1 brought out of prifon, he leaps like an hart: "I will run the way of thy commandments, because thou haft enlarged my

heart."

4thly, It has in it fomething of an internal peace, quiet, and ferenity of mind: For where there is no peace, there can be no true joy. The storms of an awakened confcience must be hushed into a pleasant calm, where this joy is, through the discovery of a reconciled God, or fome beams of his favour; and then the foul cries, as in Pfal. cxvi. 7. "Return unto thy reft, O my foul, for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee."

5thly, It has in it an elevation of the heart and foul after the Lord Jefus, and things that are above; whereby the foul gets above this weary land, and all the ftorms, clouds, and tempefts thereof. The man mounts up as upon eagles wings; and ay the higher he afcends, like the lark, he fings the fweeter notes of praife and thanksgiving.

Prop. 4. Of all other joy, this joy of faith is the most glorious and excellent: Which will appear from the following qualities of it.

ft, It is a cordial joy: It pervades the heart, and all the corners of the foul; "Your heart fhall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you. My heart is glad." The joy of the wicked is but fkin-deep; it is fuperficial: "In the midft of laughter the heart is forry:" But the joy of faith is like the "beft new wine, that goeth down fweetly, caufing the lips of thofe that are afleep to fpeak," Song. vii. 9.

2dly, It is a hidden and a fecret joy. Many a blyth heart has the believer in fecret, which the world knows nothing of. His life is a hidden life, hid with Chrift in God; and his joy is like his life. The fprings of this joy are hidden, it flows out of a fecret fountain, even from the throne of God and of the Lamb: The channel of it is hid, even the covenant of grace and promife: The actings of it are hid, and the subject

in which it refides.

3dly, It is a ftregthening joy. Nel. viii. 1o. "The joy of the Lord is your Itrength;" and no wonder, for faith brings in ftrong confolation, Heb. vi. 18. This fpiritual joy is health to the navel, and marrow to the bones. What appeared infupportable before, now appears to be eafy; duties and difficuities in the way are eafily vanquished; when the joy of faith comes, the feeble then becomes as David, Zech. xii. 8. and the poor foul becomes like a giant, refrethed with new wine, hearty and ftrong for battle.

4thly, It is a glorious and unfpeakable joy. 1 Pet. i. 8. "Whom having not feen, ye love; in whom, though now

ye

ye fee him not, yet believing ye rejoice, with joy unfpeakable and full of glory." There is only a gradual difference between it and the joy of heaven; and it is fo great, that the tongue cannot make language of it, as Paul faid of the language of the third heaven, it is unutterable.

5thly, It is a permanent and abiding joy; a joy which the world cannot give, and which the world cannot take away; no, not the fevereft tortures and perfecutions of the world. Hence it is, that the faints have gone to ftake, fire, and gibbet, with an air of heavenly grace about them. "Your joy no man taketh from you," fays Chrift. It is but the dawnings of that eternal joy and triumph which the faints fhall have above, through an endlefs eternity.

6thly, It is a matchlefs, and tranfcendent, and incomprehenfible joy. There are feveral joys that we read of in fcripture, but the joy of faith tranfcends them all.

1. There is the nuptial joy. The day of marriage is called a day of gladnefs.

2. There is the joy of children: There is joy when a man child is born into the world. It was, and is ftill reckoned a valuable mercy, becaufe children are an heritage of the Lord.

3. There is the joy of conqueft and victory: "They shall rejoice as men when they divide the fpoil," If. ix. 3.

4. There is the joy of harvest: "They joy before thee according to the joy in harvest." But now, I fay, the joy of faith furpaffeth them all, for it is unspeakable, and full of glory. Thou haft put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and wine increafed." This much for the third thing in the method.

IV. The fourth thing was, to inquire whence it is that a fight of Chrift, and of his day, by faith, fills the foul with joy and gladness.

Anf ft, This flows from the excellency that faith fees in the day of Chrift: "This is the day which the Lord hath made, we will be glad, and rejoice in it." It is a day of light, of life, of falvation, &c. as you heard in the doctrinal part.

2dly, Because of the many great and excellent things it fees to be done in his day, which are all matter of joy and gladnefs. In his day the glory of heaven is brought down to earth; the New Teftament temple is reared and opened, &c. (for which fee the first head.)

3dly, Faith, it applies Chrift, and all the great bleffings of his day It fits down under his fhadow, and taftes the sweets of his fruits; and hence it is that it fills the foul with joy and

gladness.

gladnefs. Whatever great things we fee or hear tell of, we will not be much moved therewith, except we have an interest and concern therein. Now, faith it interefts the foul in Christ, and all the bleffings of his kingdom and administration, and hence it is that it brings fuch gladnefs; the language of faith is, "This is our God, we have waited for him," &c.

4thly, Faith is the parent of hope, and is the fubftance of things hoped for, and fe it fills with joy. "We rejoice in the hope of the glory of God."

V. The fifth thing is the ufe of the doctrine.

Ufe firft. It ferves for Information, in these few following particulars.

ift, From what is faid, we may fee from whence it was that the Old Teftament faints longed fo much for the coming of Christ, and the days of the New Teftament. O, fays the fpoule, "Until the day break, and the fhadows fly away, turn, my Beloved, and be thou like a roe, or a young hart upon the mountains of Bether." All that they had in the type, pro mife, or prophecy, were but fhadows and expreffions of what

was to come.

2dly, See hence what a privilege and happiness we are poffeffed of, whofe lot is caft in the day of Chrift, the gospel-day, which Abraham and other faints rejoiced to fee at fuch a a great diftance. Chrift fays to his difciples, while here upon earth, "Bleffed are your eyes and ears, for they fee and hear thofe things, which many prophets and righteous men defired to fee and hear, and did not fee nor hear them.”— But yet we, who live in the day of the gofpel, fee and hear more than the difciples did themselves. They faw the Meffiah only in a state of humiliation at that time, like a prince in difguife; but now we fee him upon the throne, vested with all power in heaven and in earth. Upon this account, Chrift fays, that the leaft in the kingdom of heaven, viz. in the kingdom of the New Teftament church, is greater than John the Baptift, who was greater than any that had been born of a woman fince the fall of Adam, because he was put in cafe to fay, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the fin of the world."

3dly, See hence the mifery of unbelieving finners under the New Teftament difpenfation. Why, the day is broken, and yet they never faw day-light, "The light fhineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehendeth it not." There is an awful word that points at you, 2 Cor. iv. 3. 4. "If our gofpel be hid, it is hid to them that are loft: in whom the god of this

world

world hath blinded the minds of them that believe not, left the light of the glorious gospel of Chrift, who is the image of God, fhould fhine into them :" And that word of Chrift, John ix. 39. "For judgement I am come into this world; that they who fee not might fee, and that they who see might be made blind."

4thly, See hence whence it is that there is fuch oppofition by hell, and its agents, at this day, to the fettlement of an honeft ministry in vacant congregations. Why, they fee plainly, that, if an honeft miniftry got into a congregation, the day of Chrift would break there, and that would break Satan's . kingdom, and his works of darkness, in which the ungodly world do delight; and in them is literally fulfilled that word of Chrift, John iii. 20. "Every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, left his deeds fhould be reproved" They know very well that a faithful minifter would lift up his voice like a trumpet, and reprove their deeds; and therefore it is that they cannot endure a man that has any thing of the favour of God or religion about him: a hue and cry will presently be raised against him, as a dangerous and turbulent perfon, one that will make a rent in the church, or turn the world upfide down.

5thly, See hence whence it is that believers are called the "children of the light, and of the day :" Why, because they not only live in the day of Chrift, but the Day-fpring has vifited them in a faving way; the day has dawned, and the day star has arifen in their hearts, "even the light of the knowledge of the glory of God, in the face of Jefus Chrift." And this is the reafon why there is a divine light fhines in the way and walk of the believer, which is not to be feen about other folk: Their light fo fhines before men, that they, feeing their good works, glorify their Father which is in heaven.

Ufe fecond may be of Trial,

Sirs, fince it is your privilege to live under the day of Christ, I afk you, Has the light of the day ever dawned favingly? If fo, then,

ift, The light of it has darkened the light of this world, and all the tranfient vanities of it, difcovering them to be vanity and vexation of fpirit; and you will look “not at the things which are feen, but at the things which are not feen."

2dly, The light of it has difcovered the abominable nature of fin, fo that you will abhor it, and abhor and lothe your felves because of it, faying, "Behold I am vile." The light of the day of Chrift is of a humbling quality, If. vi. &c.

3dly, If the light of the day of Chrift has arifen on you in a faving way, your eyes will be turned towards the fun that

makes

makes day, I mean Chrift, the glorious Sun of righteousness ; and you will be fo much taken up with him, that you will account all things but lofs, &c.

4thly, The light of the day of Chrift has warmed thy foul with love to the Lord; love to his ordinances, a day in his courts will be better than a thousand; love to his people, they are my delight, the excellent ones of the earth.

Ufe third fhall be of Exhortation.

Sirs, has your lot fallen in the day of Chrift, which Abraham faw by faith, and was glad? Then,

1, Receive the light of the day; entertain the light of the Sun of righteoufnefs. O behold that glorious Sun, that is fhining upon you in the difpenfation of the gospel! You are as much warranted to make ufe of the light of the Sun of righteoufnefs, to direct you to glory, as you are warranted to make ufe of the natural fun, to direct you in your way home to your feveral abodes. What freer than the light? The beggar has as good a right to use it as the prince upon the throne. So the day-light of the Sun of righteoufnefs, and the bleffings of his day, are as free to you as to any man; and therefore, O do not fhut out the light, but entertain and receive it, John viii. 12. "I am the light of the world (fays Chrift); he that followeth me fhall not walk in darknefs, but fhall have the light of life."

2dly, Is this the day of Chrift? O then, work while it is day, work out the work of your falvation while the day lasteth, for the night hafteth on, wherein no man can work. And if you afk, What is the work of God? I give you the fame anfwer that Chrift gave, and I cannot give you a better, "This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath fent." The everlafting gofpel is preached to all nations, for the obedience of faith. O, for the Lord's fake, believe on the name of the Son of God, for this is his great commandment; this is the foundation of all obedience, and without it you cannot obey one commandment of the law, for "whatever is not of faith is fin."

3dly, Is this the day of Chrift? O then, let us be glad, and rejoice therein. This was the practice of Abraham, the father of the faithful, and this will be the practice of all the genuine true-born children of Abraham, Pfal. cxviii. 24. "This is the day which the Lord hath made, we will rejoice and be glad in it." O let us rejoice in his perfon, for he is the glory of mankind, as well as the brightnefs of his Father's glory. Let us rejoice in him, faying, "To us a Son is given," &c. Let us rejoice in his fulness, fuitablenefs, and excellency, "for fuch an High Prieft became us, who is holy, harmlefs, VOL. III. undefiled,

3 I