Do you solemnly declare that you cordially and gratefully accept of Christ as all your salvation and all your desire? And do you not less solemnly engage, through divine assistance, that you will "follow him through good report and through bad report ;" and "that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, you will live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world?"-the most emphatic reply that could be framed in words and uttered by their lips, could not be more unequivocal or more obligatory than that which we have a right to draw, and which they themselves authorize and expect to be drawn, from the simple but significant transactions in which they publicly engage, when they partake of the solemn ordinance of the Lord's Supper.

II. The things which the Lord's Supper is naturally fitted to bring to our remembrance.

The things which are here directly represented, are, as we have already seen, far from being numerous. They are, however, exceedingly striking and momentous, and cannot be attentively contemplated by any intelligent individual, and especially by any enlightened Christian, without suggesting to his mind, or bringing to his remembrance, many most interesting truths and most important doctrines. The things represented are thus made the medium through which are suggested to us the other things which we are called upon to remember.

1. When the bread and the wine are placed before us in this holy ordinance, and before any further use is made of them, then, being taught by our Lord himself to regard them as a representation of his body and blood, we are at once reminded of, and called on to commemorate, the momentous fact, that "the Eternal Son of God became man,”—that “the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us. This momentous fact, however, it is impossible to contemplate without being called upon devoutly and gratefully to remember the

amazing condescension which is implied in his humbling himself to be made "in the likeness of man." Apart altogether from the sinless infirmities of our nature which he had to experience, and the complicated agonies which he was appointed to endure, there is, in the mere participation of a created nature, something which is apparently so incompatible with the dignity of Him who is the Maker and Heir and Lord of all, that the more undoubted the fact is rendered, the more overwhelming does it appear to our thoughts. It is one of the things into which we are told that the angels themselves desire to look. There is so wide a contrast-so incalculable, or rather, so infinite, a distance between the nature of man, even in its best estate, nay, between any created nature, how exalted soever, and the nature of the Godhead-that nothing but the authority of the Godhead itself could either constrain or warrant us to believe that they are united in the person of Jesus Christ; and even when we are forced to do so, we are filled with unutterable amazement at this sublime and mysterious truth. We are certain that this, and all of God's works, shall be made to show forth and make his praise glorious; but this very conviction only prepares the way for further amazement at the thought that there should be any thing to counterbalance, and more than counterbalance, the unparalleled humiliation to which he voluntarily stooped who "thought it not robbery to be equal with God;" and who is expressly declared to be the only begotten of the Father." Now, the humiliation here referred to, as it is one of the things which are necessarily suggested to our minds, even by the mere exbibition of the outward elements in the Lord's Supper, so it is one of the circumstances which we are there called upon most devoutly to remember, and most gratefully and publicly to celebrate.

2. It seems impossible for us, however, to have our thoughts so forcibly directed to our Lord's amazing humiliation, and publicly to engage in showing it forth,

without having them directed at the same time to the leading objects or purposes, momentous as they must assuredly be, on account of which he submitted, not only to this marvellous humiliation, but to all the unparalleled agonies by which it was completed. The primary object in all this was undoubtedly the fuller manifestation of the divine glory. Accordingly we find, that when the time of his concluding sufferings was close at hand, the words in which he addressed himself to his Heavenly Father were the following," I have glorified thee on earth; I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do," (John xvii. 4.) But, comprehended under this primary object, we are necessarily led to think of that to which the Scriptures have assigned so prominent a place, and so special an importance, namely, the salvation of sinners. "This," to use the language of the Apostle, "this is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners," (1 Tim. i. 15.) In this character all mankind had been involved, by reason of transgression against the law of God; and by transgression they had not only entirely forfeited his favour, but had exposed themselves to his wrath and curse, both in this life, and in that which is to come. "The wages of sin is death," by which we are taught to understand, not only natural and spiritual death, but death also in that awful sense in which it is directly the opposite of "eternal life," (Rom. vi. 23.)

Now, it is obvious, that to save beings who had become liable to all these fearful penalties of transgression, very peculiar endowments must have been requisite on the part of the Redeemer. In denouncing these penalties against sin, the divine law must be shown not to have uttered a mere empty threat. Its denunciations could not be cancelled or recalled. Instead of having its authority shaken, or its righteousness rendered questionable, it was necessary that the law should be magnified and made honourable." Whatever method

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might be adopted for exempting sinners themselves from the endurance of that punishment to which the law had condemned them, it was necessary that it should be one by which the righteousness of God, the exceeding sinfulness of sin, and his infinite indignation against it, should be, at least, as fully and effectually demonstrated as though his unmitigated vengeance had been poured out on the head of every individual who had sinned. God has distinctly given us to understand, that sin must be expiated, or at least means must be taken to secure its expiation, before forgiveness can be extended to the sinner. It is expressly stated that "Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us; and that God held it to be indispensable that he should "declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past," in order "that he might be just, and," at the same time, "the justifier of him who believeth in Jesus," (Rom. iii. 26.) On this principle, and for this purpose, was the Son of God manifested in the flesh. He appeared in the nature of man, and as the substitute of sinners. He appeared in this capacity, first, for the purpose of showing, that, as it was man who had sinned, so it was against man that the wrath of God, the righteous lawgiver, was directed; and, secondly, for the purpose of enduring in that nature the punishment to which sinners had become justly liable, and to which he could not have been subjected if he had not taken a created nature into union with his Godhead. Had he not taken to himself the nature of man, it could not so plainly have appeared that he died for our offences; and if he had not been inherently one with God, he could neither have endured the whole amount of punishment due to transgressors, nor have wrought out for them an everlasting salvation. "He took part of flesh and blood," in order "that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is the devil." "Now once in the end of the world," says the Apostle, "hath he appeared to put

away sin by the sacrifice of himself," (Heb. ii. 14, and ix. 26.)

The end, then, for which the Son of God condescended to subject himself to the wondrous humiliation of becoming a "partaker of flesh and blood," was to prepare the way for the still deeper humiliation of being wounded for our transgressions, and bruised for our iniquities." It was to open up a way for the exercise of God's mercy and grace towards sinners, in a manner which was not only entirely consistent with all the rest of the divine perfections, but pre-eminently illustrative of them, and especially of his holiness and justice. It was to expiate sin, and to bring redemption to his people; and that in a manner which afforded by far the fullest and the most transcendent display that either men or angels could behold of the glorious attributes of the Godhead. This is another of the sublime and affecting things which are suggested to our contemplations, or brought to our remembrance in the ordinance of the Lord's Supper, and which we are there called upon most gratefully and devoutly to proclaim and to celebrate.

3. But this end, for the sake of which Christ was manifested and put to death in the flesh, cannot be seriously and deliberately contemplated without our being emphatically reminded that he is thoroughly furnished, and gloriously competent to its attainment. Both his obedience and his sufferings were infinitely precious. He was not only entirely free from sin, but essentially holy. There was a meritoriousness in his obedience, which never could have belonged to any one who, as a mere creature, was subject, in his own nature, to the moral government of God, bound to fulfil the law for himself, and thus to discharge the obligations which he individually owed to the Author of his being. He was made under the law, only because he came to redeem others from the penalties of disobeying it. He not only fulfilled all the righteous