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But that God will not only treat, but entreat and befeech finful men to be reconciled, is yet more wonderful. Barely to propound the terms of peace, had been an astonishing mercy; but to woo and befeech stubborn enemies to be at peace, and accept their pardon, oh, how unparralleled was this condefcenfion!

3. It implies the great dignity and honour of the gospel-miniftry. We are ambassadors for Christ *. Ambassadors represent and perfonate the prince that fends them; and the honours or contempts done to them, reflect upon, and are reckoned to the person of their mafter, Luke x. 16. "He that heareth you, "heareth me; and he that defpifeth you, defpifeth me."

Neither their perfons, nor parts, are the proper ground and reason of our refpects to them; but their office and commiffion from Jefus Chrift.

We are fallen into the dregs of time, wherein a vile contempt is poured, not only upon the perfons, but the very office of the ministry; and I could heartily with that scripture, Mal. ii. 7, 8, 9., were thoroughly confidered by us, poffibly it might inform us of the true cause and reafon of this fore judgment; but furely Christ's faithful ministers deserve a better entertainment than they ordinarily find in the world; and if we did but seriously bethink ourselves, in whofe name they come, and in whofe ftead they stand, we should receive them as the Galatians did Paul, Gal. iv. 14., as angels of God, even as Chrift Jefus.

4. Chrift's treating with finners by his minifters, who are his ambaffadors, implies the ftrict obligation they are under, to be faithful in their minifterial employment. Chrift counts upon their faithfulness, whom he puts into the miniftry, 1 Tim. i. 12. They are accountable to him for all acts of their office, Heb. xiii. 17. If they be filent, they cannot be innocent: "Neceffity is laid upon them, and woe to them, if they preach not the gospel," 1 Cor. ix. 16.

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Yea, neceffity is not only laid upon them to preach, but to keep close to their commiffion in preaching the gofpel, 1 Thef. ii. 3, 4, 5. "Our exhortation was not of deceit, nor of uncleannefs, nor in guile, but as we were allowed of God to be put

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* We are ambassadors among those who serve the King of kings; we reprefent the perfon of God and Chrift: never any yet defpifed us with impunity, nay, without being injurious to God and Chrift. Bowles, Præfat, ad Paft. Evan,

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SERM. III. in truft with the gospel, even fo we speak, not as pleafing men, but God who trieth our hearts:" the word is not to be corrupted to please men, 2 Cor. ii. 17. their business is not to make them their difciples, but Chrifl's; not to feek theirs, but them, 2 Cor. xii. 14. to keep close to their inftructions, both in the matter, manner, and end of their miniftry. So did Chrift himself, the treasure of wisdom and knowledge, yet being fent by God, he faith, John vii. 16." My doctrine is not "mine, but his that fent me." And fo he expects and requires that his ambassadors keep close to the commission he hath given them, and be (according to their measure) faithful to their truft, as he was to his. Paul is to deliver to the people, that which he also received from the Lord, 1 Cor. xi. And Timothy must keep that which was committed to him, 2 Tim. i. 14.

5. It implies the removal of the gospel-miniftry to be a very great judgment to the people. The remanding of ambassadors, prefages an enfuing war. If the reconciling of fouls to God be the greatest work, then the removal of the means and inftruments thereof, must be the foreft judgment. Some account "the falling of the falt upon the table" ominous, but furely the falling of them, whom Chrift calls the falt of the earth, is fo indeed.

What now are thofe, once famous and renowned places, from whence Chrift, (as he threatned), hath removed the candlestick, but magna latrocinia, dens of robbers, and mountains of prey!

6. And lastly, It implies both the wisdom and condefcenfion of God to finful men, in carrying on a treaty of peace with them by fuch ambassadors, negociating betwixt him and them: Without a treaty, there would be no reconciliation; and no method to carry on fuch a treaty like this: for had the Lord treated with fingers perfonally, and immediately, they had been overwhelmed with his awful majefty. The appearances of God confound the creature, "Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God, (faith Ifrael) neither let me fee this great fire any more, "that I die not: Yea, fo terrible was that fight, that Mofes "faid, I exceedingly fear and quake," Deut. xviii. 16. Heb. xii. 21.

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Or had he commiffionated angels for this employment, though they stand not at fuch an infinite diftance from us as God doth, yet fuch is the excellence of their glory (being the highest species and order of creatures) that their appearances would be more apt to astonish than perfuade us: befides, they being crea tures of another rank and kind, and not partaking with us, ei

ther in the mifery of the fall, or benefit of the recovery by Chrift; it is not to be fuppofed, they should fpeak to us fo feelingly and experimentally, as these his ministers do; they can open to you the myfteries of fin, feeling the workings thereof daily in their own hearts; they can discover to you the conflicts of the flesh and Spirit, as being daily exercised in that warfare; and then being men of the fame mould and temper, they can fay to you as Elihu did to Job, Chap. xxxiii. 6, 7. “Behold, I am "according to thy with, in God's ftead, I alfo am formed out "of the clay; behold, my terror shall not make thee afraid, "neither fhall my hand be heavy upon thee."

So that in this appointment, much of the divine wisdom and condefcenfion to finners is manifested: "We have this treasure "in earthen veffels, that the excellency of the power may be of "God, and not of us," 2 Cor. iv. 7. God's glory and man's advantage are both promoted by this difpenfation.

Secondly, Next we are to confider that great concernment, about which these ambassadors of Chrift are to treat with finners; and that (as the text informs us) is their reconciliation to God.

Now reconciliation with God, is the restoring of men to that former friendship they had with God, which was broken by the fall *, and is ftill continued by our enmity and averfation whilst we continue in our natural and unregenerate estate. Now this is the greatest and most bleffed defign that ever God had in the world; an aftonishing and invaluable mercy to men, as will clearly appear, by confidering thefe particulars following.

Firft, That God fhould be reconciled after fuch a dreadful breach as the fall of man made, is wonderful; no fin, all things confidered, was ever like to this fin: other fins, like a single bullet, kill particular perfons, but this, like a chain-fhot, cuts off multitudes as the fand upon the fea-fhore, which no man can number.

If all the pofterity of Adam in their several generations, fhould do nothing else but bewail and lament this fin of his, whilft this world continues, yet would it not be enough lamented; for a man fo newly created out of nothing, and admitted the first moment, into the higheft order, crowned a king over the works of God's hands, Pfal. viii. 5. a man perfect and upright, without the least inordinate motion, or finful inclination: a man whofe mind was moft clear, bright, and apprehenfive of

* To reconcile is nothing elfe, than to make up that friendship, which was broke by fome grievous offence, and thus to bring ene. mies back into their former ftate of concord. Dav. on Col. i. 20.

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SERM. III. the will of God, whofe will was free, and able to have eafily put by the strongest temptation: a man in a paradife of delights, where nothing was left to defire for the advancing hap piness of foul or body: a man understanding himself to be a public, complexive perfon, carrying not only his own, but the happiness of the whole world in his hand: fo foon, upon fo flight a temptation, to violate the law of his God, and involve himself and all his pofterity with him, in fuch a gulph of guilt and mifery; all which he might fo eafily have prevented! 0 wonderful amazing mercy, that ever God fhould think of being reconciled, or have any purposes of peace towards fo vile an apo ftate creature as man.

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Secondly, That God should be reconciled to men, and not to angels, a more high and excellent order of creatures, is yet more aftonishing when the angels fell they were loft irrecoverably; no hand of mercy was ftretched out to fave one of those myriads of excellent beings, but chains of darkness were immediately clapped on them, to referve them to the judgment of the great day, Jude 6.

That the milder attribute fhould be exercised to the inferior, and the feverer attribute to the more excellent creature, is juft matter for eternal admiration. Who would caft away veffels of gold, and fave earthen potsherds! Some indeed undertake to fhew us the reasons, why the wisdom of God made no provisi on for the recovery of angels by a Mediator of reconciliation; partly from the high degree of the malignity of their fin, who finned in the light of heaven, partly because it was decent, that the first breach of the divine law fhould be punished, to fecure obedience for the future. And befides, the angelical nature was not entirely loft, myriads of angels ftill continuing in their innocency and glory; when as all mankind was lost in Adam.

But we must remember fill the law made no distinction, but awarded the fame punishment, and therefore it was mercy alone that made the difference, and mercy for ever to be admired by men; how aftonishing is the grace of God, that moves in a way of reconciliation to us, out of defign to fill up the vacant places in heaven, from which angels fell, with fuch poor worms as we are! Angels excluded, and men received. O ftupendous mercy!

Thirdly, That God fhould be wholly and thoroughly reconciled to man, fo that no fury remains in him against us; according to that fcripture, Ifa. xxvii. 4. is ftill matter of farther won der.

The dcfign he fends his ambassador to you about, is not the allaying and mitigating of his wrath, (which yet would be matter of great joy to the damned) but thoroughly to quench all his wrath, fo that no degree thereof shall ever be felt by you. O bleffed embassy!" Beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of "them that bring fuch tidings." God offers you a full reconciliation, a plenary remiffion.

Fourthly, That God should be freely reconciled to finners, and discharge them without any the leaft fatisfaction to his juftice from them, is, and for ever will be, marvellous in their eyes.

Oh what mercy would the damned account it, if after a thoufand years torments in hell, God would at last be reconciled to them, and put an end to their mifery! But believers are difcharged without bearing any part of the curfe, not one farthing of that debt is levied upon them.

Object. If you fay, how can this be, when God ftands upon full fatisfaction to his justice before any foul be discharged and restored to favour? freely reconciled, and yet fully fatisfied, how can this be?

Solut. Very well, for this mercy comes freely to your hands, how coftly foever it proved to Chrift; and that free remiffion, and full fatisfaction, are not contradictory and inconsistent things, is plain enough from that fcripture, Rom. iii. 24. "Being juftified freely by his grace, through the redemption that is "in Chrift Jefus:" freely, and yet in the way of redemption. For though Chrift, your furety, hath made fatisfaction in your name and ftead, yet it was his life, his blood, and not yours, that went for it, and this furety was of God's own ap pointment, and providing, without your thoughts or contrivance. O bleffed reconciliation, happy is the people that hear the joyful found of it.

Fifthly and lastly, That God fhould be finally reconciled to finners, so that never any new breach fhall happen betwixt him and them any more, fo as to diffolve the league of friendship, is a most ravishing and transporting message.

Two things give confirmation and full fecurity to reconciled ones, viz. the terms of the covenant, and the interceffion of the Mediator.

The covenant of grace gives great fecurity to believers, against new breaches betwixt God and them. It is faid, Jer. xxxii. 40. "And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, "that I will not turn away from them to do them good, but I "will put my fear in their hearts, that they fhall not depart

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