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dence; as likewise in Heb. i. 2, 3; "His Son-by whom also he made the worlds;-the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power."-Yet once more, the Word of God, by whom all things were made and are sustained, is the fountain of life, and of intellectual and spiritual light. "In him was life." This is in accordance with his own saying: "As the Father hath life in himself, so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself." (John v. 26.) And he gave a proof of this fact when he rose in triumph from the grave, having overcome death, by which it was not possible that he should be holden. It was God,-God in intimate union with his human nature, -that raised up Jesus. It was Jesus who raised up himself by his own power. "I have power to lay down my life, and I have power to take it again." John x. 18. "I am the resurrection and the life; he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die." (xi. 25, 26.) "Believest thou this?" Oh for a constant faith, which may keep the Saviour ever before us as the Lord and giver of life!" And the life was the light of men." It is he who can illumine our dark souls. He said of himself, "I am the light of the world; he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." John viii. 12. We are, by nature, in a state of spiritual and moral darkness; we are blind with respect to those truths which most

nearly concern the welfare of our immortal souls. And all men around us are, in themselves, as erring and as ignorant as we are. Neither by our own wisdom, nor by the united wisdom of the world, can we know and apprehend the things which belong unto our peace. A ray from above must penetrate our souls, or else all will be darkness there for ever. But the Word of God, in mercy, condescends to be the light of fallen man. Let us take him for our teacher-let us follow his guidance, and yield to the influence of his blessed Spirit dwelling within us, and we shall be wise unto salvation!

It is, alas, too possible that this light may shine on us in vain. "The light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not." "He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not." The darkness may fail to comprehend this celestial light,by obstinacy, by carelessness, by worldly-mindedness, by sensual indulgence. We may continue to be blind to the light which shines so brightly in the glorious gospel of the Son of God; we may shut out from our hearts the beams of the Sun of righteousness himself! And let this thought serve for our admonition.But let us, at the same time, derive encouragement from a survey of the happy consequence of receiving the truth, and walking in its light. "As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on

his name which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." "Of his fulness have we all received, and grace for grace." How inestimable is our privilege in having been called to a knowledge of Him who is the light of the world, and to a participation of his saving and sanctifying grace! How carefully should we seek and cherish that living faith whereby our souls may be continually kept beneath the rays of that Divine illumination!

While we pursue our meditations on this holy gospel of the beloved apostle, we shall hear many a lesson of wisdom from the mouth of our heavenly instructor; and we shall witness that spotless righteousness and meritorious sacrifice whereby the Word, made flesh and dwelling among us, became the Saviour of a lost world, the author of eternal life to those who were dead in trespasses and sins. May we have holy and sweet communion with him who is herein revealed to his believing people as the way, the truth, and the life!-ED.

Lift up your hearts!

O thou great and unchangeable Jehovah, whose name is One, and whose glory is not imparted to another, we adore thee, and offer unto thee the praises of most thankful hearts for that thou hast vouchsafed to reveal thyself to us, by the Eternal Word, and through the agency of the Holy Spirit, as a God of compassion and love! May our souls be deeply impressed with a sense of thy majesty and thy mercy;

and may we at all times thankfully and reverently draw nigh unto thee, in the way which thou hast chosen!

O Lord Jesu Christ, who didst take upon thee the form of a ser vant, and wast made in the likeness of men, but in that form and likeness didst speak as never man spake, and didst work those works which none but the Almighty could perform, we devoutly acknowledge Thee to be one with the Father, who wast in the beginning, the eternal, God over all, blessed for ever! In the beginning, Lord, thou didst lay the foundation of the earth; all things were made by thee, and without thee was not anything made that was made. Oh that the works of thy hands may be continually, through thy grace, a means of leading our souls to Thee!

Fountain of life and light! look in mercy upon us, thy fallen creatures, who are by nature dead' in trespasses and sins, having our understandings darkened, and our wills rebellious and perverse, and who are sinking down into everlasting ruin! May we truly know thee to be the way, the truth, and the life! Quicken us, O Lord, by thy Holy Spirit, and engage all the powers of our souls and bodies in thy service! Raise us to the apprehension and pursuit of what is holy, just, and good; and grant that, instead of yielding to the corrupt tendencies of our own hearts, or the deadening influences of an evil world, we may live by faith in thee! Lead us forth and guide us in thy truth; enable us ever to perceive the things which

belong unto our peace; and grant that, by the teaching and influence of thy good Spirit, we may continually grow in grace, and in the knowledge of thee, our Saviour and our God!

Send forth thy light and thy truth to those who now sit in darkness and in the shadow of death! Oh that all who have heard thy name may be made to rejoice in thee; and may the knowledge of thy gospel and thy grace be imparted to those who have not hitherto received it! Have mercy on those who have unthankfully rejected thee and thy great salvation; grant them space for repentance, and plead with them yet again by thy holy and patient Spirit! In thine own good time call others to the privileges of thy church on earth; may many who are now afar off be brought nigh; may they become partakers of the inheritance of thy saints in light; and hereafter, by thy mercy, be admitted to dwell in thy presence for ever! Amen.-ED.

HYMN.

To our Redeemer's glorious name
Awake the sacred song;
Oh may his love, immortal flame,

Inspire each heart and tongue!
He left his radiant throne on high,
Forsook the realms of bliss,
And came as man to bleed and die ;-
Was ever love like this?

He took the dying traitor's place,
And suffered in his stead;
For man, oh miracle of grace,
For sinful man, He bled.

Oh may the sweet, the blissful theme,
Tune ev'ry heart and tongue,
All nations know thy saving name,
And join the sacred song.

§ CCXXXIV.

CHAP. I. 19-34.

The testimony of John.

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19 And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, to ask him, Who art thou?

20 And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ.

21 And they asked him, What then? Art thou 'Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No.

22 Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that What sayest thou of

sent us.

thyself?

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23 He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as 'said the prophet Esaias.

24 And they which were sent were of the Pharisees.

25 And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet?

26 John answered them, saying, "I baptize with water:

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fch. v. 33.-g Lake iii. 15. ch. iii. 28. Acts xiii. 25. - Mal. iv. 5. Mat. xvii. 10.-i Deut. xviii. 15, 18.Oi, a prophet.-k Mat. iii. 3. Mark i. 3. Luke iii. 4. ch. iii. 23.- Is. Ix. 3.-m Mat. iii. 11.- Mal. iii. 1.-0 ver. xv. 30. Acts xix. 4.-p Judg. vii. 24. ch. x. 40

27 He it is, who coming Ex. xii. 3. 18. li. 7. ver. 36. Acts viii. 32. 1 Pet.

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30 'This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me.

31 And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, 'therefore am I come baptizing with water.

32 "And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.

33 And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy

Ghost.

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34 And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.

i. 19. Rev. v. 6; &c.-r Is. liii. 1. 1 Cor. xv. 3. Gal. i. 4. Heb. i. 3; & ii. 17; & ix. 28. 1 Pet. ii. 24; & iii. 18. 1 John ii. 2; & iii. 5: & iv. 10. Rev. i. 5.-1 Or. beareth.-8 ver. xv. 27.- Mal. iii. J. Mat. iii. 6. Luke i. 17, 76, 77 ; & iii. 3, 4.-u Mat. iii. 16. Mark i. 10. Luke iii. 22. ch. v. 32.- Mat. iii. 11. Acts i. 5; & ii. 4; & x. 44; & xix. 6.

READER.-This is the record of

John.

See Commentary on Matthew III. 1-12. § X. and Luke III. 15—17. § CLXI.

Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world!-In this remarkable saying of the Baptist every word hath its weight and emphasis. Behold! see here the person I told you of, the Lamb without spot and blemish, the perfect emblem of innocence and patience; "the Lamb slain from the founda

tion of the world," the Lamb typi fied by that which you sacrifice every morning and evening, and especially by the Paschal Lamb, which was roasted in such a posture (as Justin Martyr, and others, observe) that it exactly represented a person hanging upon a cross. Yea, "Behold the Lamb of God;" a Lamb not of an earthly, but Divine extraction; the Lamb of God's own choosing and appointment; the Lamb of God's own eternal generation, the only begotten of the Father; the Lamb offered up by God himself, unto himof God that taketh away sin;" not self. And so, "Behold the Lamb that expiates or covers it, but takes it quite away; not that hath or will take it away, but, as St. Chrysostom observes, that doth take it away continually; and that taketh away not

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only some particular sins, but sin in general and so, whatsoever there is in sin that either offends God or can hurt us; the strength, as well as the guilt of sin; our inclinations to it, as well as our obligations to punishment for it: and that taketh away the sin, not only of some particular persons, but the sin of the world; the sin not only of Abraham's but Adam's posterity; the sin of the Gentiles as well as of the Jews; for "he is the propitiation for our sins and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world." 1 John ii. 2. Thus, whensoever we see Christ, either with the eye of sense or faith, we may cry out with the Baptist, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world."-BEVERIDGE.

Neither is it enough that we thus believe that Christ died for mankind in general; but, in the last place, every one should believe that Christ died for him, and for his sins in particular; so as to apply the sufferings of the human nature in Christ to his own particular human person. For, seeing it is expressly said that Christ tasted death for every man, every man ought to believe he did it for him. Heb. ii. 9. And as no man can believe this except he repent, so no man can truly repent of all his sins, but he may and ought to believe this, even that Christ died for him, and for those very sins which he hath repented of. Thus we find St. Paul acting his faith, so as to appropriate Christ unto himself: "I am crucified," saith he, "with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but

Christ liveth in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." Gal. ii. 20.

Thus every one that repents and believes the gospel should look upon himself as particularly interested in what Christ did and suffered for mankind, as much as if he had done and suffered it only for him; so that I am bound, and so is every one else, not only "to confess with my mouth," but "to believe in my heart" that he became the Son of man, that I might partake of his Divine nature; he was "delivered for my offences," and "raised again for my justification;" he was " made sin for me," that "I might be made the righteousness of God in him;" he died, that I might live, and was crucified by men, that I might be glorified with God for ever; for "he loved me, and gave himself for me:" and, therefore, now that I remember his death, and see him, methinks, upon the cross, I cannot but cry out, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world" in general, and my sins in particular.-BEVERIDGE.

HYMN.

Behold the Lamb of God, who bore

Thy burdens on the tree; And paid in blood the dreadful score, The ransom due for thee.

Look to Him till the sight endears

The Saviour to thy heart;
His pierced feet bedew with tears,

Nor from his cross depart.
Look to him till his dying love
Thy ev'ry thought control;

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