In the 1st Epistle of St. John we have these remarkable words: "If any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for our sins only, but also for the sins of the whole world," and these equally appropriate words of St. Peter, "But there were false prophets among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who shall privily bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and shall bring upon themselves swift destruction.' And in the Hebrews, "But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honour, that he, by the grace of God, should taste death for every man; for it became Him for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the Captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings." And

this is the consideration which affords sinners, under the first conviction of their sinfulness, all the hope they can derive from the Gospel. It is the ge neral invitation to sinners indefinitely, that leads them on to take hold of the refuge that is set before them. Christ came into the world to save sinners; he gave his life a ransom for all. "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden," are such unlimited and extensive offers of mercy, that, feeling themselves included in the general term sinners, they are encouraged to throw themselves into his arms, and find rest. The serpent of brass erected upon the pole in the wilderness, which was a type of Christ suspended on the cross, was for all those who had been bitten by the poisonous serpents without any exception. None were excluded; whoever looked at it was instantly cured; and if all had looked, the same effect would have followed: the means afforded were sufficient for all. And so it is with

respect to the ransom paid down by Christ: it is of infinite value; it is a ransom for all. And God's revealed will-for with his secret will we have nothing to do, it is mad presumption to pry into it; for, let us be curious as we may, our cu riosity will ever, in this world, remain unsatisfied;-God's revealed will is, I say, that we should all look and live; it is his revealed will that all men should be saved, and come to the knowledge of the truth, because Christ gave his life a ransom for all: the price he paid down is equivalent to ransom the whole world. And his revealed will, as I have repeatedly observed, is our only rule of action. Take him at his word, and all will be well with us. It is because we will not believe, that we have no interest in his universal

ransom.

If we believe, we shall live. He that believeth (which expression is as universal in its import as any that can be well devised), shall be saved. I know of no other cause, nor have I the slightest recollection of any passage of

Scripture that excludes men from salvation, except the sin of unbelief, the father of all other sins, "Go ye into all the world," is the command which our Lord, after his resurrection, gave to the first ministers of our religion, "and preach the Gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved; and he that believeth not, shall be damned.” And as unbelief is the father of all sin; so it may be observed, that a cordial belief is the pregnant mother of every Christian virtue and grace.

"What, then," we may ask, in the language of the Prophet, "could have been done more to my vineyard that I have not done for it?" What could have been done more for the nominal people of God, than has been done for them? A ransom has been provided equal to all demands that can be made against them. A fountain has been opened for the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness; and it will never lose its properties to cleanse

and to purify, so long as the sun and the moon endure. Its virtue is as great now as ever it was; yea, as great and as efficacious as when the sharp-pointed spear opened the precious side of Him from whom it flows. What other encouragement can sinners expect? what other encouragement could be afforded them? A satisfaction has been made for all their sins; or, as our Communion Service beautifully expresses it, "Christ upon the cross for our redemption, made there, by his one oblation of himself once offered, a full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice, oblation, and satisfaction for the sins of the whole world."

If you are not saved, every one of you who have heard the Gospel, or have a Bible to read, or a minister to instruct you; it will be your own fault; you will have nobody to blame but yourselves. The sentence passed upon you will be like that uttered by our Lord. himself: "Those my servants, that would