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facrifice indeed, but not in the divine, but in the human nature. Even as a murderer is faid to kill a man, though he kill not the foul. Now, that he fuffered in his body, appears from the hiftory of his paffion in the evangelifts. And his foul-füfferings alfo are evident from the fame hiftory. His fufferings in his foul ne himself teftifies, when he fays, My foul is exceeding forrowful even unto death. These were the foul of his fufferings, and far greater than thofe of his body. They confifted, (1.) In his being deferted of God, whereby all comfort was eclipfed from his holy foul, Pfal. xxii. 1. My God, my God, why haft thou forfaken me? (2.) In the impreffions of God's wrath on it, which produced that bloody fweat in the garden, by which blood tranfpired from his facred body. God knew how to let him feel his wrath as our Surety; and yet was pleased with him as a Son. (3.) In the affaults of the powers of darkness and fpiritual wickedneffes, who affailed him with redoubled fury in that hour of darkness. The prince of this world attacked him more fiercely then than ever before.

3. There was an altar on which this facrifice was offered for it is the altar that fanctifieth the offering, and renders it acceptable to God, and useful to man; and that was his divine nature. Through the eternal Spirit, fays the apottle, be offered himself without Spot unto God, Heb. ix. 14. and fo by his blood purgeth our confciences from dead works. For Chrift as God fanctified himself as man, that fo, thro' the virtue and merit of his facrifice, his people might be fanctified alfo, John xvii. 19. There behoved to be fomething to add an infinite value and efficacy to the fufferings of his humanity; which could be nothing elfe but the divine nature. The human nature fuffered, and the divine nature fanctified the humanity; and, by reafon of this admirable union, and the reflection of the Divinity upon the humanity, what was done to the human nature upon the cross is afcribed to the whole perfon. They crucified the Lord of

glory, fays the apostle; and, God purchased the church with his own blood. It was this that made his fuff rings acceptable and highly pleafing to God, whofe ju ftice was to be appeased and satisfied; and it was his that made them efficacious for man, whofe happiness and commerce with God were to be reftored, and his guilt removed. So that he had a human nature that ferved for a facrifice, and a divine nature wherein he fubfifted, from whence that facrifice derived an infinite dignity and value. Thus Chrift was a Priest in his perfon, a facrifice in his humanity, and the altar in his Divinity.

4. In a facrifice the things offered were to be of God's appointment, or elfe it had not been an acceptable facrifice, but will-worship; and no more a facrifice in God's account, than the cutting off of a dog's neck, or offering fwine's blood, as appears by the law given by Mofes concerning free-will offerings, Lev. v. So that what Chrift offered was appointed and prepared by God. He prepared him a body, that he might offer it for a facrifice. It was a living body, a body animated with a rational foul, which foul was feparated from his body in the offering; and therefore he is taid to have made his foul an offering for fin; and that foul and body conftituted his human nature. This was the facrifice that was appointed of God for the expiation of the elects fin. Hence fays the apostle, 1 Pet. i. 18. 19. Fe were not redeemed with corruptible things, as filver and gold;but with the precious blood of Chrift, as of a lamb without blemish and without Spot.

5. The thing offered in facrifice was to be deftroy. ed. This is effential to a facrifice, Thofe things that were endued with life were killed, that fo they might be offered to God in facrifice, and their blood was poured out, and the other parts of them, befides the blood, were burnt with fire, either wholly or in part, And thus was Chrift facrificed. His dying and bleed. ing on the crofs, anfwered the killing and fhedding of

(he blood of the Levitical facrifices: and his fufferings texpreffed by the pains of hell) were correfpondent to the burning of thefe facrifices. It is faid, Heb. xiii. 12. 13. Jefus alfo, that he might fanctify the people with bis own blood, fuffered without the gate. Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach. His fufferings without the gate are held forth here, as anfwering the burning of the facrifices without the

camp.

6. The perfon to whom facrifices were offered, was God, and he only. It was grofs idolatry to offer them to any other. Hence they are called things pertaining to God, Heb. v. I.; and Chrift's facrifice was thus offered up to God, Heb. ii. 17. He performed the office of a merciful and faithful High Prieft in offering up himfelf a facrifice to God. God was the party offended by man's fin, and whofe juftice behoved to be fatisfied, Eph. v. 2. Here is a myftery of wonders, where one party is the party offended, the pricft, and the facrifice.

Thirdly, I come now to confider how often Chrift did offer himself. It was only once, Heb. ix. 28, Christ was once offered to bear the fins of many; and that one and once offering fully answered the end of his offering himself: for, fays the apoftie, by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are fanctified, Heb. x. 14. This was the difference, as I have obferved above, between the Levitical pricfts and our High Prieft; that they offered many facrifices, which argued the imperfection of their miniftry; but Chrift only once, Heb. x. 14. juft cited. As for the notion of the facrament's being changed into a facrifice, as the Papifts pretend, there is no foundation for it: for there Chrift is not offered to God, but to us; and it is no renewal of that facrifice, but a folemn commemoration of it.

Fourthly, I go on to fhew for whom Chrift offered himfelf a facrifice.

1. It was not for his own fins, for he had none

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but for the fins and tranfgreffions of others: Dan. ix. 26. The Meffiah fhall be cut off, but not for himself. He could not fuffer for any fin of his own; for he was holy, barmless, undefiled, and separate from finners. Though he made his foul an offering for fin, yet he had done no iniquity, neither was guile found in his mouth. As the legal lambs were without blemish, fo Chrift was a Lamb without fpot. His extraordinary and miraculous conception in the womb of a virgin was an effectual bar against original fin, and he had no actual fin in the courfe of his life. He was infinitely holy as God, and habitually holy as man. Every power and faculty of his foul, and every member of his body, was elevated and raised to the higheft pitch of holinefs. And he fulfilled all righteoufnefs in his life, and gave complete fatisfaction to all the demands of the law; fo that he needed not, as the Levitical priefts, first to offer facrifice for his own fin, and then for the fins of the people.

2. Chrift did not offer up this facrifice for the fins of fallen angels; for there was no facrifice appointed for them. Whenever they rebelled against their Sovereign Lord and Creator, they were immediately expelled from the divine prefence, and are kept in everlafting chains under darkness to the judgement of the great day. Chrift took not upon him the nature of angels, but the feed of Abraham. He offered up the facrifice of himself to make an atonement for the fins of men,

3. Chrift did not die a facrifice for every man and, woman in the world. It is true, there was virtue and efficacy enough in his oblation to fatisfy offended jutice for the fins of the whole world, yea and of mil lions of worlds more; for his blood hath infinite value, becaufe of the infinite dignity and excellency of his perfon. And in this fenfe fome divines understand thole places of fcripture where he is called the Saviour of the whole world. Yet the efficacy and fa

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ving virtue of his facrifice extendeth not unto all. For,

ift, It is reftricted in fcripture to a certain number, called fometimes the church of God, as Acts xx. 28. Feed the church of God which he hath purchased with his own blood. Eph. v. 25. Christ loved the church, and gave bimfelf for it. Sometimes they are called his fheep, as John x. 15. I lay down my life for my sheep. They are alfo called thofe that were given to him by the Father, John xvii. 2. Thou hast given him power 0ver all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou haft given him. See alfo John x. 26.-29. In these places of fcripture, and others that might be named, you fee that Chrift's death is reftricted to a certain number of perfons, exclufive of all others.

2dly, If Chrift would not pray for every one in the world, then certainly he did not die for every one in particular. But fo it is that he excludes the reprobate world from the benefit of his prayer, John xvii. 9. I pray not for the world, but for them whom thou hast given me. Both the parts of Chrift's priefthood, his offering facrifice and his interceffion, are of the fame latitude and extent. We find them joined together in the fcripture, by an infeparable connection, Rom. viii. 34. It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is rifen again, who is even at the right hand of God, whe alfo maketh interceffion for us. 1 John ii. 1. 2. If any man fin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jejus Chrift the righteous and he is the propitiation for our fins. So that Chrift intercedes for all those for whom he fatisfied offended juflice; but he intercedes not for the whole world, but only for those whom God hath given him; and therefore he did not fatisfy offended justice for all men.

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3dly, Chrift's death is an act of the higheft love that ever was or can be manifefted to the world. Greater love, fays he, hath no man than this, that a man lay doron his life for his friends. And fays the apostle, Rom. v. 8. God commendeth his love towards us, in that

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