saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge." Eph. 3: 18, 19. How expressive the language of the apostle John: "God is love. In this was manifested the love of God towards us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." 1 John, 4:8, 9, 10. Now consider, my dear Benjamin, that upon the hypothesis that Christ was mere man, all these Scriptures lose all their force and significance. For what is there so remarkably endearing in the consideration that God gave up a man like ourselves to extreme sufferings and disgrace, when he had already acted in a similar manner in every instance where virtuous characters had fallen into the hands of unreasonable and wicked men? Or what was there so condescending in the conduct of Jesus, when he knew the infinite reward that was set before him? But if Jesus was the real and proper Son of God, then the love of God in not sparing him, and the condescension of Christ in leaving the infinite beatitude of heaven, taking upon him human nature, and dying to redeem the apostate sons of Adam, are conspicuous; and the declarations of Jesus and his apostles are inexpressibly proper, tender, and pathetic.

§ 2. Further let it be noticed, that if Christ be not truly God in the highest and strictest sense, then the argu. ment urged by our Savior and his apostles will be inconclusive and vain; and God, by thus giving and sending his Son, showed more love to Christ than to the world: for the opponents of the divinity of Christ tell us "that he who is but a creature, is, after a short obedience and suffering upon earth, made a god, receives divine honors, not only from men but from the angels and archangels, and has universal empire and dominion over all other creatures." For the same reason, if Christ be but a creature, his own

love to mankind, in coming into the world, and doing and suffering what he did, (which is so highly magnified in Scripture,) does not appear to be very extraordinary, because he himself was the greatest gainer imaginable. But upon the supposition that Christ is truly God, his love to mankind was indeed transcending, amazing, and surpassing knowledge; which leads me to notice,

§3. That if Christ be truly God, then his example of love and obedience to his Father, and love and compassion to man, is indeed unparalleled.

The Scriptures speak frequently in terms of high commendation on this subject; and even those who deny his real divinity and his atoning sacrifice, speak in exalted terms of his example. But, if he was not truly God before his incarnation; if he was not rich before he became poor; if he had no glory with the Father before he became a man of suffering; if he was not equal with God before he became a servant and was made in the likeness of men; I ask, with reverence indeed, wherein did his example exceed the examples of that cloud of witnesses presented to our view in the Epistle to the Hebrews, chap. 11? But on this particu lar I shall not enlarge, and I refer you, my dear Benjamin, to what I have said in a former letter (p. 362.) I proceed to observe,

§ 4. That if Christ be truly God, then sin appears indeed in its most odious manner.

One of the most common and most successful devices of Satan to lead men into sin and misery, is to hide the evil of sin from their eyes. Hence he persuaded our first parents that they should not die, even if they should break God's law, and he succeeded; and every sin committed, is committed upon the same principle, viz. although I do wrong, yet I shall escape punishment. But God, who has no pleasure in the death of the sinner, says, "O do not this abominable thing that I hate." Jer. 44: 4. He has indeed man

ifested his hatred of sin, and determination to punish it, by awful judgments inflicted on individuals, families, and na tions. Myriads of angels have been cast out of heaven, our first parents banished from Paradise, a world destroyed by the flood, the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah consumed by fire from heaven, Pharaoh and his host drowned in the Red Sea, the holy city of Jerusalem and our beautiful tem ple laid in ruins, and our whole nation scattered among all people under heaven, &c. &c. But O, my dear Benjamin, what is all this, yea, and even the torments of hell, when compared with the manifestation of God's wrath and indig. nation against sin, when he sent his own Son into the world, who knew no sin, to be made a sacrifice for sin ? 2 Cor. 5:21. In the former we may see much of the evil of sin, but not so much as we see in the sufferings and death of the Lord Jesus Christ; here is the clearest and most awful discovery and fullest representation of it—for the Son of God, the only-begotten of his Father, to become a son of man, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; to be smitten and stricken; to tread the wine-press of the wrath of God; to be obedient unto death, even the death of the cross; to cry out, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And all this to atone for sin. This is indeed a manifestation of its infinite evil which the world never saw before, and never will see again. The numberless sacrifices which were slain to atone for sin, taught something of its evil nature and consequences; but the blood of Christ, shed for the remission of sins, speaks much louder. What the apostle said of the love of God, we may apply with equal propriety to his holiness and the evil of sin. Now we know that God is holy, and sin an abomination, because that God sent his only-begotten Son into the world to be the propitiation for our sins. 1 John, 4:9, 10.

§ 5. If Christ be truly God, then we also see the propriety of honoring him as we do the Father.

We ought to love him supremely, believe in him cordially, and obey him unreservedly; the dignity of his person calls for the highest esteem, reverence and veneration which angels or men can possibly give unto him. Besides, it is the absolute will of the Father that all men should honor the Son even as they honor him. John, 5:23. For, having the same essence and nature with the Father, the Father will have him receive the same honor which he himself receives; and whoever denies it to the Son, reflects dishonor on the Father, who will not suffer any thing derogatory to the glory of his Son.

There is a story related of Bishop Amphilochius, who, to convince the emperor of the importance of honoring the Son as we honor the Father, one day coming into the presence of the emperor and of his son Arcadius, (who now ruled jointly with his father,) made his humble obeisance to the emperor himself, but slightly noticed his son. The emperor was greatly offended, and sharply reproved the bishop for his neglect of his son. The bishop, instead of making an apology, justified his conduct by saying he considered it indeed his duty to pay the greatest respect to the emperor, but did not think it either necessary or proper to pay the same homage to his son. The emperor became the more enraged, and ordered him to be driven from his presence. Whilst they were laying hands on the bishop, he turned to the emperor and said, O Emperor, thou being but a man, canst not bear the contempt or disparagement of thy son, how canst thou think the great God can bear the contempt of his Son which men cast upon him? The emperor was much affected at this, begged the bishop's pardon, and commended his ingenuity. Nicephor. b. 12, c. 9. Sozom. L 7. c. 6.

§ 6. Jesus Christ requires supreme love, Matt. 10: 37, 38, and the apostle says, "If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema, Maran-atha." 1 Cor. 16 22.

A believing, experimental knowledge of the unparalleled love of Christ compels to supreme love. Hence, says one apostle, "the love of Christ constraineth us, because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead; and that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them and rose again." 2 Cor. 5: 14, 15. And another apostle says, "We love him because he first loved us." 1 John, 4: 19. There is an invincible force in love itself, "for love is strong as death, jealousy is cruel as the grave: many waters cannot quench love, nor can the floods drown it; if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would be utterly contemned." Canticles, 8 : 6, 7.

§ 7. Love is of a nature so powerful that we can no more resist it and break the force of it, than we can resist death or fire. Nothing but the thing loved can quench or satisfy it. So vehement a love is there kindled in the heart of believers towards Christ, it makes so strong and mighty impressions on the heart, that they cannot endure any separation from him. No opposition can extinguish it, no other satisfaction can bribe it and entice it away from Christ.

As death conquers all, kings and peasants, high and low, rich and poor, bond and free, young and old, weak or strong, there is no disputing of his authority or counteracting of his power; for all ranks and degrees of men must, whether they will or not, be subject to him, the king of terrors; so the believer's love to Christ overcomes all things, and surmounts all difficulties which oppose his enjoyment of him. He can part with all, and bear all, or any thing, for the sake of Christ; father, mother, wife and children, houses and land, a good name, credit and reputation, are nothing to the believer, in comparison with Christ; and he cheerfully quits them when they stand in competition with him. "I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord; for whom I have suffered the loss of VOL. II.

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