SERMON V. The Character and Office of the I CORINTH. i. 30. -JESUS CHRIST who, of God, is I V. N these memorable words, the Apo- sERM. ftle, Paul, hath given us a full and exact Character of the Perfonage of the holy JESUS, and of the nature of that Religion he was fent to propagate amongst Men. Wisdom and Righteoufnefs defcribe a MESSENGER fent from God with the publication of the eternal Law of Truth and Right and Sanctification and Redemption denote SER M. denote the MESSIAH foretold, who was to attone for man's tranfgreffions, and to reftore him to his loft Inheritance. V. These two important matters, the first of which refpects the WORKER; and the fecond, his WORK; I propofe to make the fubject of the following Difcourse. I. The Jews, at the time of Chrift's advent, were in full expectation of their long promifed Meffiah. So that St. John tells us, the multitude on their being miraculoufly fed by Jefus, cried out, this is of a truth that PROPHET that should come into the world. And indeed, this judgment was fuch a one as the People are generally wont to pafs; crude, undigested, and made of a mixture of truth and falfhood. was true, and they argued rightly, that the worker of this miracle was a PROPHET SENT from God. But it was falfe, and they were too hafty in concluding, that This was the proper proof of his being the PROPHET FORETOLD in their facred volumes. For tho' one of the marks of this Prophet, (as it must be one of every mes up It a Chap. vi. 14. fenger V. fenger fent immediately from God) was the s E R M. working Miracles; yet there were many other circumstances, refpecting both his time and perfon, which were to unite in that Character, before he could be said, to be, of a truth, that Prophet that should come into the world. This, therefore, on the whole, muft pafs for a popular prejudice in favour of the Son of God; but yet a Prejudice: Lefs unreasonable, indeed, than many, they prefumed to entertain against him: As when they thought an idle Proverb fufficient to controvert the strongest evidence of his Meffiahcharacter. Can any thing good come out of Nazareth, faith Nathanael, an Ifraelite in whom there was no guile, but as appears from hence, a great deal of foolish prejudice. The two great Prophets of God, placed by him at the head of each of his Difpenfations, were MOSES and JESUS. In this they differed, that Mofes bore the fimple Character of a DIVINE MESSENGER; Jefus, the more complex one of a DIVINE For, tho' the MESSENGER FORETOLD. deliverance of the feed of Abraham was pre SERM, dicted in the facred records along with the deliverance of the feed of Adam; yet as the firft was only a type and prelude of the other; it was not Mofes the deliverer of the Jews, but Jefus the deliverer of mankind, the finisher of God's great work of REDEMPTION, who had the diftinguished honour of being foretold; as well by intimation in a myfterious ritual, as by a more open declaration in the oracles of the Law and the Prophets. However, the preliminary ground of credence was the fame, in both; namely, that the doctrines they taught were wORTHY of God. This worth confifts in their TRUTH, and in their IMPORTANCE. 1. No falfhood can iffue from the fountain of Truth. Whatever therefore pretends to come from God, which contradicts our common notions of his Being and attributes, muft of neceffity be condemned for an imposture, notwithstanding any ap pearance of extraordinary power in the propagator of fuch doctrines. of fuch doctrines. And should an Imposture happen to be attended with thefe circumftances of power, it could not be fairly deemed an imputation on God's goodness, finçe the holy fpirit hath foretold, |