Father draw him." But tho' you cannot come to this foundation, yet know it is a living foundation, it can come to you. Are you willing that the foundation come to you? That Chrift come to you, and put his Spirit within you, and put your lufts out of you! That he raze the old foundation, and lay you on himfelf as the fure foundation? If you can fay, in the fight of a heartfearching God, that this day hath been fuch a day of power, as that the Lord hath fo far broken your natural enmity, as to make you willing to cleave to this foundation, and to be put in like a pin of this blessed. building, whereof Chrift is the corner-flone; and willing that this living foundation come and put life in you, and do all your works in you, and for you, because you can do nothing of yourfelf, then, I may fay, that this day the temple work is begun; and from this day will he blefs you. Therefore,

2dly, I proceed to drop a word to you who are believers, and either now or formerly have the foundation of the temple laid within you. And my exhortation is, that you would, thro' grace, carry up the building upon this foundation; building up yourselves in the moft holy faith; and fo working out the work of your falvation with fear and trembling, because it is God that worketh in you, both to will and to do. You will fay, True, I dare not altogether deny but the foundation is laid; but, how shall I carry up the building of the fpiritual temple on the foundation? Why, his grace, that hath begun the good work, must be fufficient for you; and his ftrength made perfe&t in your weakness: and therefore, renounce your own ftrength, and go on to the work in the ftrength of the Lord, making mention of his righteoufnefs, and of his only. And that thofe who have come to the foundation may carry on the building-work more fuccefsfully, I fhall clofe with a direction or two to them.

1. In order to the right building, feek of the Lord that he would give you the mason's word, if I may fo call it: as builders and mafons have a word, whereby they know another; fo, the fpiritual builders have a fecret word, a facred inftinet whereby they know Chrift's voice whenever they hear it: "My fheep hear my voice, and

they

they follow me." There is a peculiar word which he gives them, John xvii. 14. "I have given them thy word; and the world hateth them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.-I have given them thy word;" what is that word? Indeed, it is a fecret; and though I fhould tell it, none here will underftand it, but these that have gotten it. It is a word that none in the world but builders and believers have; and it is a word which they cannot build. And, I think, the word there meant, is Chrift himself; that Word that was made flefh. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." I called him the foundation, and I call him the word too; for, though you have come to the foundation, yet if Christ the foundation do not give you the word, or give you himself again, by giving you a new hold of him by faith, you will never be in cafe to build: "I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up," Acts xx. 32. Where, by the word of bis grace, fome of the best divines understand Christ himfelf. And what word but this is able to build you up, or to fit for building the pillars of the temple, JACHIN and Boaz, ftability and strength.

2. In order to the right building, bring all your ftones out of God's quarry, and all your materials for building out of Chrift's fulnefs. What are the materials for the building? They are the They are the graces of the Spirit, viz. faith, love, repentance, knowledge, and all other graces: you cannot build the fpiritual temple without thefe.Faith is the clofing with, and joining to the foundation: love is the cement that binds and knits it together: knowledge is like the window of the temple, at which the believer looks out. But what is the quarry out of which we must take these, and the like materials? Why, Chrift himself, who is the foundation, is alfo the quarry; and out of his fulness we muft receive grace for grace. Where will you get faith, if you go not to him for it? For he is the Author and finisher of faith. Where will you get knowledge, if you go not to him for it, in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge? Where will you get repentance, if you go not to him

for

for it? For, "He is a Prince and a Saviour, by the right hand of God, to give repentance to lfrael." God hath made him the great Treasurer; "It hath pleased the Father, that in him fhould all fulness dwell, that we might be complete in him." But in cafe you think this quarry is far off, you need not fay, "Who will go up to heaven, and bring down Chrift? Or, who will defcend into the deep, and bring him up? He is near in the word;" you may dig in this quarry, and yet go no farther than the Bible that is in your hand.-The promises of the covenant themfelves are excellent materials for the building. You may find Christ himself in them; and therefore I would have you, in order to the building, lay up thefe promifes in your heart. Lay up the promife of pardon, the promise of a new heart, the promise of grace and glory. Lay up a promife for every change that may befal you. Lay up a promife of ftrength; as when he fays, "My ftrength fhall be perfected in thy weaknefs." Lay up a promife of presence; as when he says, "I will never leave you, nor forfake you." Lay up a promife of protection; as when he fays, "The place of your defence fhall be the munition of rocks;-a man fhall be a hiding place from the wind, a covert from the tempeft; as rivers of waters in a dry place, and as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land." Lay up a promife of pro. vifion; as when he fays, "Bread fhall be given thee, and your water fhall be fure." Lay up a promife of direction and conduct; as when he fays, "I will lead the blind in a way they know not, and in paths which they have not known." Lay up a promise for fupply; as when he says. My God fhall fupply all your needs, according to his riches in glory, by Chrift Jefus." Lay up a promise for death itself; as when he fays, "Death shall be swallowed up in victory." O it would be fureft to travel thro' the valley of the fhadow of death with the promise in your hand. Lay up a promise for every ftate; fee Ifa. xli. 17, 20. I fay, lay up thefe, and the like materials for the building, and bring them all out of God's quarry.

3. In order to the right building, make ufe of God's fquare and plumb-line: fee Ifaiah xxviii. 17. I mean, his law; you, believers, are delivered from the law as a

covenant; and therefore, there is none in the world fo much obliged as you are, to make use of the law as a rule; "They that walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and on all the Ifrael of God." Let that word found ftill in your ears, Pfal. xxxvii. 37. "Depart from evil, and dwell for evermore;" and furely, if you be in your element, you will be faying, "O that my ways were directed to keep thy flatutes! O let me not wander from thy commandments. O enlarge my heart, that I may run the way of thy commandments."-But, befide the precept of the law, in the hand of a Mediator, there are the examples of the faints in fcripture that belong to this fquare and line for the building, efpecially the example of the King of faints, Chrift Jefus, "Who hath left us an example, that we fhould follow his fteps." Set Chrift before you in your building; and learn of him, for he is meek and lowly,

4. In order to the right and fuccefsful building, feek more and more difplays of the glory of God in the face of Christ; for, fays the Pfalmift, "When the Lord fhall build up Zion, he will appear in his glory." As the foundation is laid by faving discoveries of his glory; fo the building is ftill advanced by this fame means: according as you are made to behold his glory as in a glass, fo fhall you be changed into the fame image, from glory to glory and thus the building fhall go up.

5. In a word, call in always the affiftance of the great Architect and Mafter-builder; for, Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain, that build it." Be always coming to him, 1 Pęt. ii, 4. Be much about his hand, in the use of means; praying in fecret, fearching the fcriptures, and the like: but ftill remember, whatever is incumbent on you, in point of means and duty, the whole work is his, in point of power and efficiency. Saints may weep for Zion, but the Lord muft build her. It is he that lays the foundation; for, "The Lord hath founded Zion." It is he that raifes the fuperftructure; by working in us both to will and to do of his good pleasure. And it is he that must finish the work, and lay on the cope-ftone, with fhouting, crying, "Grace, grace, unto it." Therefore,. O give him employment; and let him

have all the work, who will have all the glory. Employ him to remove all the mountains of difficulty, that stand in the way of this building; for, it is he that must say, "Who art thou, O great mountain? before our Zerubbabel, thou shalt become a plain."

Now, I have done, and if any be going away with out Christ, or without having this foundation laid, you are going away with God's curfe upon you; and though you do not fee it now, yet it will meet with you fearfully at death and judgment; and ly upon you heavily to all eternity. You will never do a good turn as long as you are off this foundation; whatever you may do, that is naturally good, you are incapable of doing any thing fpiritually good, and acceptably good; for, "They that are in the flesh," and out of Chrift, "they cannot please God." Ard fo, as long as the foundation is not laid, you will never have a day to do well. But I hope, fome are going away, rejoicing and glorying in this foundation and if there be any here that are brought to glory in Chrift as the foundation of their hope; the foundation of their peace with God; the foundation of their holiness and comfort; the foundation of their light and life, ftrength and liberty; the foundation of their grace, and glory, and eternal falvation: O bleffed are you now! and bleffed fhall you be for ever: whatever fpiritual damps or temporal difficulties you may come under after this, yet you fhall be bleffed in profperity and adverfity; though God fhould vifit your iniquities with rods, yet the rod is in a friend's hand; "His loving-kindness will he not take away." Yea, if this hath been a believing day to you, a foundation-laying day, or a templebuilding day, then I muft tell you, in the name of the great God, that from this day will he bless you.

SERMON