fect and complete through his shed blood and imputed righteousness.

But if Christ is alone able and worthy; to fill, ocrapy, and bless for our good the way of access to God, so that no one can walk therein, in the participation of merit with him, what must we think of him, who "entereth not by the door into the

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sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way," but that "the same is a thief and a robber." what is human merit in whole, or in part; either set up totally against Christ the good shepherd, or mixing with his merit in the affairs of our souls; but a thief and a robber, robbing him of the merits of his blood and of the honor due to his name. Oh! that we may be cleared of all self-righteousness, as well as unrighteousness, that we may come stript of all to him, to be clothed by him, that we may not be found naked.

15th. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone; but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life, shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world, shall keep it unto life eternal. John xii. 24, 25.

Three things claim attention in the first verse of the two, which it shall be my business briefly to mention, viz.

1st. The kingdom of nature presents us with a proof of this. Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone. A corn of wheat

is mentioned here not in contradistinction to any other seed, but as an illustration that others also grow from the same principle: in which it may be noted, that what is intended to grow must be put into the ground-though it carries within itself the germ of life, yet that germ cannot of itself grow up and sprout, except as acted upon by some life-giving power. Observe a seed, however small; we see a prominent part called the sprout, which by experience we know, is the first part susceptible of life. Yet we know that this sprout will not make it live, till it feels the nourishment of the earth penetrating its recesses, by the joint agency of the moisture of the clouds, and of the warmth of the sun. An apt emblem of a Christian. Man contains within himself the germ of life, the Spirit which as to its essence and origin is a spark lighted by the living God. Though man carries within himself the germ of life, as implanted by God, yet that germ cannot grow up and sprout to the glory of God, except as acted upon by the life-giving Spirit of the Son of God. So faint are the traces of a divine origin in the spirit of man by reason of the fall, that their prominency dwindles into an atom, when the eye of flesh views them in comparison with the things of the body which do appear. Yet the Christian man knows by experience, that this germ of life is the first part susceptible of spiritual life; yet he believes not that this germ of life, will burst forth into real existence, action and intelligence,

till it feels the support of that ground in which every regenerate spirit is planted-even in the garden of God; till that support reaches and penetrates the seat of life, by the joint agency of the Sun of Righteousness, and of the dew of the Spirit descending upon it. And except we have experienced, and felt the bitterness of spiritual death through Adam, and feel that we die in him, we can not feel any desire to come to Christ, and must abide alone, dead through trespasses and sins.

2d. Death is the only way to glory. Death is the common lot of all men, and the living should lay it to heart. Its commonness should not lead us to push the thought away; for first its approach is preceded by uncertainty. So that many are suddenly taken out of life, and to all it is as Dr. Young expresses it," A slow-sudden death.” 2d. It is the wages of sins; and a most cursed and bitter, yet deserved fruit of man's transgression. 3d. The death of the body is no remedy for, nor security from the second death: for many who have, expired in great agonies of body, are now suffering the pains of hell for ever. Hence death is no meritorious way of gaining ease from endless torments. On the contrary, it seals irrevocably the doom of saints and sinners, holds them as it found them to the great decision of the judgment day. Yet is it the way by which the saints will all be ushered into glory, and a glorious way for all that die in the faith of the Lord Jesus. And is it im

possible that any can reach glory but through the intervention of death? We will consider the matter, and first considering man before the fall, and for a moment supposing he was never to fall, then I argue he could not see death, seeing death was the wages of sin. But still even then, man was in a state of unglorified perfection; first because he was in a state of probation, and next because he was not a perfect spirit, being compounded of pure spirit, and a heterogenous earthly body. I say unglorified perfection; because I conceive it impossible that Adam could have gone to the world of spirits whilst surrounded with a natural body, and though I conceive that he could not taste death for the reason just mentioned, viz. that death is the wages of sin, yet I conceive he must have passed through a change, something similar to that of Elijah's, who ascended up to Heaven in chariots of fire and who whilst he was exempted from the pains of death, and descended not to the tomb in his natural body, yet suffered his mantle to divide the waters of Jordan, 'thus acknowledging death his rightful Lord, from whose power he triumphed, he was set free only by the extreme and abundant grace of the Lord his God towards him; but these are some of the secret things that belong to the Lord. 2d. Considering man since the fall. If we read the extent of the curse, as commented upon by Paul, we have these words; " and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned," Rom. v. 12. Hence

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all men must taste death. But I just mentioned that Elijah was taken up to Heaven without passing the chambers of death: how can this be accounted for, seeing all were to suffer death, and Elijah lived after the fall of Adam and consequently under the curse of the fall? I answer as I have already accounted for it, viz. on the sovereign grace of Godput forth in an extraordinary way, to shew that sinners may be saved under every dispensation of his church, consistently with free grace and his sovereign pleasure. But further to illustrate and strengthen this, I take pleasure in quoting from the pious writings of a late celebrated author and minister of the gospel, who thus adds ; "Such an one "was Enoch: thus he lived and walked with God; " and thus escaped death that end of all men: He was not, for God took him. This is the last "memorable particular of his history. About the "import of the words, we can be at no loss, after "the apostle has explained them; by his being "translated that he should not see death. And "what is the instruction which it administers to the "world? Simply this, that a life of faith and ho"liness is but cne remove from glory: that Hea"ven descended to earth, will quickly raise men "from earth to Heaven: that death either averted, "or overcome and destroyed, will at length open a

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passage to perfect union with God and enjoy"ment of him. We acknowledge no other para"dise or habitation of the blessed, but that repre