on the hope fet before us: Which hope we have as an anchor of the foul, both fure and fledfaft, and which entereth into that within the vail. Heb. vi. Wherefore the evidence of things not feen, which we have in the confirmed promife of God in Chrift Jefus, may be efteemed as the fubftance itself, and may be fafely accounted to the full value of the inte reft fecured in the eternal fellowship of the Father and the Son; and thus to be the heirs of promife, is nothing lefs than to be heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Chrift.

The propriety of confidering the evidence of things not feen, as belonging to the definition of faith, and the neceffity of connecting it with the fubftance itself, may be illustrated by the nature of bank eflablishments, the operations of which have now become very familiar. A fund being established and fecured in bank, promiffory bills are iffued upon the faith of the bank. Thefe bills, from a bank of good credit, will pafs currently for cafh, because cafh will be given for them at the bank. They reprefent the property in the fund; and to fo great an amount as the bills fpecify, it is invefted in them, and they are evidence of that right; therefore they go under the fame denomination as the fpecies they represent, and are reckoned as fo much cafh. The promise of God, and the gospel of Jefus Chrift, is heaven's bank bill; and as the fubftance of things hoped for is faith, the evidence of things not feen bears the fame denomination, and with the greatest propriis reckoned as faith.

ely

These treasures of the unfeen world, the precious things of faith, were all comprised in the reward promised to Chrift in the covenant of redemption, whereby he was ap pointed heir of all things. By his Father's will, and his own covenant righteoufnefs, the whole inheritance belongs to him; wherefore the promises are all made out in his name, and the intereft fecured to him for his use and advantage for ever. Hence the name of Chrift is ufed to exprefs the unfearchable riches of the promises; it ftands for the whole gofpel, and to preach Chrift is to preach the whole counfel of God: For the Son of God Jefus Chrift, who was preached by us, even by me, and Sylvanus, and Tymotheus, was not yea and nay, but in him was yea.For all the promifs of God in him are yea, and in him amen, unto the glory of God by us. 2 Cor. i. 19, 20. As the glory of God is the glory of benevolence, the things put into the hands of Chrift, both in their nature and in their destination, were liberal things; they all were the things of God's free spirit, and bare the distinguishing infcription of the glory of heaven, to be given away; and this, to the bleffed Saviour, gave them their higheft value, and made them moft perfectly his own, that they bore thus the impreffions of his own heart, and as the gifts of the God of love, of ineftimable price, were destined to the glory of his grace. His glory, therefore, as being full of grace and truth,, appears in his ability and freenefs to enrich others with all riches in himself. This, indeed, is the

glory, as of the only begotten of the Father; and this he manifefted towards us, by his giving himfelf for us.

The death of Chrift operated upon the promifes like an indorsement, or the fuperfcription of the name of the owner, upon a bond; by which it has a public credit, and the right of property in that name is transferred to the bearer or holder, whoever he be; or if the matter be confidered in the view of being a will or teftament, it becomes of force, and the intereft bequeathed paffes to the heirs, by the death of the teftator. The promifes being thus the property of Chrift by his death, were figned over as a charity to the world, with a free invitation to all men to come and receive the bounty, with no other qualification than that of their being needy finners; and with a promise that they fhall enjoy it as their own for ever, upon the fimple evidence of their holding faith, or their keeping the word of God and the testimony of Fefus Chrift. This evidence is equally free for all; it is as free for one man as another;

it is in its nature as free and unconfined as the air which we breathe. The evidence of things not feen, in the gofpel of Jefus Christ, can no more be bound than the beams of the fun; and is as much a common bounty, as is the light of day.

Sing, O ye heavens-'tis deep and high!
More than the waters of the flood!
Shout, all the earth-behold, 'tis nigh!
It comes unsought, the gift of God!

M m

It is plain, however, that they only who receive the evidence of things not feen, and keep the faith, can thereby be benefitted.— Were a poor man to have prefented him from a wealthy neighbour, his endorsed security for a great fum on demand;-but fhould he refuse the favour, or taking it, fhould he deftroy the evidence of the intereft, by trampling the bond, with his benefactors name upon it, as a worthlefs thing, under his feet, what would it profit him?—If men hate the light, and will not come to it; if they fhut their eyes, and love darknefs rather than light; what will it avail them, that light is come into the world? In the nature of the case, to be benefited by the infinite mercy, we must receive that evidence of things not feen, which gives a title to the kingdom of heaven, and hold it faft, and let no man take our crown. By this is meant, that we prize the intereft, that we take a hearty fide in the cause, and that by word and by deed, we make the confellion of Jefus Chrift our own. Nothing more is neceffary for the poffeffion and enjoynent of this, than of any other gift; it must be received and kept in hand. And certainly it is as much within the reach of one man to avail himself of this advantage, as for another-one man has as good a warrant to take up the caufe of Chrift, to intereft himfelf in it, and fo to make it his own, as another: and we may be affured, that none who hear the gospel, will fail of inheriting the bleffing, but thofe ftupid, blind, and profane perfons who, for the trifles of time and fenfe,

FAITH THE EVIDENCE, &c. 275 will barter a kingdom of righteousness, and a crown of life.

Jefus Chrift came into the world to bear witness unto the truth, and to confirm the promifes made unto the Fathers; which promifes to Abraham, &c. may be fummed up in a country and a feed; a country for a poffeffion, and a feed to inherit it; particularly, the anointed one, who fhould redeem the posfeffion, drive out the enemy, and bring in his brethren to inherit it for ever. The truth, therefore, contained in the promifes, is the truth of the kingdom of God; and hence, in confirming the promifes, Chrift declared and teftified the truth of the kingdom of heaven, as in his confeffion before Pontius Pilate; and fo gave to the world his evidence for the truth of God, by the feal of his own blood. Whoever, therefore, receives and holds this good confeffion and teftimony of Jefus Chrift, respecting the promised redeemed world, and his and his peoples' kingdom, is an heir of promife; for he receives and holds the word of promife, even the truth or faith which was once delivered unto the faints; and which is the sealed evidence, and uncontroverted security of things not seen.

How different is this righteoufnefs from that of the law! and this way of falvation from that of works! By grace are ye faved! Mofes defcribeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doth those things Jhall live by them. But the righteousness which is of faith, fpeaketh on this wife, Say not in