And not only the atonement and salvation itself, shall be the subject of our glorious admiration, but the way and manner' how sinners partake of it, shall minister further to our wonder, and to the glory of Christ. That such a world of poor miserable crea. tures should be saved from hell, by believing or trusting in grace, when they could never be saved by all their own works; that they should obtain righteousness and acceptance unto eternal life, by a humble penitence and poverty of spirit, depending on the death and righteousness of another, when all their labours and toil in works of the law, could not make up a righteousness of their own, sufficient to appear before the justice of God; Christ will not only be glorified in their holiness as saints, but admired and honoured in and by their faith as believers. His blood and his grace shall share all the glory. "Therefore it is of faith," and not of works, "that it might be of grace," Rom. iv. 15. Yet this saving faith is the spring of shining holiness in every believDuties and virtues are not left out of our reli gion, when faith is brought into it. The graces of the saints join happily with the atonement of Christ, to render that day more illustrious. er. Fourthly, That a company of such feeble Christians, should maintain their course towards heaven, through so many thousand obstacles: This shall be another subject of admiration, and yield a further revenue of glory to our Lord Jesus Christ, for he who is their righteousness is their strength also. Isa. xlv. 24, 25. “In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel glo ry" in that day, as their strength and their salvation. They have broke through all their difficulties, and were "able to do all things through Christ strengthening them." Phil. iv. 13. Behold that noble army with palms in their hands; once they were weak warriors, yet they overcame mighty enemies, and have gained the victory and the prize; enemies rising from earth, and from hell, to tempt and to accuse them, but "they overcame by the blood of the Lamb." Rev. xii. 7, 11. What a divine honour shall it be to our Lord Jesus Christ, the captain of our salvation, that weak Christians should subdue their strong corruptions, and get safe to heaven through a thousand oppositions within and without It is all owing to the grace of Christ, that grace which is all-sufficient for every saint. 2 Cor. xii. 9. They are made more than conquerors through him that has loved them." Rom. viii. 38. Then shall the faith, and courage, and patience of the saints, have a blessed review; and it shall be told before the whole creation what strife and wrestlings a poor believer has passed through in a dark cottage, a chamber of long sickness, or perhaps in a dungeong how he has there combated with powers of darkness, how he has struggled with huge sorrows, and ‘has borne and has not fainted,' though he has been often ' in heaviness through manifold temptations.' Then shall appear the bright scene which St. Peter represents as the event of sore trials. 1 Pet. i. 6, 7. When our faith has been tried in the fire' of tribulation, and is found more precious than gold,' it shall shine to the praise, honour, and glory,' of the suffering saints, and of Christ himself at his appear ance.' Behold that illustrious troop of martyrs, and some among them of the feeblest sex and of tender age; now that women should grow bold in faith, even in the sight of torments, and children, with a manly courage, should profess the name of Christ in the face of angry and threatening rulers; that some of these should become undaunted confessors of the truth, and others triumph in fire and torture; these things shall be matter of glory to Christ in that day; it was his power that gave them courage and victory in martyrdom and death. Every Christian there, every soldier in that triumphing army, shall ascribe his conquest to the grace of his Lord, his Leader, and lay down all their trophies at the feet of his Saviour, with humble acknowledgments and shouts of honour. Almost all the saved number were, at some part of their lives, weak in faith, and yet, by the grace of Christ, they held out to the end, and are crowned. I was a poor trembling creature, shall one say, but I was confirmed in my faith and holiness by the gos. pel of Christ; or I rested on a naked promise and found support, because Christ was there, and he shall have the glory of it.' "In him are all the promises yea, and in him Amen, 2 Cor. i. 20, 21, 22. this glory, for he died to ratify these promises, and he lives to fulfil them. to the glory of the Father," And the Son shall share in 'Oh what an almighty arm is this (shall the be liever say) that has borne up so many thousands of poor sinking creatures, and lifted their heads above the waves!' The spark of grace that lived many years in a flood of temptations, and was not quenched, shall then shine bright, to the glory of Christ who kindled and maintained it. When we have been brought through all the storms and the threatening seas, and yet the raging waves have been forbid to swallow us up, we shall cry out in raptures of joy and wonder, "What manner of man is this, that the winds and the seas have obeyed him?” Then shall it be gloriously evident, that he has conquered Satan, and kept the hosts of hell in chains, when it shall appear that he has made poor mean trembling believers victorious over all the powers of darkness, for the Prince of peace has bruised him under their feet.? Fifthly, There is more work for our wonder and joy, and more glory for our blessed Lord, when we shall see that so many dark and dreadful providences were working together in mercy, for the good of the saints;' it is because Jesus Christ had the management of them all put in his hand; and we shall acknowledge "he has done all things well," Rom. viii. 28. "All things have wrought together for good." It is the voice of Christ to every saint in sorrow, "what I do thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know hereafter," John xii. 7. I saw not then, saith the Christian, that my Lord was curing my pride, by such a threatening and abasing provi dence, that he was weaning my heart from sensual delights, by such a sharp and painful wound; but now I behold things in another light, and give thanks and praises to my divine Physician. We shall look back upon the hours of our impatience, and be ashamed; we shall chide the flesh for its old repinings, when we shall stand upon the eternal hills of paradise, and cast our eyes back upon yonder transactions of time, those past ages of complaint and infirmity. We shall then, with pleasure and thankfulness, confess, that the captain of our salvation was much in the right to lead us through so many sufferings and sorrows, and we were much in the wrong to complain of his conduct. Bear up your spirits then, ye poor afflicted distressed souls, who are wrestling through difficult providences all in the dark. Bear up but a little longer, "he that shall come, will come, and will not tarry;" he will set all his conduct in a fair light, and you shall say, 'Blessed be the Lord, and all his gov. ernment.' Sixthly, That heaven should be so well filled out of such a hell of sin and misery as this world is' shall be another delightful reflection full of wonder and glory. Take a short survey of mankind, how 'all flesh has corrupted its ways' before God, and 'every imagination of the thought of man's heart is only evil, and that continually; there is none righteous, no not one.' Look round about you and see how iniquity abounds, violence, oppression, pride, lust, sensualities of all kinds, how they reign among the ( |