called earthen veffels, itfays that they are but mortal men, even as others are; they are fprung of earth, and their foundation is of the duft, and unto duft fhall they return: Zech. i. 5. "Our fathers, where are they? and the prophets, do they live for ever?" (4) It fays, that God will have his church ferved, not by the miniftry of angels, but by men of their own mould and make, that his terror may not make them afraid, as when the law was delivered at Mount Sinai, Heb. xii. 18. 19.

Queft. 2. Whence have thefe earthen veffels this rich treafure of the gofpel? or how come they by it?

Anf. The earthen veffels have all their treafure out of the large ftorehouse of a Redeemer's fulness. All edifying and faving gifts and graces are committed unto Chrift by his Father, as the King, Head, and Lawgiver of his church; he received gifts for men, and accordingly gives gifts unto men, Pfal. Ixviii. 18. compared with Eph. iv. 11. When Chrift

calls any man to the work of the gospel, he will not fend him a warfare upon his own charges; no. As a king when he fends his ambaffadors into foreign courts, they are not allowed to go upon their own private charges and expences, but upon the charges of the king, whofe ambaffadors they are. Juft fo here; the glorious King of Zion, when he fends his ambaffadors into this lower world, he bids them fpend not upon their own, but upon his credit; and in this cafe they fhall lack for nothing that is needful, as the difciples found when he fent them to preach the gofpel through the cities of Ifrael. Many a time, when they come forth to preach the everlasting gospel unto people, and begin to look in unto the clay veffels, we can fee nothing there but weakness and emptinefs, notwithstanding of all our study and preparation; and in this cafe are ready to conclude, we have nothing to bring forth unto the church for its edification, and that we fhall be a difcredit to the gospel and religion. But, O, how doth our glorious Mafter many times baffle our unbelieving fears, and, for his own glory, conveys in a fecret way the treafure of the gospel into the earthen veffels, for the edification of his members! As the milk is put within the mother's breaft for the fake of the babe; fo is the fincere milk of the word put, as it were, into our breafts, for the benefit of the babes of grace. It is obfervable, 2 Cor. v. 19. where in our tranflation the words run, "He hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation;" as on the margin, in the original, it runs, "He hath put in us the word of reconciliation." Thus he puts the treasure in the earthen veffels, in the way of truft, for the use of others. As the king's almoner is intrufted with

the

the king's bounty and charity, for the ufe of the poor, that he may diftribute it to them according to need; fo minifters they are the almoners of the King of Zion, they have the gofpeltreasure committed to them, for the benefit of the poor; for "to the poor the gofpel is preached." And well may we fpend, when we have the unfearchable riches of Christ as our fund to go upon; the more we fpend, the more we have to fpend, for by fcattering our ftock increases.

Queft. 3. For what reafon will God have the gofpel treafure conveyed in the earthen veffels.

Unto this you have an answer in the words of the text, We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. But this leads to,

III. The third thing in the general method, which was, to fpeak a little of that excellent power which accompanies the difpenfation of the gofpel. This power is frequently spoken of in fcripture, fometimes in proper, fometimes in metaphorical terms. So, Rom. i. 16. the gospel is called the "power of God unto falvation." Theff. i. 5. “Our gofpel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghoft." Sometimes it is expreffed metaphorically, and thus the gofpel is called "the rod of the Mediator's ftrength," and he makes a willing people in the day of his power," Pfal. cx. 2. 3. See If. liii. 1. it is called a revelation of the arm of Jehovah." Sometimes it is expreffed by "Chrift's going forth like a mighty Conqueror, riding upon a white horse, conquering, and to conquer," Rev. vi. 2. Pfal. xlv. 4. 5. But to illuftrate the excellency of that power of God, that is exert ed towards finners and faints, in the difpenfation of the gospel though poor earthen veffels, I thall effay to do two things. 1. I fall give you fome of the excellent properties; 2. Some

of the excellent effe&s thereof.

ift, Let us take a view of the qualities of this power, and from thence the excellency of the whole will appear.

1. then, It is wholly divine and fupernatural, it is mighty through God. Arminians may talk of the power of their own will, as they have a mind, to convert themfelves; the fcriptures of truth inform us, that the power of a whole Trinity is employ ed in the work of a finner's converfion. The power of the Father is put forth in it, as Chrift declares, John vi. 44. "No man can come to me, except the Father which hath fent me draw him." The power of the eternal Son is exerted, John xii. 32. "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me." The power of the Father and the Son is exerted by the Holy Gholt, the third Perfon of the Trinity: Hence,

Tit. iii. 5. we are faid to be "faved by the washing of regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Ghoft." So that Arminians, who talk of the power of their own will, to convert, believe, to repent, &c. they invade the prerogative of a whole Trinity, and contradict the record of God, by which we are affured, that "it is not of him that willeth, or of him that runneth, but of God that fheweth mercy ;" and that “it is God which worketh in us, both to will and to do, of his own good pleasure." So that it is a divine power. follows,

And hence it

2. That it is an exceeding great and mighty power. A greater power is exerted in the formation of the new creature in the heart, by the inftrumentality of the gospel, than in the creation of the world; hence the laft is called the work of his finger, but the other of his almighty arm. The apostle tells us, that the fame almighty power that was put forth in the refurrection of Chrift from the dead, is exerted towards them that believe. He" fulfilleth in us the whole good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power;" and the apostle, in the place juft now cited, he tells us, that it is not only power, but greatnefs of power, exceeding greatness of power, greatness of alınighty power, and the working of this almighty power, exerted and put forth in the refurrection of Chrift from the dead; which plainly fhews the resurrection of Chrift to be a greater miracle, than if all the race of Adam had been raised out of the grave in a moment. Chrift was incarcerated, or shut up in the prifon of the grave, as our Surety," the Lord having laid on him the iniquities of us all;" and therefore the grave of Chrift was locked up by the hand of justice, that laid him in prifon for our debt. The curfe of the broken law lay as a dreadful weight upon his grave; a weight that all men on earth, and angels in heaven, would never have been able to poife with their united strength. O what infinite power then did it require, to raife up Chrift from the dead, under all this weight! Yet that fame almighty power of God, that raifed up Chrift from the dead, is exerted and put forth towards finners, in bringing them to believe; and when brought to believe, they must be kept by the power of God through faith unto falvation."

3. Hence it follows, that it is an irrefiflible power that accompanies the difpenfation of the gofpel-treafure. There was mighty oppofition made to the work of our falvation, in the purchase thereof, hell and earth combined against the Lord and against his Anointed: but on he went, travelling in the greatness of his ftrength, through all oppofition, till he could fay, "It is finish

ed."

ed." In like manner, when redemption is to be applied, there is mighty oppofition made by the powers of hell; the devil ftudieth to fecure his captive by might and main, ke fortifies his ftrong holds against the approaches of divine grace, such as, the darkness of the mind, the obftinacy of the will, the carnality of the affections: but when the day of power comes, God makes all these gates of brafs and bars of iron to give way; for who can stay his almighty hand, when he fays, "The lawful captive fhall be delivered, and the prey taken from the terrible?" the ftrong fetters of the foul's captivity fall off; and "whom the Son makes free, they are free indeed." Thus, I fay, the power of God accompanying the gospel is victorious and irrefiftible.

4. Although it be fo, yet this power is exerted in a most fweet and agreeable manner, without any fort of violence done to the natural powers and faculties of the rational foul I own indeed there is violence done to the corruption of nature; but no violence done to the foul, or its natural powers. The whole powers of the foul were lamed and dislocated by the fall; the understanding darkened; the will perverted from its original rectitude and conformity to the will of God; the affections turned away from God, the chief good, and mifplaced upon the creature inftead of the Creator; and these corrupt inclinations of the foul rule and govern, instead of the underftanding, in all its actions. Now, when the power of God is put forth by the gofpel, for the foul's renovation," all old things are done away, and all things are made new;" every power of the foul is fet, as it were, in its proper joint; the mind or understanding is "delivered from the power of dark nefs, and renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him," the will is delivered from its enmity against God, and brought in a due fubordination to the will of God, manifefted in his promifes, precepts, or providences; the affections are turned off from following fin and vanity, and made to center on God himself, the adequate portion of the rational foul; and all the inferior powers of the foul, fubordinated to the understanding, enlightened by the word and Spirit of God. Now, what violence is done to the foul in all this? It is nothing else but a restoring the foul, in fome meafure, to its primitive rectitude, when it dropt out of the crea ting hand, which cannot but be moft agreeable unto the na tural powers of the foul; and therefore the bones that were broken by fin, they are made to rejoice.

5. The excellency of this power appears from this, that all this work is done in a fecret, filent, and myfterious way, with

out

out any outward noife or obfervation. When men do any confiderable work, particularly when they make conquests, it is "with the confufed noife of the warrior, and garments rolled in blood." When kings and great men are going in proceffion through their territories, it is with much obfervation, and the common cry is, Lo, he is here, or, Lo, he is there; but when God fets up his kingdom within the soul, it is with no fuch obfervation, and therefore compared to the falling of dew, the fpringing of grafs and corn, the growth of trees and plants; the almighty power of God is in every one of thefe, but this power is executed without any noise or din. Juft fo it is in the work of grace upon the foul; there is an exceeding great and mighty power put forth, but it operates in a fecret, filent, and myfterious manner, difcernible more in its effects, than the manner of its operation: hence Chrift, fpeaking of the new birth, compares the operation of the Spirit unto the indifcernible motion of the air or wind, John iii. 8. "The wind bloweth where it lifteth, and thou heareft the found thereof, but canft not tell whence it cometh, and whi ther it goeth: fo is every one that is born of the Spirit."

2dly, Let us take a view of the excellency of this power that accompanies the gofpel in a day of power, in the effects thereof, which are indeed wonderful and furprifing, a few of which I fhall name.

1. Such is the excellency of this power, that thereby a new creature is produced and brought forth out of the barren womb of nothing; for creation is the production of fome. thing out of that which had no existence, which nothing but almighty power can effect: yet by the difpenfation of the gofpel-treafure this is effected, a new creature is formed, and brought into a new heaven and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteoufnefs, Eph. ii. 10. "We are his workmanship, created in Chrift Jefus ;" and all this by the word of truth, James i. 18.

2. By the excellency of this power, life is brought out of death; for the converfion of a finner is the refurrection of the dead foul: Eph. ii. 1. "You hath he quickened who were dead in trefpaffes and fins." When we go to preach the gofpel, we find the valley of vifion lying full of dry bones, fcattered about the devouring mouth of the grave, and we are ready to put that queftion, Can thefe dry bones live?" Yet the Lord fometimes lets us fee that he can fhew wonders among the dead, for, by the voice of Chrift in the gospel, dead finners are made alive,, John v. 25. If he but fay to a dead foul, as he did to Lazarus, "Come forth out of thy grave,"