its union, and thereby cutting it off from its communion with the Father of spirits. In the moment that Adam sinned the spiritual death took place; for he had lost the spirit of life, and was dead in trespasses and sins: and that same moment his body became mortal, although he lived nine hundred years after. Thus we have sin, and death, and misery, entailed upon all his descendants, from the first Adam, who is of the earth, earthy. O how precious to a sinner in these circumstances should be the second Adam, the Lord from heaven, who stands at the head of the spiritual world, that he may give his righteousness, and his life, and his happiness to all that believe in him! He comes Jehovah of hosts in our nature, as our champion to. fight our battles, and to conquer all our foes. Immanuel was made sin for us, and he died for our sins according to the scriptures, when the Lord laid upon him the iniquity of us all, and was buried and rose again the third day according to the scriptures. We read therein of his noble challenge to death and the grave: "I will ransom my people

from the power of the grave, I will redeem them from death-O death, I will be thy plagues-O grave, I will be thy destruction, repentance shall be hid from mine eyes. It was the Captain of our salvation, the Lord of hosts is his name, who purposed this in the everlasting councils, and in due time fulfilled it by his almighty power. "Because the children were partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same, that through death he might destroy him who had the power of death, that is the devil, and might deliver them, who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage." O what infinite condescension is this, what love, surpassing all knowledge! The most high God is manifest in the flesh, that as God in our nature, he might be our surety to act and suffer for us men, and for our salvation. Accordingly he takes our sins upon himself, bears the guilt and punishment of them in his own body and soul upon the tree, gives his own life a ransom for ours, that by his death he

might live. He was buried, but he rose again the third day, having loosed the bonds of death, because it was not possible that he should be holden of it. In this conflict with

death and the grave, repentance was hid from his eyes. He knew what he was to go through, more than any of us can conceive of pain and agony, yet he would not change his purpose of grace, although he was to be

come obedient unto death, the most tormenting, the most shameful, even the death of the cross. His enemies having brought him to the grave, and sealed the sepulchre, seemed then to have him in their power. So they thought: but here Jesus made his complete and eternal triumph. By his resurrection he swallowed up death in victory: for he did not rise as a private person, but as the first-fruits of the dead, drawing the joyful harvest after him, "The Lord is risen indeed," the head of the body, the church, and has the power of an endless life to quicken all his members. In which most glorious prospect, the apostle, quoting the passage above mentioned, breaks out into these rap

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tures of joy, seeing all his enemies vanquished, and nothing but bliss and glory before him—“O death, where is thy sting, O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law." The law armed death with its sting, as the just wages of the transgression of the law but Jesus our surety magnified the law by his holy life in all its precepts, and by his death in all its penalties. He died for our sins, and by his rising from the dead, he demonstrated that he had taken out its sting, and had disarmed it of its power to hurt : nay had done much more-he had changed death unto life. "I am the resurrection and the life, saith the Lord; he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live; and whosoever liveth and believeth in me, shall never die." By faith in him we share in the triumph and glory of his resurrection, and have a new song put into our mouths, with which we may make the sweetest melody in our hearts, even when our breath is failing us. "Thanks be to God, who giveth us the victory, through Jesus Christ our Lord."

These are scripture views of the almighty Jesus. Out of his infinite compassion he undertook to save his people from sin and death, the works of the devil. And he has done it. It is finished. He has put away sin by his sacrifice, and he completed his conquest of death by his resurrection. And has had witnesses of these gospel truths in all ages, whom he sent to preach repentance, and remission of sins, in his name. When it is the good pleasure of his own will to accompany the message with power from on high, then he blesses it by making it the ministration of righteousness and of life as it is written, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my word, and believeth in him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life," already. The Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath freed the believer from the law of sin and of death, and has also created in him a new life. He has given him a new birth unto the spiritual world, and spiritual senses to fit him for spiritual enjoyments: for he is actually passed from death