propriety and confiftency of his conduct. The queftion is not what he may do, but what it becomes him to do. Things lovely and of good report" must be thought of together with things that are "true, honest, juft and pure." It became Him to give public teftimony to the baptifm of John, the baptifm of repentance, because it led dir &tly to his own miffion, and to the kingdom which He was about to establish in the world. It became him to put refpect on every inftitution, ceremonial as well as moral, that had the fanction of divine authority, of general ufe, or of obvious utility. The ceremonial law required "divers washings," and the immersion of the body in water was by no means a novel practice introduced by John, but tranfmitted through the fucceeding ages of the legal difpenfation, and compliance with it our Lord confiders as part of "the fulfilling of all righteousness," and therefore as incumbent on himself, being the great pattern of propriety. We find him, on another occafion, fubmitting to an arbitrary impofition, that he might not feem to give offence, in the matter of the tribute money, and performing a miracle rather than fhew difrefpect to government. "Left we fhould of

fend them," fays he to Peter, "go thou to the fea, and caft an hook, and take up the fish that firft cometh up; and when thou haft opened his mouth thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee." Thus he not only "fulfilled," to an iota," all righteoufnels," prescribed by the law, but fubmitted himself to the "ordinance of man, for the Lord's fake."

But there was a farther view in this folemn tranfaftion. The Meffiah must be publicly fet apart to the execution of his high prophetic office, and He prefers the baptifm of John as the mode of performing that auguft ceremony. He paffes through the water into the reign of Grace; the kingdom of heaven was now come, and fuch was his humble entry into it. But this voluntary defcent is to be immediately followed by a rife into glory which clipfes all the glory of this world. Samuel anoined Saul with a vial, and afterwards David with a horn of material oil; the Prince" upon the throne of David, of the increase of whofe government and peace there should be no end," is anointed with the Holy Spirit. The numerous

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and founding titles of earthly potentates are, at their inaugura tion, proclaimed by found of trumpet; the fimple title of the King of kings and Lord of lords is proclaimed by a voice from heav en. The eyes and ears of the spectators at once bear witness to the declaration of the Son of God. It came to país, that Jefus alfo being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Ghoft defcended in a bodily fhape, like a dove, upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which faid, thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleafed." Painters have prefamed to reprefent this descent of the Holy Ghoft under the form of a material dove. The defcending, hovering motion, not the bodily fhape of that bird, is furely all that the expreffion in the Evangelifts conveys to the mind. As well might art attempt to paint the dazzling luftre of flaming fire, or the found of the voice that fpake, or the motion of the fplendid appearance which then filled the sky, as pretend to give precife and permanent form to an apparition of Deity, which, having fufilled its purpose, paffed away.

Thus, Chriftians, was confecrated to the nobleft work ever undertaken, the great "Prophet that fhould come into the world," "The Prince of the kings of the earth"-" The a poftle and high Prieft of our profeffion," God "alfo bearing witness, both with figns and wonders, and with divers miraeles, and gifts of the Holy Ghoft, according to his own will." And thus was fulfilled the Scripture which faith: "There fhall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jeffe, and a branch shall grow out of his roots and the Spirit of the Lord fhall rest upon him, the fpirit of wisdom and understanding, the fpirit of counsel and might, the fpirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord; and fhall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord: and he fhall not judge after the fight of his eyes, neither reprove after the bearing of his ears but with righteousness fhall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth and he shall fmite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips fhall he fray the wicked. And righteousness fhall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins." And thus is the church of Chrift founded upon a rock," and the gates of hell fhall not prevail against it."

Is it unworthy of remark, that this teftimony to the Son of God, from the excellent glory," was given while he was praying? "As He prayed" alfo, on the mount of transfiguration, a fimilar teftimony was exhibited, "There came a cloud, and overshadowed them: and there came a voice out of the cloud faying, This is my beloved Son; hear Him." Again,

while Jefus prayed, "Father, glorify thy name;" the teflimo. ny from on high was repeated. "Then came there a voice from heaven saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again." Such is the promptitude of intercommunication between earth and heaven. So rapidly afcend the breathings of a devout fpirit to the throne of God; fo fwiftly defcend the tokens of "good-will to men." "The effe&tual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." And if the earnest prayer of an Elias had power to bind up the clouds of heaven for years together, and to fmite a guilty land with thirst and famine; how much more powerful must be the prayer of the great Interceffor, that " in the wilderness waters may break out, and ftreams in the defert ;" that "the parched. ground may become a pool, and the thirfty land fprings of water!" Therefore alfo "men ought always to pray, and not to faint,"

Here are the "Three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghoft and these three are one.' "Who can by searching find out God: Who can find out the Almighty unto perfection?" Who is able to comprehend what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Chrift which paffeth knowledge?"

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We have made no remark on the mode of baptifm which John employed, because it might lead to controversy, which is unprofitable, to the neglect of practical "goodness," which "is profitable unto all things." "Let every man be fully perfuaded in his own mind." Why doft thou judge thy brother? or why doft thou fet at nought thy brother? Who art thou that judgeft another man's fervant? to his own mafter he standeth or falleth." Let the spirit of the ordinance be chiefly attended to: wife and good men may very innocently differ about the form. "It is the fpirit that quickeneth,' the outward form is of fecondary importance.

Parents, have ye devoted your infant offspring to God, by the fprinkling with water? Remember the folemn engagements which you then voluntarily undertook to bring them up in the fear," nurture and admonition of the Lord." Med. itate frequently and ferioufly on the refponibility under which you are laid, to God, to your children, to the world. Your fellow worshippers will witness against you, if you trifle with, if you neglect. if you corrupt your facred charge. Thefe young ones look up to you for protection, for inftruction, for an example; they call upon you to fulfil your promife in their behalf. They afk bread of you; Will you give them a tone? They afk a filh; Will you give them a fer

pent?