Love and Condefcenfion of the Son of God,

in fubmitting to be fent for this Purpose; what Motives to our Duty and Love of God can be more effecting or make a ftronger Impreffion upon us? An ingenious Mind will be excited to a most ardent Love and, Veneration for God, who so loved the World as to fend his only begotten Son, to the End that all that believe in him, fhould not perish, but Bad verlasting Life. It is upon Account of the Dignity of the Perfon by whom this Salvation is wrought, that the Scriptures represent the fending of the Son to be such a stupendous Act of the Love of God to Man. But if we do not believe the Son to be God, thefe Motives will lofe the greatest Part of their Force. If the Son be no more than a Creature, instead of having it faid, that God fo loved the World, it might rather be faid, that God so loved his own Son, that he sent him into the World, that after a fhort Obedience here, he might be advanced to divine Honour; be worshipped by Men, by Angels, and Arch-Angels, and have Domi

Such a

hion over all other Creatures. Thought as this would mightily leffen the Force of that Motive, whereby the Love of God is impreffed upon us; because we fhould be tempted to conclude, that the Love of God was rather fhewn to his own Son, than to Mankind. But the holy Scriptures fpeak of this Affair in a quite different Manner. They reprefent the Love of God to Man, not to confift merely in bestowing upon us eternal Life, but in conveying it to us in fuch a Manner, and by fuch endearing Means. In this was manifefted the Love of God towards us, because that God fent his only begotten Son into the World, that we might live through him. Our Love of God is founded upon his antecedent Love to us, in giving us his own Son. Upon this View of it, nothing can be conceived that could prevail upon Men fo powerfully to love God, as the Incarnation of the Son of God. The Power and Majefty of God were manifefted in the Creation, Prefervation, and Government of the World. The divine Mercy and Good

ftowed upon

nefs were visible in the daily Bleffings beupon Mankind; but the exceeding Riches of his Grace, were made known in his Kindness towards us in Christ Jesus.

Neither will the Love of Chrift to Man, nor his Condefcenfion in coming into the World to die for Sinners, appear in fo ftrong and endearing a Light, unless we confider him as the Son of God, equal with God, and very God of very God. If Chrift be no more than a Creature, though we fhould fuppofe him to be the very best and highest of all Creatures, we fhall not, we cannot esteem it fuch an amazing Act of Condefcenfion, for him to embark in fo glorious a Work as the Redemption of a whole World, when we find that for the doing of this Work, he is made the Judge of the World, and Lord of all Things, exalted to a kind of Rivalship with God, and advanced to be worshipped by Men and Angels. But when we confider Chrift as the Son of God most high, begotten of his Father before all Worlds, by whom all Things were made, and who for us Men, and for our

Salvation

Salvation came down from Heaven, and was made Man, and fuffered for us a painful Death; then the Love of the Son of God towards the Work of his own Hands appeareth in a moft lovely and engaging Manner; and cannot but prove the ftrongest

and most noble Motive to love him with all our Heart, and with all our Soul; and to obey his Will, who fo loved us, as to shed his precious Blood to redeem us. We fee then, that to deny the real Divinity of Christ, is to destroy the most potent Arguments of the Love, Humility, and Condefcenfion of our Lord, which are the peculiar Motives. of the Gospel.

In respect to the Holy Ghoft, whatever he hath done, and is always doing for us, will doubtless have more Weight with us, and give us quite other Notions and Apprehenfions of his Goodness and our Duty, when we confider him as God, than we could poffibly have, if we believed him to be only a Creature. In the Economy of our Salvation, the peculiar Office of the Holy Ghoft is to renew and fanctify us.

But unless we believe him to be God, it will make a fundamental Change in the Doctrine of divine Grace. For we fhall never be able to conceive that a Creature can be the univerfal Spring and Fountain of divine Grace and Life; neither fhall we believe that the Holy Ghoft can make such clofe Application to our Minds, and know our Thoughts, and excite in us good Affections and Defires, and fet Bounds to our Paffions, which the holy Scriptures affure us that he doth, if he be only a Creature. If we do not look upon him as God, we, fhall not have that Love and Faith, and Dependence upon him which we ought

to have.

We shall not entertain that high Efteem and Reverence for his Prefence and Communion which are required of us, nor have a juft Senfe of the Greatnefs of Sin, whereby we refift, and grieve, and do defpite unto him. In fhort, if we do not acknowledge his Divinity, we shall not have that deep Senfe which we ought to have of Sin committed against the Help and Influence of his Grace. We fee then, what