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that he will give us an heart to know him, for he will pardon them whom he reserves. Jer. 1. 20. And again, For all shall know me, from the least to the greateft. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their fins and their iniquities will I remember no more." Heb. viii. 11, 12. I was led into the glorious mystery of the Holy Trinity by the teaching of God in my own foul. It is written in the prophets, All thy children fhall be taught of God. Ifai. liv. 13. This paffage our Lord quotes, It is written in the prophets, and they shall be all taught of God. Every man, therefore, that hath beard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me. John vi. 45. And it is added, No man can come to me, except the Father, which bath fent me, draw him. John vi. 44. Now, from this divine teaching there is none of God's elect exempted; they fhall be all taught of God. And the Saviour informs us, that, by God here, God the Father is meant; and he adds, Every man, therefore, that bath beard, and bath learned of the Father, cometh unto me. He must both hear and learn of the Father before he comes to Chrift; nor can any man come to Chrift except the Father draw him; and all such, fays Christ, I will raise up at the laft day. John vi. 44. From hence we learn that all the elect are taught of the Father; and that every one of the Father's pupils come to Chrift; and, without being drawn by the Father, they cannot come; and those that do come fhall be infallibly faved and raised up at the laft day.

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But then where is the Father's teaching described? How does he teach us? And what do we hear and, learn of him? This is what I will endeavour to make plain. The Lord knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity. Bleffed is the man whom thou chafteneft, O Lord, and teacheft him out of thy law; that thou mayeft give him reft from the days of adverfity, until the pit be digged for the wicked. Pfalm xciv. 11-13. Now the schoolmaster, by which God teaches us, is the moral law; as for the ceremonial law, that was never enjoined to the Gentiles.

Out

of this law are we taught of God the Father; and our leffons are prefaced with his chaftening rod, Blessed is the man whom thou chasteneft, and teacheft: and Christ fays, we both hear and learn of the Father. Two things we hear; first, the chaftening rod. The Lord's voice crieth unto the city, and the man of wisdom fhall fee thy name: hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it. Micah vi. 9. Here is the voice of the Lord crying to the chofen, calling the city of Zion; and here is a rod that speaks, Hear ye the rod. Now this is what our Lord fays-we hear, and we learn of the Father; and he teacheth us out of the law. The fecond found that we hear is called the Lord's voice, that cries to the city; and that voice is, by Paul, called a voice of words; it is blackness, and darkness, and tempeft; the found of a trumpet, and the voice of words. Heb. xii. 18, 19. A voice of words, not a life-giving power. And this voice of words is called a killing letter, or the letter that killeth, which,

when it came to Paul, fin revived, and he died. And what can kill us, but the curfe, or fentence, of the miniftration of death, engraven on tables of ftone? The voice we hear, therefore, is the curfe of the broken law condemning us; the rod that we hear is the wrath and anger of God smiting, reproving, and rebuking us. This is what we hear; and the leffons we learn are, the guilt and filth of fin, the wrath of God, and the enmity of our own hearts. The next lessons we learn are, the holiness, justice, and terrible majefty of God. These are the things that we hear and learn of the Father; and Every one that hath beard › and learned of the Father (fays Chrift) cometh unto me. Now what is that which is promised to this bleffed man, thus chaftened and taught out of the law? Why, God will give him reft from the days of adverfity, until the pit be digged for the wicked. The thing promised is reft; but who wants reft? None but those who labour, and are heavy laden. The labourer is he who is toiling under the curfe and wrath of God, to recommend himself to God's favour, and to get life by the works of the law and hard labour this is. The load that he carries is the guilt he has contracted, and the corruptions of his heart, which the law difcovers; and this is a fore burden, too heavy for any to bear. Now there is a voice in the word to fuch fouls pointing to Chrift, To whom be faid, This is the reft wherewith ye may cause the weary to reft; and this is the refreshing. Ifai. xxviii. 12. The Saviour calls to fuch fouls alfo-Come unto

me

me all ye that labour and are heavy leaden, and I will give you reft. But no invitations will do for a poor foul that finds himself condemned already. And, therefore, No man can come to me (fays Chrift) except my Father draw him. However, to Christ all that are taught of God must come; for the Spirit of God and the promise of life are both in him; and into his hands are all the elect put, and to his foot they must be brought, and be made to hear his voice and receive the word from his mouth, that they may live. The fiery law comes firft to condemn us to death, and the voice and word of the Son of God afterward to raise the dead. The Lord came from Sinai, and rose up from Seir unto them; he shined forth from mount Paran, and he came with ten thoufands of faints: from his right band went a fiery law for them. Yea, he loved the people: all his faints are in thy band: and they fat down at thy feet; every one fhall receive of thy words. Deut. xxxiii. 2, 3. This paffage fhews that all whom the Father teaches out of the fiery law muft come to Chrift the great prophet, and fit down at his feet to receive of his word. This was the good part which Mary chofe, that could not be taken from her. Here Mary Magdalen fat, and got her pardon and her much love; and here God draws us all. But how does he draw us?

First, by causing the ftorms of Sinai now and then to abate, and the arrows of his quiver to lose their keennefs.

2dly, By guiding our eyes to the promises, encouragements,

couragements, invitations, and kind pathetic words spoken by the Lord Jefus.

3dly, By caufing now and then a ray of light, a beam of hope, and fome budding expectations, to fpring up in our hearts while we attend to the voice of Chrift in the gospel.

4thly, The dreadful paffages of fcripture that pierced us through get out of fight, and nothing but Chrift and his kind dealings with finners appear; and while our face is turning to the Lord the vail is gradually taken away. The more we fee of Jefus, the fofter our fouls get, and the more our hearts melt; and the more Chrift fhines in the word, the more we wonder, till his very name appears as a healing ointment poured forth; and, as the bowels yearn over him, fo faith in him fprings up; the Holy Spirit then teftifies of him, and prefents him to view, till the understanding becomes fufceptible of the light of his countenance, and then confidence goes out and embraces him; then God accepts us in the beloved, and gives us the light of the knowledge of the glory of himself in the face of Jefus Chrift, while the Spirit fills us with joy and peace. And here the foul finds reft from the days of adverfity, till the pit be digged up for the wicked; that is, they shall rest safe and secure in Chrift Jefus, while the wicked fill up their own measure; for the wicked are faid to dig their own pit, and to fall into their own deftruction. This, my dear brother, is what the apoftle calls coming to God the judge of all; and then to Jefus

the

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