Revelation xix. 10, "The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy."

But the Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the Word of God is the revelation, is in Himself the embodiment of all wisdom, knowledge, and truth. The eternal Son of God-one with the Father from the beginning or before the ages; the Word, or the expression of the will of the Father. He speaks of Himself as "The Way, The Truth, and The Life," and He sends the Holy Spirit, in speaking of whom He says, "He shall testify of Me." This argument (viz. that Christ, of whom the Scriptures are the revelation, contains all wisdom and knowledge and truth, and therefore that whatever is not included in His word, or proved by it must not be received) is one of which St. Paul makes great use, and on which he rests much in dealing with those churches which were becoming seduced by the traditions of men. Thus, writing to the Galatians, who were being drawn under the influence of Judaizing teachers, and were becoming fettered by traditions, he says (iii. 1-2), “O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was evidently set forth?" And in his epistle to the Corinthians, who were being led by human efforts to explain away the doctrines and practice of the Gospel, he says (I. i. 22), "The Jews require a sign and the Geeks seek after wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block, and to the Greeks foolishness, but to them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and he wisdom of God."

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In writing to the Ephesians and to the Colossians he had a different sort of tradition to combat, it was a mixture of Jewish ritual, and heathen philosophy, crying out for greater intellect, and idealising as almost objects of worship different attributes of the mind. This he overcomes by the same teaching in both cases; writing to the Ephesians he says (i. 17), "That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of Glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him"; while to the Colossians he speaks still more strongly, saying of Christ, as is proved by the original (II. 3), “In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." Then if all are hidden in Him, all that spring from any other source must be false. He reveals to us in His word all that is needful for us, and whatever is contrary to that word, modifies it, or seeks to explain away any part of it, is antagonistic to the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

St. Paul, however, makes one further step, "Ye are complete in Him" (ii. 10). You want no direction that He does not give, no doctrine that He does not furnish, no means He does not supply, no strength He does not infuse. "Ye are complete in Him." Complete in Him, and the Scriptures are they that testify of Him! What other Rule of Faith, then, can we need; what can we, dare we, accept? If Christ calls us complete, that is, finished, in Him, who shall dare add his hand to His completed work?

Our endeavour has been to show that the Word of God is inspired, complete, sufficient, given to all; and that as it is in itself a perfect

revelation of Christ, no other Rule of Faith can be received. And if this be established, what have we gained? We have gained this point: all who possess a Bible have an inspired direction for themselves, given by Jesus Christ through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. That this is perfect, i.e., there are no directions wanting. That it is sufficient for all their needs, let us pause on that thought; sufficient to convince, sufficient to save, sufficient for the sinner, sufficient for the saint, sufficient for the peasant, sufficient for the peer, sufficient in joy and in sorrow, sufficient in life and in death.

We have gained a standard by which to test all that we hear and think, one unerring guide; a standard to which we should submit, as the Bereans did, all the doctrines that we hear, and by which we should regulate every act that we do; a standard that may seem hard and unintelligible to many, but which is open to the poorest, meanest comprehension in answer to humble prayer for the teaching of the Holy Spirit.

We have gained a trust, a precious trust, committed to each one, a treasure unspeakable, a test most precious; for we may apply it to every thing, every person, every thought, every act; a guide unfailing from earth to heaven; a revealed Saviour. But for this trust we must give an account. Is it studied; how is it studied? Is it loved, sought, followed? By it we are to live, by it we shall be judged; and in that day, if never before, we shall discover the value of the Word of God as the only Rule of Faith.

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Justification by Faith.

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THREE words embody the subject of our lecture this evening; but, though few in number, their importance cannot be over-rated: they are the very foundation of the Christian Religion and the Protestant Faith-the watchword, as it were, of the glorious Reformation; and, more than this, they contain the truth, the rejection of which condemns the most upright, moral, intellectual man to eternal death, while its acceptance enables the one who has been the greatest sinner to be at peace with God.

A doctrine of such a nature, and involving such results, is not likely to be favourably received by mankind, whose natural bent is to assert their own independence and magnify their own powers; and both history and experience show that no doctrine has ever been more violently or more constantly assailed. Scepticism and Superstition, Herodian and Pharisee have combined to attack it, directly and indirectly: on the one hand to stigmatise it as a doctrine impossible and absurd; and on the

other, to explain it away, or confuse it with other leading truths of the Gospel.

But although there are, on the other hand, many who believe this doctrine, it is to be feared that comparatively few of them really enter into its nature and bearing on themselves; and it is for want of clear understanding on fundamental points like this, that so many, who seem to be children of God, "concerning faith have made shipwreck."

Our subject appears naturally to fall under the following heads :

I. The Doctrine Defined.

II. The Doctrine Explained.

III. The Doctrine Attacked.

IV. The Doctrine Proved.

V. The Doctrine in its Connection with other Fundamental Truths.

I. To begin with its Definition. It is important to arrive at the scriptural limit of each word, and especially of "Justification." This is a word frequently used in both the Old and New Testaments, and always in one particular sense. Thus (Deut. xxv. 1), "They shall justify the righteous, and condemn the wicked"; and (Prov. xvii. 15), "He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just"; (Ps. cxliii. 2), "In thy sight shall no man living be justified." All point to the verdict passed on an