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To convince men of this, he did his miracles; and their affent to, or not affenting to this, made them to be, or not to be of his church; believers, or not believers. "The Jews came round "about him, and faid unto him, How long doft thou make us "doubt? If thou be the Meffiah, tell us plainly. Jefus anfwered "them; I told you, and ye believed not the works that I do in "my father's name, they bear witness of me. But ye believe 'not, "becaufe ye are not of my fheep." John x. 24. 26. Conformable hereunto St. John tells us, That many deceivers are entered into "the world, who confeft not that Jefus, the Meffiah, is come in "the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrift, whofoever abideth "not in the doctrine of the Meffiah has not God. He that abideth "in the doctrine of the Meffiah," i. e. that Jefus "both the father and the fon." 2 John vii. 9, 10. the meaning of the place, is plain from what he fays in his foregoing epistle, "Whofoever believeth that Jefus is the Meffiah, is born "of God," I John v. 1. And therefore, drawing to a close of his gofpel, and fhewing the end for which he writ it, he has thefe words: Many other figns truly did Jefus in the prefence of his difciples, "which are not written in this book; but these are written, that ye may believe that Jefus is the Meffiah, the fon of God, and "that believing ye might have life through his name," John xx. 30, 31. Whereby it is plain, that the gospel was writ to induce men into a belief of this propofition, that Jefus of Nazareth was "the Meffiah;" which if they believed, they fhould "have life."

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Accordingly the great question amongft the Jews was, whether he were the Meffiah or no: and the great point infifted on and promulgated in the gospel was, that he was the Meffiah. The first glad tidings of his birth, brought to the fhepherds by an angel, was in thefe words:"Fear not, for behold I bring you good tidings of "great joy, which fhall be to all people; for to you is born this

day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Meffiah, the Lord." Luke ii, 11. Our Saviour difcourfing with Martha about the means of attaining eternal life, faith to her, John xi. 27. " Whofoever be"lieveth in me, fhall never die. Believeft thou this? She faith "unto him, Yea, Lord, I believe that thou art the Meffiah, the fon "God, which fhould come into the world." This answer of hers fheweth what it is to believe in Jefus Chrift, fo as to have eternal life, viz. to believe that he is the Meffiah the fon of God, whofe coming was foretold by the prophets. And thus Andrew and Philip exprefs it: "Andrew fays to his brother Simon, We have found "the Meffiah, which is, being interpreted, the Chrift. Philip faith "to Nathaniel, We have found him of whom Mofes in the law, "and the Prophets did write, Jefus of Nazareth, the fon of Jofeph,' John i. 41. 45. According to what the Evangelift fays in this place, I have, for the clearer understanding of the fcripture, all along put Meffiah for Chrift: Chrift being but the Greek name for the Hebrew Meffiah, and both fignifying " The Anointed."

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And that he was the Meffiah, was the great truth he took pains to convince his difciples and apoftles of; appearing to them after his refurrection: as may be feen, Luke xxiv. which we shall more particularly confider in another place. There we read what gofpel our Saviour preached to his difciples and apostles; and that, as foon as he was rifen from the dead, twice the very day of his refurrection. And if we may gather what was to be believed by all nations, from what was preached unto them; we may certainly know what they were commanded, Matt. c. ult. To teach all nations, by what they actually did teach all nations; we may obferve, that the preaching of the apoftles every where in the Acts tended to this one point, to prove that Jefus was the Meffiah. Indeed, now after his death, his refurrection was alfo commonly required to be believed as a neceffary article, and fometimes folely infifted on: it being a mark and undoubted evidence of his being the Meffiah, and neceffary now to be believed by those who would receive him as the Meffiah. For fince the Meffiah was to be a Saviour and a King, and to give life and a kingdom to those who received him, as we shall fee by-andby, there could have been no pretence to have given him out for the Meffiah, and to require men to believe him to be fo, who thought him under the power of death, and corruption of the grave. And therefore thofe who believed him to be the Meffiah, must be lieve that he was rifen from the dead: and those who believed him to be rifen from the dead, could not doubt of his being the Meffiah. But of this more in another place.

Let us fee therefore how the apostles preached Chrift, and what they propofed to their hearers to believe. St. Peter at Jerufalem, As ii. by his first fermon, converted three thousand fouls. What 46 was his word," which as we are told, ver. 41. they gladly re

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ceived, and thereupon were baptized?" That may be seen from ver. 22. to ver. 36. In fhort, this, which is the conclufion drawn from all that he had faid, and which he preffes on them as the thing they were to believe, viz. "Therefore let all the house of "Ifrael know affuredly, that God hath made that fame Jefus, whom ye have crucified, Lord and Meffiah," ver. 36.

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To the fame purpofe was his difcourfe to the Jews in the temple, Acts iii. the defign whereof you have, ver. 18. "But thofe things that God before had fhewed by the mouth of all his prophets, "that the Meffiah fhould fuffer, he hath fo fulfilled."

In the next chapter, A&s iv. Peter and John being examined about the miracle on the lame man, profefs it to have been done in the name of Jefus of Nazareth, who was the Meffiah, in whom alone there was falvation, ver. 10, 12. The fame thing they confirm to them again, Acts v. 29. 32. "And daily in the temple, and "in every houfe, they ceafed not to teach and preach Jefus the "Meffiah." ver. 42.

What was Stephen's fpeech to the council, A&ts vii. but a reprehenfion to them, that they were the betrayers and murderers of the Juft One?" Which is the title by which he plainly defigns the

Meffiah,

Meffiah, whose coming was fore-fhewn by the prophets, ver. 51, 52. And that the Meffiah was to be without fin (which is the import of the word "Juft") was the opinion of the Jews, appears from John ix. ver. 22. compared with 24.

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Acts viii. Philip carries the gofpel to Samaria. "The Philip went down to Samaria, and preached to them." What was it he preached? You have an account of it in this one word, "The Meffiah," ver. 5. This being that alone which was required of them, to believe that Jefus was the Meffiah; which when they believed, they were baptized." And when they belived Philip's preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and the name of Jefus the Meffiah, they were baptized both men and women."

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ver. 12.

Philip being fent from thence, by a fpecial call of the fpirit, to make an eminent convert, out of Isaiah preaches to him Jefus, ver. 35. And what it was he preached concerning Jefus, we may know by the profeffion of faith the eunuch made, upon which he was admitted to baptifm, ver. 37. "I believe that Jefus Chrift is the fon "of God:" which is as much as to fay, I believe that he, whom you call Jefus Chrift, is really and truly the Meffiah that was promifed. For that believing him to be the " Son of God," and to be the Meffiah, was the fame thing, may appear by comparing John i. 45. with ver. 49. where Nathanael owns Jefus to be the Meffiah in thefe terms: "Thou art the fon of God; thou art the king of "Ifrael." So the Jews, Luke xxii. 70. asking Chrift, whether he were the "fon of God;" plainly demanded of him, whether he were the Meffiah? Which is evident by comparing that with the three preceding verfes. They afk him, ver. 67. whether he were the Meffiah? He anfwers, "If I tell you, you will not believe;" but withal tells them, that from henceforth he fhould be in poffeffion of the kingdom of the Meffiah, expreffed in these words, ver. 69, "Hereafter shall the fon of man fit on the right hand of the power "of God:" which made them all cry out, "Art thou then the fon "of God?" i. e. Doft thou then own thyfelf to be the Meffiah ? To which he replies; "Ye fay that I am." That the "Son of "God" was the known title of the Meffiah at that time amongst the Jews, we may fee alfo from what the Jews fay to Pilate. John xix. 7. "We have a law, and by our law he ought to die, because he "made himself the SON OF GOD;" i. e. by making himself the Meffiah, the prophet which was to come, but falfly; and therefore he deserves to die by the law. Deut. xviii. 20. That this was the common fignification of "the fon of God," is farther evident from what the chief priests, mocking him, faid, when he was on the crofs, Matt. xxvii. 42. "He faved others, himself he cannot fave "if he be the king of Ifrael, let him now come down from the "crofs, and we will believe him. He trufted in God, let him de"liver him now, if he will have him; for he faid, I am the son OF GOD;" i. e. he faid, he was the Meffiah: but it is plainly falfe; for if he were, God would deliver him: for the Meffiah is to

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be king of Ifrael, the faviour of others; but this man cannot fave himself. The chief priests mention here the two titles then in ufe whereby the Jews commonly defigned the Meffiah, viz. "fon of "God," and "king of Ifrael." That of "fon of God" was fo. familiar a compellation of the Meffiah, who was then fo much expected and talked of, that the Romans, it feems, who lived amongst them, had learned it; as appears from ver. 54. "Now when the "Centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jefus, faw the earthquake, and thofe things that were done, they feared greatly, faying, Truly this was the SON OF GOD;" this was that extraordinary perfon that was looked for.

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Acts ix. St. Paul exercifing the commiffion to preach the gospel, which he had received in a miraculous way, ver. 20. "Straitway "preached Chrift in the Synagogues, that he is the fon of God;' i. e. that Jefus was the Meliah: for Chrift in this place is evidently a proper name. And that this was it which Paul preached, appears from ver, 22. Saul increased the more in ftrength, and confounded the Jews who dwelt in Damafcus, proving that this is "the very Chrift," i. e. the Meffiah..

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Peter, when he came to Cornelius at Cefarea; who by a vifion was order to fend for him, as Peter, on the other fide, was by a vifion commanded to go to him; what does he teach him? His whole difcourfe, Acts x. tends to fhew what he fays God come. manded the apoftles" to preach unto the people, and to testify; That it is he [Jefus] which was ordained of God to be the judge of the quick and the dead." And that it was to him that all "the prophets give witness, that through his name whofoever be "lieved in him fhall have remiffion of fins.". ver. 42, 43. This is "the word which God fent to the children of Ifrael; that WORD "which was published throughout all. Judea, and began from Galilee, after the baptifm which John preached," ver. 36, 37. And thefe are the words" which had been promifcd to Cornelius; Acts xi. 14. "Whereby he and all his houfe fhould be faved:" which "words" amount only to thus much, that" Jefus was the "Meffiah," the Saviour that was promifed. Upon their receiving of this (for this was all was taught them) the Holy Ghoft fell on them, and they were baptized. It is obfervable here, that the Holy Ghost fell on them before they were baptized; which in other places converts received not till after baptifm. The reason whereof feems to be this; that God, by bestowing on them the Holy Ghoft, did thus declare from heaven, that the Gentiles, upon believing Jefus to be the Meffiah, ought to be admitted into the church by baptifm as well as the Jews. Whoever reads St. Peter's defence, Acts xi. when he was accufed by thofe of the circumcifion, that he had not kept that distance which he ought with the uncircumcifed, will be of this opinion; and fee by what he fays, ver. 15, 16, 17, that this was the ground, and an irrefiftible authority to him for doing fo ftrange a thing, as it appeared to the Jews (who alone yet were members of the Christian church) to admit. Gentiles into their com

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munion, upon their believing. And therefore St. Peter, in the foregoing chapter, Acts x. before he would baptize them, propofes this question to thofe of the circumcifion, which came with him,

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and were astonished, becaufe that on the Gentiles alfo was poured ❝out the gifts of the Holy Ghoft: can any one forbid water, that "these fhould not be baptifed, who have received the Holy Ghoft as "well as we?" ver. 47. And when fome of the fect of the Pharifees, who believed, thought it needful that the converted "Gentiles fhould be circumcifed, and keep the law of Mofes," Acts xv. "Peter rofe up and faid unto them, Men and brethren, you know that a good while ago God made choice, amongst us, that the Gentiles," viz. Cornelius, and thofe here converted with him," by my mouth fhould hear the gofpel, and believe. And "God, who knoweth the hearts, bare them witnefs, giving them "the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us, and put no difference "between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith," ver. 7. & So that both Jews and Gentiles, who believed Jefus to be the Meffiah, received thereupon the feal of baptifm; whereby they are owned to be his, and diftinguished from unbelievers. From what is above faid, we may obferve, that this preaching Jefus to be the Meffiah, is called "the word, and "the word of God," and believing it, receiving the word of God." See Acts x. 36, 37. and xi. 1. 19, 20. And the word of the gofpel," Acts xv. 7. And fo likewife in the Hiftory of the Gospel, what Mark, chap. iv. 14, 15. calls fimply "the word," St. Luke calls "the word of God," Luke viii. 11. And St. Matthew, chap. xiii. 19. "the word of the kingdom;" which were, it feems, in the gofpel-writers fynonymous terms,, and are fo to be understood by us.

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But to go on Acts xiii. Paul preaches in the Synagogue at Antioch, where he makes it his bufinefs to convince the Jews, that "God, according to his promife, had of the feed of David raised "to Ifrael a Saviour, Jefus," ver. 24. That he was He of whom the prophets writ, ver. 25-29. i. e. the Meffiah: and that, as a demonstration of his being fo, God had raised him from the dead, ver. 30. From whence he argues thus, ver. 32, 33. We evange "lize to you," or bring you this gofpel, "how that the promife "which was made to our fathers, God hath fulfilled the fame unto us, in that he hath raised up Jefus again; as it is alfo written in the fecond Pfalm, Thou art my fon, this day have I begotten "thee." And having gone on to prove him to be the Meffiah, by his refurrection from the dead, he makes this conclufion; ver, 38, 39. "Be it known unto you, therefore, men and brethren, that

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through this man is preached unto you forgivenefs of fins; and "by him all who believe, are juftified from all things from which "they could not be justified by the law of Mofes." This is in this chapter called "the word of God" over and over again: compare ver. 42. with 44. 46. 48, 49. And chap. xii. ver. 24.

Acts xvii. 2. 4. At Theffalonica, Paul, as his manner was, "went into the Synagogue, and three Sabbath-days reafoned with

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