14,

ceived the power which he exercises in the work which he hath undertaken, and that his kingdom was given to him, which goes to prove, he did not eternally poffefs them; fee Dan. vii. "And there was given him dominion and glory, and a kingdom." According to the prophecy here quoted, the dominion, glory and kingdom of Chrift were given him. The people whom he is to rule are given him, fee Pfalm ii. 8. "Afk of me, and I fhall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermoft parts of the earth for thy poffeffion." St. Matthew xxviii. 18. Jefus faith," All power is given unto me in heaven and earth." Chap. xi. 27. "All things are delivered unto me of my Father." Thefe and many more paffages are found in facred writ, in fupport of the dependance of the Mediator on the Supreme Eternal, and that he derives his power and glory from him. But if Chrift be effentially God, all thofe fcriptures feem without juft fignification.

Chrift is faid to be the " image of the invifible God, and the first born of every creature." His being the first born of every creature, agrees with his being the beginning of the creation of God. It is plain to me, from fcripture, that the Mediator is the first human foul which was created, as Adam was the firft man that was formed; and that he is, In Spirit, the Father of every human creature, as much as Adam is in the flesh. Therefore, Chrift faith, as it is written, " Behold I and the children that thou haft given me."

It is written, that man was created in the image of God; and, by the light of the gofpel, St. Paul ventured to affert, that Chrift was this image. The reader will do well to obferve, that the image of a perfon, and the perfon, are not effentially one, but

me."

fome knowledge of a perfon may be obtained by his true image. Chrift being the image of God, it is by him we learn the nature of the Father. Chrift faith, "No man knoweth the Father but the Son, and he to whom the Son revealeth him." Again, "No man cometh unto the Father, but by St. Paul is particular, on this subject, in his ift Epiftle to Timothy, fee chap. ii. verfe 5. "For there is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Chrift Jefus." It feems, by this teftimony, that St. Paul was a stranger to the notion of Chrift's being effentially God, as it would be improper to call him a man, were that the cafe. If it be argued, that Chrift is God and man both, I afk, was it the whole divine nature which conftitut. ed the divinity of Chrift? If this queftion be anfwered in the affirmative, I defire to know where that divinity is which conftitutes the other two perfons in the Godhead. If the question be anfwered in the negative, and it be argued, that the divinity which Chrift poffeffed was an emanation from Jehovah, it is coming directly to what I contend for, viz. that he is a created being.

As we have seen, from the prophecy of Daniel, that Chrift received his kingdom; fo we are taught, by St. Paul, that he will deliver up his kingdom to the Father, when he has accomplished the grand object of his reign, fee 1 Cor. xv. 24, 25, 26, 27, 28. Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father: when he fhall have put down all rule, and all authority, and power. For he must reign, until he hath put all enemies under his feet. The laft enemy that shall be deftroyed is death. For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he faith, all things are put under him, it is manifeft that he

is excepted which did put all things under him. And when all things fhall be fubdued unto him, then fhall the Son alfo himself be fubject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all."

Enough, perhaps, is written, on this part of my query, to make the matter plain to the reader, although much more might be quoted from the fcriptures, in fupport of what I have argued.

I next inquire, has the Mediator power, or ability, to perform the great work of atonement, which is the reconciliation of the world to God? Thofe fcriptures, with their connexions, which I have quoted to prove the Mediator's dependency, abundantly prove the fufficiency of his power to accomplish the work in which he is engaged. If all power in heaven and earth be committed to Chrift, no doubt can be entertained of its fufficiency. If the whole fyftem of law in moral nature be fubfervient to the defigns of the Redeemer, and if he hold in his hands the power of moral government, it certainly muft be at his option, whether men fhall be reconciled to God, or not.

It may not be amifs to inquire, in this place, whether men, in their individual capacity, have the power of moral government? If they have, the great work of reconciliation might be performed by them, which would render the miflion of Chrift unneceffary. We ought not to fuppofe the Almighty ever purposed more than one way to produce the fame event; if he have given ability to each individual to effect a complete reconciliation in himself, it is not confiftent to. believe that this work of reconciliation will be done by a Mediator; but if the work of reconciling all things to God be configned to Chrift, it is not reasonable te

believe we have power to perform it ourselves. And I think it will not be deemed admiffible, that we have power to hinder this work of reconciliation, as that would, in effect, deny the truth of all power being given to Chrift. given to Chrift. We ought to confider, that Chrift was by no means ignorant of man; that he needed none to teftify of man, as he knew what was in man, He knew the moral distance which man had wandered from God, he knew all the expenfe of recovering him to holiness and happiness; and it appears rational, that he knew whether he poffeffed ability to defray this expenfe or not; and if he knew he did not poffefs this ability, he would not have undertaken it. We ought not to fuppofe the Mediator would act as unwifely as a man who undertakes to build a large houfe, without firft counting the coft, to know if he be able to finish a building fo expenfive; or, as a king would do, who fhould make war on another king, without firft confulting whether he were able to contend with the double numbers which his adverfary commanded.

St. Paul, writing to the Coloffians, faith, of Chrift, he is the firft børn from the dead, that in all things he might have the pre-eminence; for it pleased the Father, that in him all fulness should dwell; and that the Father had made peace, through the blood of his crofs; and then informs them for what this peace was made, fee chap, i. verfe 20. "By him to reconcile all things unto himself by him, I fay, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven." In Isaiah ix. 6, we have a beautiful prophetic teftimony of the power and kingdom of the Saviour. "For unto us a child is born, unto us a fon is given, and the government fhall be upon his fhoulder, and his

name fhall be called Wonderful, Counfellor, the mighty God, the everlafting Father, the Prince of Peace." And in the beginning of the next verse, the extent of his dominion is fpoken of. "And of the increase of his government and peace there fhall be no end." There is a great number of like paffages, which, in the course of this work, I fhall have occafion to introduce; but enough is already quoted, to fhow for what this power was given to Chrift, and that it is fufficient to accomplish the end intended. Again, it may be reasonable to argue, that if the Almighty committed power into the hands of Chrift, for the performance of any thing whatever, if there fhould be found, at laft, a want of power for the work intended, it would prove a want of wisdom, in the giver of fuch power. No one, who pro feffes to believe at all in Chrift, will difpute his power for the performance of all his will: But I wish to have the reader fatisfied, in refpect to this power, and in what it confifts, which, to make as clear as poffible, I connect with my laft particular in this general inquiry, which is

ATONEMENT IN ITS NATURE.

I have already obferved, that atonement and reconciliation are the fame. Reconciliation is a renewal of love, and love is the law of the spirit of life in Chrift Jefus, of which St. Paul fpeaks, in Romans viii. 2, by which he was made free from the law of fin. The foul, when governed by the law of fin which is in the members, of which St. Paul speaks, in Romans vii. 23,.is in a ftate of unreconciliation to the law of the Spirit. And it is by the force and power of the law of love,in Christ, that the foul is delivered from the government of