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This Chapter Verse Commentaries:
THE GLORY OF CHRIST
The creature is frail and changeable — — — But the Lord Jesus Christ is from eternity to eternity the same.
I. The immutability of Christ—
(This may be treated under the five several heads here specified.)
II. Our duty in relation to him—
1. Seek above all things the knowledge of him—
The preaching of Christ is all our duty, Act_3:20; Act_8:5; Act_9:20; and to acquire the knowledge of him is yours, Joh_17:3. Php_3:7-8.
2. Guard against every thing that may divert you from him—
Hold fast the instructions which have led you to Christ, ver. 7; but on no account listen to “strange doctrines” that would lead you from him, ver. 9. Whoever be taken from you, Christ remains; and you must “cleave unto him with full purpose of heart.” But beware of false teachers, such as there are and ever have been in the Church: for, whatever they may press upon you, there is nothing that deserves your attention but Christ crucified, 1Co_2:2.
3. Improve to the uttermost your interest in him—
Seek to realize every thing that is spoken of Christ, and to make him your all in all. Joh_1:16. Gal_2:20. Col_3:1-4.].
IN this present state, wherein the affairs both of individuals and of nations are liable to continual fluctuation, the mind needs some principle capable of supporting it under every adverse circumstance that may occur. Philosophy proffers its aid in vain: the light of unassisted reason is unable to impart any effectual relief: but revelation points to God; to God, as reconciled to us in the Son of his love: it directs our views to him who “changeth not;” and who, under all the troubles of life, invites us to rely on his paternal care. Every page of the inspired writings instructs us to say with David, “When I am in trouble I will think upon God.” Are we alarmed with tidings of a projected invasion, and apprehensive of national calamities? God speaks to us as to his people of old [Note: Isa_8:12-14.], “Say ye not, A confederacy, to all to whom this people shall say, A confederacy, neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid; but sanctify the Lord of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread; and he shall be to you for a sanctuary.” Are we agitated by a sense of personal danger? that same almighty Friend expostulates with us [Note: Isa_51:12-13.], “Who art thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die, and of the son of man that shall be as grass, and forgettest the Lord thy Maker?” Are we, as in the present instance, afflicted for the Church of God? has God taken away the pastor, who “fed you with knowledge and understanding?” and is there reason to fear, that now, your “Shepherd being removed, the sheep may be scattered,” and “grievous wolves may enter in among you, not sparing the flock; yea, that even of your own selves some may arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them [Note: Act_20:29-30.]?” Behold! such was the state of the Hebrews, when this epistle was written to them: and the Apostle, studious to fortify them against the impending danger, exhorts them to remember their deceased pastors, following their faith, and considering the blessed way in which they had terminated their career. Moreover, as the most effectual means of preserving them from being “carried about with any strange doctrines,” different from what had been delivered to them, he suggests to them this thought, That Jesus Christ, who had been ever preached among them, and who was the one foundation of all their hopes, was still the same; the same infinitely gracious, almighty, and ever-blessed Saviour. “Remember,” says be, “them which have had the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation: Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever.”
These last words were chosen by your late worthy minister, as his subject on the first day of this year, and, as I am informed, were particularly recommended to you as your motto for the year ninety-seven. On this, as well as other accounts, they seem to claim peculiar attention from us: and, O that the good Spirit of God may accompany them with his blessing, while we endeavour to improve them, and to offer from them such considerations as may appear suited to you, under your present most afflictive circumstances!
Your late faithful, loving, and much beloved pastor is no more: he that was, not in profession merely, but in truth, “a guide to the blind, a light of them which were in darkness, an instructor of the foolish, and a teacher of babes;” he that for so many years spent all his time, and found all his delight, in imparting the knowledge of salvation both to old and young; he, I say, is taken from you; and your loss is unspeakably severe. But is all gone? No. He that formed him by his grace, raised him up to be a witness, and sent him to preach the Gospel to you for a season, remains the same; he has still “the residue of the Spirit,” and can send forth ten thousand such labourers into his vineyard, whensoever it shall please him. Though the creature, on whose lips you have so often hung with profit and delight, is now no more, yet the Creator, the Redeemer, the Saviour of the world is still the same; Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever: he is the same in the dignity of his person—the extent of his power—the virtue of his sacrifice—the tenderness of his compassion—and in fidelity to his promises.
I. In the dignity of his person—
The terms “yesterday, to-day, and for ever,” are expressive of a true and proper eternity: they do not import merely a long duration, but an existence that never had a beginning, nor shall ever have an end. In this view they are frequently applied to Jehovah, to distinguish him from any creature, how exalted soever he might be. When God revealed his name to Moses, that name whereby he was to be made known to the Israelites, he called himself I AM: “say to them, I AM hath sent me unto you:” and St. John expressly distinguishing the Father both from Jesus Christ, and from the Holy Spirit, calls him the person “who is, and was, and is to come.” Now this august title is given repeatedly to Jesus Christ, both in the Old and New Testament. The very words of our text evidently refer to the 102d Psalm, where the psalmist, indisputably speaking of Jehovah, says, “Thou art the same, and thy years shall have no end.” And lest there should be the smallest doubt to whom this character belongs, the author of this epistle quotes the words in the very first chapter [Note: Heb_1:12.], insists upon them as immediately applicable to the Messiah, and adduces them in proof, that Christ was infinitely superior to any created being, even “God blessed for evermore.” Our Lord himself on various occasions asserted his claim to this title: to the carnal Jews, who thought him a mere creature like themselves, he said, “Before Abraham was, I AM.” And when he appeared to John in a vision, he said, “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty [Note: Rev_1:8.].” Behold then the dignity of our Lord and Saviour! “His goings forth have been from everlasting [Note: Mic_5:2.]:” he was set up “from everlasting; from the beginning, or ever the earth was [Note: Pro_8:23.].” We must say of him, in the words of David, “From everlasting to everlasting thou art God.” And is this a matter of small importance? Does the Christian feel no interest in this truth? Yea, is it not the very foundation of all his comforts? He may be deemed a bigot for laying such a stress on the divinity of Christ: but having once tasted the bitterness, and seen the malignity of sin, he is well persuaded, that the blood of a creature could never have availed to expiate his guilt, nor could any thing less than “the righteousness of God” himself, suffice for his acceptance in the day of judgment. Know then, believer, that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever: he is the eternal and immutable Jehovah: he is worthy of all thy love, of all thy trust, of all thy confidence. Thou needest never be afraid of thinking too highly of him: when thou “honourest him as thou honourest the Father,” then thou regardest him in the manner that becomes thee: when thou bowest the knee before him, and confessest him him as thy Sovereign Lord, then thou most effectually glorifiest God the Father [Note: Php_2:10-11.]. Remember then, under all the trying dispensations thou mayest meet with, and, most of all, under the bereavement which thou art now so bitterly lamenting, that he, in whom thou hast believed, is an all-sufficient Saviour; and that when thou lookest to him for any blessing whatsoever, thou mayest cry with confident assurance, “My Lord, and my God.” The ministers of the Church “are not suffered to continue by reason of death.” That tongue which lately was “as a tree of life,” under the shadow of which you sat with great delight, and the fruit whereof was sweet unto your taste, now lies silent in the tomb. Our departed friend has experienced that change, which sooner or later awaits us all: he will ere long experience a still further change, when “his corruptible shall put on incorruption, and his mortal, immortality;” when his body, that now lies mouldering in the dust, shall be “raised like unto Christ’s glorious body,” and “shine above the sun in the firmament for ever and ever:” he is not to-day what he was yesterday: nor shall be for ever what he now is. This honour of eternal, immutable self-existence, belongs not to the highest archangel; for though the angels may be subject to no further change, it was but yesterday that they were first created. To Christ alone belongs this honour; and “with him there is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.”
II. As Jesus Christ is eternally the same in the dignity of his person, so is he also in the extent of his power.
We are informed, both in the psalm from whence the text is taken, and in the first chapter of this epistle, where it is cited, that Jesus Christ was the Creator of the universe; “Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands.” And from the first moment of its existence he has “upheld it by the word of his power.” In the days of his flesh, he still exercised the same omnipotence: “Whatsoever the Father did, that did the Son likewise.” On ten thousand occasions he wrought the most stupendous miracles, and shewed that every created being was subject to his will. He not only cleansed the lepers, and caused the blind to see, the deaf to hear, and the lame to walk, but he raised the dead, cast out devils, and controlled the very elements, saying to the wind, Be still; and to the waves, Be calm. Nor, in this, did he act as one that had received a delegated authority; but as one who had an essential, and unalienable light to exercise universal dominion. Though, as man, he acknowledged subjection to his Father, and, as mediator, spake and acted in his Father’s name, yet, in all his miracles, he put forth a virtue inherent in himself; he made his own will the rule and measure of his conduct, and stamped the impression of divinity on all his actions. And is he not still the same? What he was yesterday, will he not also be to-day, and for ever? Is there any disorder of the soul or body, that he cannot heal? Are any lusts so raging, that he cannot calm them, or so inveterate, that he cannot root them out? Cannot he that formed the rude and indigested chaos into order and beauty, create our souls anew? Cannot he that said, “Let there be light, and there was light,” transform our corrupted hearts into the Divine image in righteousness and true holiness? Cannot he that “triumphed over all the principalities and powers” of hell, “bruise Satan under our feet also?” In short, “is there any thing too hard for him?” No, he is still the same: he, to whom “all power in heaven and in earth has been committed,” still holds the reins of government, and “ordereth all things after the counsel of his own will.” What comfort may not this afford you under your present affliction! It pleased him for a season to set over you a faithful pastor, by whom he has called hundreds into his fold, and “turned multitudes from the error of their ways.” But though your honoured minister was the instrument, he was only an instrument; he was but “an axe in the hands of him that heweth therewith,” an “earthen vessel in which was deposited the heavenly treasure,” and by whom Christ communicated to you his “unsearchable riches:” “The excellency of the power was altogether Christ’s.” And has the power ceased, because the instrument is laid aside? “Is the Lord’s ear heavy, that he cannot hear? or is his hand shortened, that he cannot save?” O remember, that though the stream is cut off, the fountain still remains; and every one of you may go to it, and “receive out of your Redeemer’s fulness grace for grace.” Yea, who can tell? That same almighty arm that raised him up to be a faithful witness for the truth, that enabled him to despise the pleasures and honours of the world, and to devote himself wholly to the great work of the ministry, can do the same for his successor. You well know, that he, whose loss we bemoan, was not always that able and excellent minister that he afterwards proved. Be not then hasty, if all things be not at first agreeable to your mind: exercise meekness, patience, forbearance: seek to obtain nothing by force or faction: let the whole of your conduct be conciliating, and worthy of your Christian profession: above all, continue instant in prayer: beg that “the Lord of the harvest, who alone can send forth faithful labourers into his harvest,” will pour out in a more abundant measure his grace upon him, who by the good providence of God is about to take the charge of you; and then I do not say, that God will at all events grant your requests; but this I say with confidence, that your prayers shall not fall to the ground; and that, if God, on the whole, will be most glorified in that way, your petitions shall be literally fulfilled, and “the spirit of Elijah shall rest on Elisha.”
III. A third point, which it is of infinite importance to us to be acquainted with, is, that Christ is ever the same in the virtue of his sacrifice.
Though he was not manifested in human flesh till four thousand years had elapsed, yet his sacrifice availed for the salvation of thousands during the whole of that period. The sacrifice, which Abel offered, did not obtain those distinguished tokens of divine acceptance on account of its intrinsic worth, but because the offerer looked forward by faith to that great Sacrifice, which in the fulness of times was to be presented to God upon the cross, even to him, who, in purpose and effect, was the “Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” As for all other sacrifices, they had no value whatsoever, but as they typified that “one offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” When we see the high-priest and the elders of Israel putting their hands upon the scape-goat, and transferring to him all the sins of the whole congregation of Israel, that they might be carried into the land of oblivion, then we behold the efficacy of Christ’s atonement. It is not to be imagined that the blood of bulls or of goats could take away sin—no: in every instance where the conscience of a sinner was really purged from guilt, the pardon was bestowed solely through “the blood of him, who, through the eternal Spirit, offered himself without spot to God.” And is not that, which throughout all the Mosaic dispensation, and from the very beginning of the world, availed for the remission of sins, still as efficacious as ever to all who trust in it? or shall its virtue ever be diminished? Could David, after the commission of crimes, which “make the ears of every one that heareth them to tingle,” cry, “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow;” and may not the most abandoned sinner now hope for mercy through “the blood of sprinkling?” Could Saul, that blasphemer, that injurious and persecuting zealot, say of Christ, “He has loved me, and given himself for me?” Could he say, “I obtained mercy, that in me, the chief of sinners, Jesus Christ might shew forth all long-suffering, for a pattern to them who shall hereafter believe on him to life everlasting?” And shall any one be left to doubt whether there be hope for him? Surely we may still say with the same confidence that the Apostles declared it in the days of old, “We have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: he is the propitiation, not for our sins only, but also for the sins of the whole world: through him all that believe shall be justified from all things: the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin.” How sweetly have many of you experienced the truth of these declarations, when your dear minister has been insisting on this favourite topic, and “Christ has been set forth crucified, as it were, before your eyes!” How many of you, while lying at Bethesda’s pool, have embraced the opportunity afforded you, and plunged beneath that water to the healing of your souls! Some others perhaps among you have been long hesitating, as it were, upon the brink, and doubting and questioning your right to wash in it: ah! chide your unbelief: know that “the fountain was opened for sin, and for uncleanness.” Look not then so much at the malignity of your offences, as at the infinite value of Christ’s atonement: and under every fresh contracted guilt, go to the fountain, wash in it, and be clean. Let there not be a day, if possible not an hour, wherein you do not make fresh application to the blood of Jesus: go to that to cleanse you, as well from “the iniquity of your most holy things,” as from the more heinous violations of God’s law; thus shall “your hearts be ever sprinkled from an evil conscience,” and your “conscience itself be purged from dead works to serve the living God.” There are some of you indeed, it is to be feared, who have hitherto disregarded the invitations given you, and are yet ignorant of the virtue of this all-atoning sacrifice: you have unhappily remained dry and destitute of the heavenly dew, which has long fallen in rich abundance all around you. How long you may continue favoured with such invitations, God alone knows: but O that you might this day begin to seek the Lord! He that once died on Calvary, still cries to you by my voice, “Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth, for I am God, and there is none else.” Now then, obey his voice: say to him, “Draw me, that I may come unto thee; draw me, and I will run after thee.” Thus shall you be numbered among those, who are redeemed to God by his blood, and shall join, to all eternity, with your departed minister, and all the glorified saints, in singing, “To him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever, Amen.”
IV. It will be a further consolation to us to reflect that Jesus Christ is the same in the tenderness of his compassion—
It was Christ who led the people of Israel through the wilderness, and who directed them by his servant Moses. This appears from the express declaration of St. Paul. We are told that the Israelites “tempted God in the desert, saying, Can he give bread also, and provide flesh for his people?” And St. Paul, speaking of them, says, “Neither tempt ye CHRIST, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of the destroyer [Note: 1Co_10:9.].” Now the tender compassion which Christ exercised towards his people in the wilderness, is made a frequent subject of devout acknowledgment in the Holy Scriptures. Isaiah says, “In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old [Note: Isa_63:9.]. Moses himself, who both experienced and witnessed his compassion, describes it in terms as beautiful as imagination can conceive. See Deu_32:9-12. “The Lord’s portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance. He found him in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness: he led him about; he instructed him; he kept him as the apple of his eye.” Then comes the image of which I speak: but in order to enter fully into its meaning, it will be proper to observe, that the eagle, when teaching her young to fly, flutters over them, and stirs them up to imitate her; she even thrusts them out of the nest, that they may be forced to exert their powers; and if she see them in danger of falling, she flies instantly underneath them, catches them on her wings, and carries them back to their nest. In reference to this it is added, “As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings, so the Lord alone did lead him.” Can any thing present a more beautiful idea to the mind? Can any image whatever more forcibly impress us with admiring thoughts of Christ’s tenderness and compassion? Such was Jesus in the days of old: and is he not the same at this day? Will he not still “carry the lambs in his bosom, and gently lead them that are with young?” Can we produce in the annals of the world one single instance, wherein he “brake the bruised reed, or quenched the smoking flax?” Has he not invariably “brought forth judgment unto victory,” and “perfected his own strength in his people’s weakness?” Who amongst us has ever “sought his face in vain?” With whom has he ever refused to sympathize? Will not he who wept with the sisters of the deceased Lazarus; will not he that had compassion on the multitude because they were as sheep not having a shepherd; will not he that wept over the murderous and abandoned city, now weep over a disconsolate widow, a deserted people, and especially over those, who have “not known the day of their visitation, and whose eyes have never yet seen the things belonging to their peace?” Is he become an “High-priest that cannot be touched with a feeling of our infirmities;” or that, notwithstanding he has been “in all points tempted like as we are, has no disposition to succour his tempted people?” Unbelief and Satan may suggest such thoughts to our minds; but who must not attest that they are false? Who is not constrained to acknowledge, that “he is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger, and of great mercy?” Here then again let the drooping souls rejoice: ye, who are poor in this world, have lost a friend; a kind, compassionate friend, who, “according to his ability, and often beyond his ability,” exerted himself to relieve your wants. Ye, who are of a broken and contrite spirit, ah! what a friend have ye lost! how would the departed saint listen to all your complaints, and answer all your arguments, and encourage you to look to Jesus for relief! what a delight was it to him to “strengthen your weak hands, and confirm your feeble knees, and to say to your fearful hearts, Be strong, fear not, your God will come and save you!” Ye, “afflicted and tossed with tempest, and not comforted,” whatever your distresses were, surely ye have lost a brother, “a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.” But though his benevolent heart can no more expand towards you, “has your Lord forgotten to be gracious? Has Jesus shut up his tender mercies?” No: to him you may still carry your complaints: he bids the weary and heavy-laden to come unto him: he “has received gifts,” not for the indigent only, but “for the rebellious:” nor shall one of you be “sent empty away.” Whom did he ever dismiss, in the days of his flesh, without granting to him the blessing he desired? So now, if ye will go unto him, he “will satiate every weary soul, and replenish every sorrowful soul:” he “will give you beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness, that God may be glorified.”
V. The last observation we proposed to make, was that Christ is the same in his fidelity to his promises—
We have before shewn, that he led his people through the wilderness: he had promised to cast out all their enemies, and to give them “a land flowing with milk and honey.” And behold, Joshua, at the close of a long life, and after an experience of many years, could make this appeal to all Israel: “Ye know in all your hearts [Note: Jos_23:14.], and in all your souls, that not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the Lord your God spake concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, and not one thing hath failed thereof.” The same fidelity did Jesus manifest, whilst he sojourned upon earth: the Father had committed to him a chosen people to keep: and Jesus with his dying breath could say, “Those whom thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost.” He promised to his disconsolate disciples, that he would pour out his Spirit upon them; and that the Comforter, whom he would send, should far more than compensate for the loss of his bodily presence: and how speedily did he perform his promise! Thus, in every succeeding age, have his people found him faithful. He has “given exceeding great and precious promises” to his Church, not one jot or tittle of which have ever failed. They who have rested on his word, have never been disappointed. Enthusiasts indeed, who have put their own vain conceits in the place of his word, and have presumed to call their own feelings or fancies by the sacred appellation of a promise, have often met with disappointments; nor can they reasonably expect any thing else: but they who rest upon the clear promises of the Gospel, and wait for the accomplishment of them to their own souls, “shall not be ashamed or confounded world without end.” Let any creature upon earth “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness,” and shall he be left wholly destitute with respect to temporal comforts? No: he perhaps may be severely tried for a season; but ere long he shall have “all needful things added unto him.” Let a sinner “whose sins have been of a scarlet or crimson dye,” make application to the Lord for mercy; and shall he ever be cast out? No, “in no wise,” provided he come simply trusting in the Saviour’s righteousness. Let any seek deliverance from the snares of Satan, by whom he has been led captive at his will; and shall he be left in bondage to his lusts? Most surely not, if he will rely on Him who has said, “Sin shall not have dominion over you, because ye are not under the law, but under grace.” Now it may be, that many of you have been promising yourselves much spiritual, perhaps also some temporal, advantage, from your deceased minister: and behold! in an instant, all your hopes are blasted: the creature, though so excellent, proves in this respect but a broken reed. But if you will look to Christ, you cannot raise your expectations too high: he is the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever: you may rely on him, for body and for soul, for time and for eternity: he will be to you a “sun and a shield; he will give you both grace and glory; nor will he withhold any good thing from them that walk uprightly.” If he see it necessary that for a season you should be “in heaviness through manifold temptations,” he will make your trials to work for good; and “your light and momentary afflictions shall work out for you a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory:” only commit your souls to him in well-doing, and he will “keep you by his Almighty power, through faith, unto salvation.”
In the improvement which we would make of this subject—
We beg leave once more to notice the words that immediately precede the text; “Remember them that have had the rule over you, that have spoken unto you the word of God; whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation.” We may appear indeed, in this, to draw your attention from Christ, and to fix it on the creature. But we shall still keep in view our main subject; and at once consult the scope of the context, the peculiarity of this occasion, and the feelings of your hearts.
First then, “Remember him who has had the rule over you, and has preached unto you the word of God.” Surely I need not say much to enforce this part of the exhortation: he is deeply engraven on your hearts, nor will the remembrance of him be soon effaced from your minds. Many of you would have “even plucked out your own eyes and have given them unto him,” if by so doing you could have conferred upon him any essential benefit: yea, I doubt not, there are many in this assembly that would gladly, very gladly, have laid down their lives in his stead, that so great a blessing as he was, might yet have been continued to the Church of God. It cannot be but that the poor must long remember their generous and constant benefactor. Many of the children too, I trust, whom he so delighted to instruct, will remember him to the latest period of their lives. Above all, the people, who looked up to him as their spiritual father, to whom they owed their own souls, will bear him in remembrance. They will never forget “how holily, justly, and unblameably he behaved himself among them,” and how “he exhorted and comforted and charged every one of them, as a father doth his children, that they would walk worthy of God, who hath called them unto his kingdom and glory.” Deservedly will his name be reverenced in this place for ages; for “he was a burning and a shining light;” and had so uniformly persisted in well-doing, that he had utterly “put to silence the ignorance of foolish men,” and made religion respectable in the eyes of the most ungodly.
Let me proceed then in the next place to say, “Follow his faith.” What his faith was, you well know. Christ was the one foundation of all his hopes. He desired “to be found in Christ, not having his own righteousness, but that which is by the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.” And as he trusted in no other for his own salvation, so he preached no other amongst you. He had “determined, like St. Paul, to know nothing amongst you but Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” Every discourse he preached tended immediately or remotely to glorify Christ amongst you: if he preached the law, it was that, as a schoolmaster, it might lead you to Christ: if he insisted upon obedience, it was, that you might “glorify Christ by your bodies and your spirits which are Christ’s.” In short, Christ was, as well in his ministrations as in the inspired writings, “the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, the first and the last.” Were he preaching to you at this moment, I am persuaded he would have no other theme; yea, if to the end of the world he were continued to preach unto you, you would hear of nothing but Christ, the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever. It was this which made his ministry so acceptable unto you: it was this which God rendered useful to the conversion and consolation of multitudes amongst you. By the faith of Christ he lived, and in the faith of Christ he died. Almost the last words he uttered were these, “Weep not for me; I am very happy, I die in the faith of the Lord Jesus.” I have been anticipated in one remarkable circumstance which I had intended to mention to you; and I am unwilling to omit it now, because there may be some here who were not present this morning. Indeed it is so applicable to my subject, and so illustrative of the character of your dear pastor, that I may well be excused if I repeat what you have already heard. That blessed man, though he possessed a very considerable share of human learning, valued no book in comparison of the Scriptures: when therefore he found his dissolution approaching, he desired his dear partner to read a portion of the word of God: she immediately read to him, first the 23d Psalm, and afterwards the 8th chapter of Proverbs. In the last verse but one of that chapter, she came to these words; “Whoso findeth me, findeth life, and shall obtain favour of the Lord.” Immediately, without waiting for her to conclude the chapter, he cried, “Stop, stop, now shut up the book; that is enough for me.” Blessed man! he had sweetly experienced the truth of those words; he had found life in Christ Jesus; he had obtained favour of the Lord; and he knew that he was going to dwell with his Lord for ever. Such was his faith. He held fast Christ as his “wisdom, his righteousness, his sanctification, and his complete redemption.” He made “Christ his all, and in all.” But while he trusted in Christ alone for his justification before God, no man living ever more forcibly inculcated the necessity of good works, or, I may truly add, practised them with more delight. He was also a firm friend to the Established Church, and inculcated on all occasions submission to the constituted authorities of this kingdom. He considered obedience to the powers that be, as an essential part of his duty to God: he looked upon earthly governors as ministers ordained of God; and inculcated obedience to them as a duty, “not merely for wrath, but also for conscience sake.” As then ye have been followers of his faith and practice while living, so be ye imitators of him now that he is withdrawn from you: “be ye followers of him, as he was of Christ.” And be careful, “not to be carried about with divers and strange doctrines,” either in religion or politics: but “hold fast that ye have received, that no man take your crown.” If there be any here, who have never yet been “partakers of the like precious faith with him,” O that I might this day prevail with them to “become obedient to the faith!” My dear brethren, you will assuredly find, that the only means of holiness in life, or of peace in death, or of glory in eternity, is, the knowledge of Christ: “there is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we can be saved” from sin and misery in this world, or from everlasting destruction in the world to come; no other name, I say, but the name of Jesus Christ. I must therefore entreat you now to reflect on those things, which hitherto ye have heard without effect; and I pray God, that the seed, which has lain buried in the earth, may spring up speedily, and bring forth fruit an hundred-fold.
I add now in the last place, “Consider the end of your departed minister’s conversation.” You have heard how peaceful and resigned he was in the prospect of death, and what an assured and glorious hope of immortality he enjoyed. “Mark the perfect man,” says David, “and behold the upright; for the end of that man is peace:” this you have seen verified in him. But carry your thoughts a little further: follow him within the vail: behold him united to that blessed assembly of saints and angels: see him freed from the bondage of corruption, arrayed in the unspotted robe of his Redeemer’s righteousness, crowned with a royal diadem, seated on a throne of glory, tuning his golden harp, and with a voice as loud and as melodious as any saint in heaven, singing, “Salvation to God and to the Lamb.” Is there so much as one of you that can think of this, and not exclaim, “Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his!” Let the thought of these things, my brethren, encourage you to persevere: the conflict cannot be very long; but how glorious the triumph! Consider this, I beseech you; that you “may fight the good fight of faith, and quit yourselves like men.” Go on, “strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus;” and doubt not, but that you shall find the grace of Christ as sufficient for you as it has been for him; and that what Christ has been to others in former ages, he will be to you, the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever.