ledge of a Saviour, aim to accomplish fully the glorious object of your sacred mission as children of the light. In short, let me exhort you, by a clear and constant manifestation of the truth, to commend yourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. So shall you gain for yourself a crown of glory, and conduct others to that blessed abode, where "the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and thy God thy glory.".

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SERMON VIII.

HOPE OF GLORY.

"By whom also we have access by faith into this grace, wherein we stand and rejoice in hope of the glory of God."-ROMANS 5: 2.

In the first two chapters of this epistle, the apostle, by a process of clear and cogent reasoning, establishes the truth, that the world, including both Jews and Gentiles, is gone into a state of entire alienation from God. The conclusion which he deduces from this fact is, that the world is in a state of condemnation to death. He then, by a course of clear and pointed remark, aims to prostrate the delusive hope which he knew was lurking in the bosom of his countrymen, of being justified before God by the deeds of the law; and having done this, in a tone of argument quite triumphant, he takes occasion to bring fully and cheeringly upon the view of his brethren, the doctrine of salvation by grace, or justification through Jesus Christ as the foundation, and faith as the instrument. This doctrine he discusses at length in the third and fourth chapters of this epistle. fifth chapter, from which the text is taken, opens with a detailed and beautiful view of the blessings

The

which flow to the believer as the consequence of justification, or of his union to Christ by faith. “Therefore,” says the Apostle, "being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. By whom also we have access by faith into this grace, wherein we stand and rejoice in hope of the glory of God."

As the field, open in this verse to our meditations, is too ample for our present survey, I would solicit your attention to the following clause: "And rejoice in hope of the glory of God." This I propose to discuss under the two following inquiries :

I. What is meant by the phrase, "Glory of God;" or what constitutes that glory, in the hope of which the Apostle rejoiced?

II. What is the hope of glory, and how does it become a foundation of joy to the believer?

I begin with the former of these interrogatories. What is intended, in this place, by the phrase, "Glory of God," or what constitutes that glory, in the hope of which the Apostle rejoiced?

The word "glory" is in scripture employed with various significations.

As applied to God, it sometimes denotes that created splendour or visible brightness with which he often clothed himself when he made his appearance to the ancient saints, as when he descended upon Mount Sinai to promulge his law,-Moses is said to have gone up into the Mount, and a cloud to have covered it,-" And the glory of the

Lord abode upon Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And the sight of the glory of the Lord was like devouring fire on the top of the Mount in the eyes of the children of Israel."

It is sometimes employed to denote that sublime display of God's natural attributes, which he has made in the material creation, as, "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth forth his handiwork." The glory of God also designates a particular attribute of the Deity, as in the place where Christ is said to have been raised up from the dead by the glory of his Father: i. e. by the power of God; the effect for the

cause.

It is, in general, used, however, to denote any signal or triumphant display of the divine attributes, either natural or moral, as made towards men; and, anything that operates as an occasion for eliciting that display, or tends to diffuse a knowledge or admiration of it, is said to promote the glory of God.

Finally; in its primary and highest sense, it is employed to denote that full, cloudless, and combined display of the perfections of the Godhead, which is to be made in the future world, together with the bliss which that display will impart to the inhabitants of that world. It is so used in the text: "And rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”

But to exhibit a more extended and adequate view of the subject, I remark,

1st, That the display of this glory is reserved to be made in the future world.

The Apostle rejoiced in hope. The glory was prospective. While at home in the body, this holy man was in the habit of considering himself as absent from the Lord: and, as the divine Redeemer was his chief joy, he longed to depart and be with him, which he considered would be far better than a residence in this world.

When, however, it is said, that this display of God's glory is reserved to be made in the future world, it is not to be imagined that any change is then to pass upon the essential divinity of the Godhead, in order either to render it glorious, or to adapt it to the imperfect vision of the wondering multitude that will encompass his throne. Jehovah is the perfection of beauty, yesterday, to-day, and for ever. He changes not. But, though upon the intrinsic nature of the Godhead, not the shadow of a change is ever to pass, and therefore no disclosure is ever to be made that can, with respect to that nature, be called new; yet such are the changes which are ultimately to be experienced in the natural and moral powers of God's intellectual creation, that with respect to them the divine glory is to be displayed in a manner which will be both wholly new and altogether augmented. These changes respect but two things. Removing interposing mediums, and elevating the capacity of the creature by a direct impulse. Were the obstacles