mighty power. But the most striking of these

discourses is that in which he assumed to himself the power of forgiving sins; which took place on the occasion of their bringing to him the man who was sick of the palsy. Upon this occasion, the Evangelist relates, that "Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy, Thy sins be forgiven thee. And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth. But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, Whether is easier to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of Man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house." Now the claim, which is here made by our Saviour, to the right of forgiving sins, agrees not only with the doctrine of his Divinity, but with his character as the Judge of the world, which we have seen is connected with his assumption of the human nature; the express ground of his having authority given him to execute judgment being this, namely, because he is the Son of Man.

It was in a full consciousness of the same divine character, and of the possession of the same almighty power, that our Lord sent forth his Apostles to preach: and the discourse, which he uttered on this occasion, is perfectly consistent with that character. What can be more full of conscious dignity and conscious power than the

1 Matth. ix. 2-6.

directions with which he accompanied his divine commission: "And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give. Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses ; for the workman is worthy of his meat.... Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both body and soul in hell.... Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I also confess before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven....He that findeth his life shall lose it, and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it'." What other person except one, who was conscious to himself of the possession of almighty power, could ever think of uttering expectations, or of holding out promises, like these? And when the Seventy, after their mission, "returned again to him with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject to us in thy name:" how remarkable was his answer; "I say unto you, Rejoice not, that the devils are subject unto you; but rather rejoice that your names are written in heaven"." How unlike was He in this to any other teacher of religion, who ever appeared in the world, when,-after having given his followers a privilege, which involved an authority over the world of spirits, he suddenly checked the rising

1 Matth. x. 7, &c.

2 Luke x. 17, 20.

feeling of satisfaction at the possession of this power, which he saw was leading them to a temper of mind entirely at variance with the spirit which he wished to inculcate; and directed them, as to the truest source of joy and happiness, to the contemplation of an infinite and eternal reward.

The same evidence of the consciousness of the possession of infinite knowledge and almighty power, is seen in the command, which he gave to his Apostles after his resurrection, to preach the Gospel to every creature; in the assurance with which he accompanied that command, that he would be "with them always even to the end of the world," and the promise of his Holy Spirit from on high, a promise which implied his ascension into heaven. The infidel may perhaps endeavour to explain away, or to deny the reality of those miraculous powers, by which they were enabled to attest the divine commission which they bore. But can he deny the facts of the religion itself, and the evidence arising from the exercise of these powers, which the religion itself received, in consequence of the preaching of the Apostles which was attested by these miracles? Or can we, on the principles of those who profess to believe that our Saviour was a mere man, explain declarations and promises like these, which imply an universal and constant presence with his servants to the end of all things, and an absolute controul over the powers of the visible and

2 Mark xvi. 15. Matth. xxviii. 20. John xv. 26, &c.

the invisible world? had the chart of the whole proceedings of his religion to their final close spread out before him; and he speaks with regard to the grand result, with all the confidence of infinite knowledge and almighty power. Let us compare with these declarations of our Saviour the present condition of religion in the world, and the assurance which we derive from prophecy, of its final and glorious triumph; and we may with confidence appeal to the candour of every reasonable person,-whether the authority with which our Saviour speaks, and the fulfilment of his predictions, are not perfectly consistent with the terms in which he describes the dignity of his person and character?

Our Lord spoke as if he

Again, to what feeling less than a consciousness of almighty power and a command over the invisible world, can we attribute such declarations as the following; when our Lord promises, that if a man keep his saying "he shall never see death1;" that "whoso eateth his flesh and drinketh his blood, hath eternal life, and he will raise him up at the last day2;" that "this is life eternal, to know the only true God and Jesus Christ whom he hath sent3?" In like manner, can anything short of a belief in his eternal Godhead enable us to explain such a declaration as this, that "his kingdom was not of this world?" or how, in inviting persons to the profession of his religion, he should forewarn them, that it would be accompanied with persecutions, and trials, and the loss

1 John viii. 51. 2 Ib. vi. 54-58. 3 Ib. xvii. 3. 4 Ib. xviii. 36.

of all things; and yet, notwithstanding this, that it would be rewarded with present peace and everlasting felicity,—“manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlastings" The whole history of the Christian religion, from the time of our Saviour, confirms the truth of these promises; and must assure us, that nothing less than that infinite knowledge and infinite power, which were inseparably connected with his Godhead, could have enabled him either to make these promises, or to insure their fulfilment.

Again, what more conclusive evidence can we have of divinity, than the manner in which our Lord asserts his power over the world of spirits, and issues his commands to the evil spirits, as if they were obedient to his Almighty will? But what can exceed the sublime ideas which are inspired by the thought, when he speaks of the approach of that hour, when "all that are in the graves shall hear his voice and shall come forth, they that have done good to the resurrection of life, and they that have done evil to the resurrection of damnation?" Or when he describes himself as coming in the glory of his Father with the holy angels, and all nations as being assembled before him; his separating them one from another, as a shepherd divideth the sheep from the goats; his setting the sheep on the right hand and the goats on the left; his saying to the righteous, "Come, ye blessed of my Father, receive the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the