by His applying to the hearts of His people the truths which are contained in His holy word. He does not teach them any new doctrines, but brings home to their consciences the truths which are revealed in the volume of Divine revelation; that they may enjoy the comfort of them, and may walk in His holy ways, to the glory of His holy name.

The manner in which the Holy Spirit would instruct the Apostles of Christ is next mentioned. He shall bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. While our Saviour was with His disciples, they are said sometimes not to have understood the nature of His instructions; but after the Holy Ghost had descended upon them, their understandings were opened, and a right judgment was given them in all things that related to the kingdom of God. And what had slipped through their minds of the instructions of the Lord Jesus, and would not otherwise have been recollected by them, was brought again to their remembrance by His grace, to their edification and consolation; that they might be enabled to declare to their fellow-creatures the whole truth and counsel of God.

While our Saviour gave to His Apostles the promise in the text, it was His design to show also the nature of the office of the Holy Ghost for the instruction of His people in all succeeding ages of

the Christian church. The Spirit of God is the Teacher of all the children of God. It was promised to the church of old, All thy children shall be taught of the Lord.15 And the new covenant promise is, They shall no more teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord; for all shall know Me from the least to the greatest.16 And therefore the beloved disciple says to Christians in general, Ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things; and ye need not that any man teach you, for the same Anointing teacheth you of all things. Let us seek this teaching of the Holy Ghost for ourselves, that the gospel of Christ may come unto us, not in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, that we may receive it, not as the word of men, but, as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh in them that believe it.17 And while we commemorate the dying love of our adorable Redeemer at His table, as He hath commanded us to do, may we be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man,18 to press forward in the narrow way to the kingdom of heaven, for the prize of our high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

15 Isaiah liv. 13. 16 Heb.viii. 11. 171 Thes. i.5, ii. 13. 18Eph.iii.16.

SERMON XXXV.

FOR

TRINITY SUNDAY.

THE DOCTRINE OF THE HOLY TRINITY.

John iii. 9.

NICODEMUS ANSWERED AND SAID UNTO HIM, HOW CAN THESE THINGS BE?

WHEN the doctrine of the Trinity, as it is taught in the holy Scriptures, is first brought before the mind of any man, he naturally asks this question, which was put to our Lord Jesus Christ by Nicodemus, the ruler of the Jews, when he was informed of the nature of the operations of the Holy Spirit. The conversation of Our blessed Saviour with this learned Pharisee, seems to have been appointed as the Gospel for this day, on account of its containing so much practical instruction respecting the doctrine of the Trinity. It explains the nature of the operations of the Holy Spirit in such a manner as

e

to show them to be the acts of a Divine Person, or an intelligent Being possessed of Almighty power. It also declares the object proposed by the coming down of the Son of man from heaven; which in the verse that follows is shown to be the result of the love of God the Father to the lost world, or to His fallen sinful creature man. Here three Divine Persons are spoken of distinctly, each of them possessing and exercising power more than human, or that which is Almighty, under the names of God the Father, the Son, and the Spirit; and these Three are elsewhere declared to be One; 19 the One God. Let us take a brief view of these subjects as they are presented to our notice; and may the Divine Spirit breathe upon our souls, that the record concerning the Son of God and His great salvation may come unto us not in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance,20 that our faith may not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God,21 and that we may enjoy in our hearts the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The Evangelist introduces the important doctrine which has been referred to, by relating the circumstances under which our Saviour was pleased to bring it forward. He says, There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a

19 1 John v. 7. 20 1 Thessalonians i. 5. 21 1 Corinthians ii. 5.

ruler of the Jews; the same came to Jesus by night, and said unto Him, Rabbi, we know that Thou art a Teacher come from God; for no man can do these miracles that Thou doest, except God be with him. The works which were wrought by our blessed Lord were evidently supernatural, or beyond the power of any merely human being to perform; and therefore as they were beneficial miracles, or acts of kindness and compassion, by means of which relief was granted to the distressed, it was plain to the commonest observer, that He who wrought them, must, at least, have power from God to do these things. The miracles of Christ carried this conviction with them to the minds of all who had an opportunity of seeing them; they were of such a nature, that the finger of God was evident in them; as they were confessedly supernatural, they were unquestionably the effect of Divine power.

As soon as Nicodemus had acknowledged the truth of our Saviour's mission, or that He was a Teacher come from God, our blessed Lord at once began to instruct him in a serious and solemn manner, suitable to the character which He was admitted to sustain. Jesus answered

and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. This seemed a very extraordinary doctrine for a Jew to be called on to receive. Had it been spoken of merely in re