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view of the undeviating fteadinefs of the divine counfels! He willeth and none can let it; heaven and eartn may pass away, but his word fhall not pass away, but every one come to pafs in his feason.

Mary having been referred to her coufin Elizabeth, whofe advanced state of pregnancy was to be an additional confirmation of her own faith in the promises of God, as foon as the an. gel departed from her, retired from Nazareth into the hill country of Juda to falute her kinfwoman, and to confer with her on the feveral manifeftations of divine favor to them. This interview produced another declaration of the intereft that providence took in the event which was prefling to its accomplishment; Elizabeth is not only deftined to be a moth. er in Ifrael, a mother of John the Baptift, but she becomes already a prophetefs; fhe has a fign given her in her own perfon equivalent to the declaration of the Archangel. "And it came to pass, that when Elizabeth heard the falutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost and she spake out with a loud voice, and faid, bleffed art thou among women, and bleffed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord fhould come to me? For, `lo, as foon as the voice of thy falutation founded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. And bleffed is the that believed; for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord." This fills the virgin's mouth with a fong of praife dictated by faith, piety, humility and gratitude; and thefe are the rapturous ftrains which flow from her lips, My foul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For he hath regarded the low eftate of his hand-maiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations. fhall call me bleffed. For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name. And his mercy is on them that fear him, from generation to generation. He hath fhewed ftrength with his arm : he hath fcattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their feats, and exalted them of low degree. He hath filled the hungry with good things and the rich he hath fent empty away. He hath holpen his fervant Ifrael, in remembrance of his mercy; as he fpake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his feed for ever."

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The courfe of nature now takes place, and he who made man, the first man Adam, perfect at once, from duft of the ground, and who is able of thefe ftones to raife up children to H

Abraham,

Abraham, raifes up firft John and then Jefus in a way at once miraculous, and natural, according to the way of fovereign, irrefiflible power, and according to the time of life. Glorious in eftat lifhing and fupporting the laws of nature, glorious in fufpending and difpenfing with them, we behold thee, O God, fubduing all things to the counfel of thy will, that all fhould be to the praise of thy glory. At the end of three months more. Elizabeth, as it was predicted of the angel, is delivered of a fon; the name of John, as the heavenly meffenger direfted, was impofed on him, the father's fpeech was fuddenly reftored and the firft ufe which he makes of it is to celebrate the high praises of that God, who had made him fuch an illuftrious example of both mercy and judgment. He" was filled with the Holy Ghoft and prophefied, faying, Bleffed be the Lord God of Ifrael; for he hath vifited and redeemed his people. And hath raised up an horn of falvation for us in the houfe of his fervant David; as he fpake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been fince the world began; that we thould be faved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us; to perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his ho y covenant, the oath which he fware to our father Abraham, that he would grant unto us, that we, heing delivered out of the hand of our enemies, might ferve him without fear in holinefs and righteoufnels before him, alk the days of our life. And thou, child, fhalt be called the Prophet of the Higheft for thou fhalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways to give knowledge of falvation unto his people, by the remiffion of their fins, through the tender mercy of our God: whereby the dayfpring from on high hath vifited us, to give light to them that fit in darkness, and in the fhadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace."

And now the way is prepared, the voice is heard crying in the wilderness, the forerunner of the Lord has begun his course, the Saviour comes. But other meffengers, of whom we have not yet heard, precede him. Behold yonder comet glare in the eastern fky, it performs a track untrodden before, the wife men of diftant lands are fummoned to meet him at his coming, to lay their gifts at his feet; auguftus Cefar, the fole regent of half the globe, is preffed into the miniftering train, an unconfcious, unintentional fervant to the Prince of the kings of the earth.

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But here we must once more paufe and inquire, Is this a cunningly deviled fable, or a real hiftory? Is it a fanciful rep refentation,

refentation, or the fimple truth? If it be a fine tiffue woven by a luxuriant imagination, fay fo at once, unbeliever, and renounce the fiction in whole, as a rule of faith, or as a ground at hope. Say unrefervedly that the miffion and mellage of the angel is merely a bold eaftern metaphor: and the whole mere ordinary facts, related with fomewhat more than the ufual pomp of diction, but to fet forth only a man of like paffions with ourfelves, whom the credulous, prejudiced and illiterate are difpoled to receive as a fuperior being-In a word, give up the evangelifts as plain men conveying, to plain men like themselves, fimple matters of fact, and recur at once to unmixed, undifguifed deilm. But are thefe things indeed fo? Were angels fent from God to declare the approach of what prophets had of old prediéred ? Did the Son of the Highest vouchsafe to be born of a Woman, and thereby become partaker of flesh and blood, David's fon, yet David's Lord, then let earth prepare to receive its king. Lo, the angels of God worthip him. He is the Son of God, he is our Lord, and let us woithip him.

This hiftory affifts us in correcting the falfe fcale of human greatnefs. Here we behold the princes and the potentates of this world finking to their proper level; Herod, Auguftus Cefar, and perfons of their character and station are thrown into the back ground of the piece, while Zacharias, Elizabeth and Mary are brought forward with honour, and to fill a higher deftination than that of kings. Refpett, by all means, the powers that are, as the ordinance of God, but respect with higher, with fupreme veneration, Him who ordained them, to carry on the purposes of bis wildom and his love.

Learn, Chriftian, to make a juit estimate of thy own importance in the fcale of being. Thou art a creature of God, formed after his image, a partaker of immortality, defined to glory and honour. An origin fo dignified confers true nobility; faculties fo fuperior, profpects fo extended, denote a being of high eftimation in the fight of God, and who ought to Defile not that fair be of high estimation in his own eyes. temple, difcredit not that illuftrious defcent, difhonour not a father's name. But well does it become a creature fo dependent, fo frail, to fallen, fo loft, to be clothed with humility. O man, thou ftandeft in need of every thing; what poffelfelt thou that thou didst not first receive? Thou haft been forgiven The reliall; by the grace of God thou art what thou art. gion of Jefus Chrift alone effectually teaches a man to defend without degradation, and to rife with ut pride; reduces him

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to the level of his natural guilt and mifery, and exalts him to the glorious liberty, and the heavenly inheritance of the fons, of God.

We have here a preternatural, a miraculous conception. It reminds us of our common origin, of our common feebleness, of our mutual connexion and dependence. God "hath made of one blood all nations of men, for to dwell on all the face of the earth." Every man therefore is a brother, and bound to entertain the affections, and to perform the part of a near kinfman to every man. This confideration I prefs upon you in the words and the spirit of the Apoftle of the Gentiles: "For I fay, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think foberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. For, as we are many members in one body, and all members have not the fame office fo we being many are one body in Chrift, and every one members one of another. Having then gifts, differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or miniftry, let us wait on our miniftering; or he that teacheth, on teaching; Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giv eth, let him do it with fimplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that fheweth mercy with cheerfulness. Let love be without diffimulation. Abhor that which is evil, cleave to that which is good. Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another!""Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. Be of the fame mind one towards another. Mind not high things, but condefcend to men of low eftate"-" If it be poffible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good."

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The fubject of the hext Lecture will be the hiftory of the nativity of our bleffed Lord, and of the more remarkable circumftances which accompanied that all-important event. May what has been fpoken become "profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteouf. nefs." Amen.

LECTURE

LECTURE VI.

LUKE, II. 1-)
1--14:

And it came to pass in thole days, that there went out a decre from Cefar Auguftus, that all the world fhould be taxed. (Ind this taxing was firft made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. And Jofeph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, (because he was of the house and lineage of David,) to be taxed with Mary his cipoufed wife, being great with child. And fo it was, that while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And She brought forth her first-born Jon, and urapped him in Twaddling-clothes, and laid him in a manger: becaufe there was no room for them in the inn. And there were in the fame country fhepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord fhone round about them: and they were fore afraid. And the angel faid unto them, Fear not For behold Ibring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day, in the city of David, a Saviour, which is Chrift the Lord.And this fhall be a fign unto you: ye fhall find the babe wrapped in fwaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And fuddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praifing God, and Jaying, glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

ROM the firft inftant of time until now, every inflant has

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been difplaying fome new wonder, unfolding fome new defign of the Eternal mind. God gives the word. Light arifes, the earth emerges out of ocean, the firmament is expanded, fun, moon, and stars appear, nature teems with life, man starts up out of the duft, rears his erect form to heaven, fhines in his Maker's likeness; the Creator contemplates the progreffive glories of his power, and pronounces every thing good. The Lord gives the word, and ocean again covers the earth, Chaos and ancient night refume their empire, the breath of every liv

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