he reward every man according to his works. But a little to recal ourselves.

The prifoners are tried, the verdict brought in, the indictments are found, and the Judge now fits upon life and death, even ready with fparkling eyes to pronounce the fentence. The Lord grant, that, when this day comes, the sentence may be for us, and we be faved, to our everlasting comfort. () now hold up your heads, all ye faints of the most high God, for this fhall be a bleffed day for you; for then shall ye hear the sweet heavenly voice of Chrift, faying, " Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you." I cannot exprefs what joy it will be to the righteous, when they fhall hear Chrift fay, Come, ye bleffed foul, who hath been bathed in repenting tears. Here is a fentence able to revive the dead, much more the afflicted. Are you forrowing for your fins, leave it a while, and meditate with me on this enfuing melody. Hark! yonder is the choir of angels founding to the Judge, while he is pronouncing thy fentence. Now is the day of your coronation; now fhall ye be made perfectly happy, and that for ever. Come, faith Chrift, you that have fuffered for me, now you shall have your reward; you shall have your fouls filled to the brim with joy, fuch as is unspeakable, and full of glory.

But I must return to the left hand, and fhew another crew, prepared for another fentence. And O what a terrible sen tence will that be, which will make all ears glow and tingle. "His lips (faith the prophet) are full of indignation, and his tongue like a confuming fire," Ifa. xxx. 27. What fire is fo hot as that fiery fentence, Matth. xxv. 41. "Depart from me, ye curfed, into everlafting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels."

1. They must depart. This feems nothing to the wicked: Now, they are content to be gone; they have much more delight in fin, than in God's fervice. But whither muft they go? "From me." If from me, then from all my mercies, my glory, and my falvation. But whither, O Lord, fhall the curfed go, that depart from thee? Into what haven fhall they arrive? What matter fhill they ferve? It is thought a great punithment to be banished from our native foils? What then is it to be banished from the almighty God? But whither muft they go? Into everlasting fire. O what bed is this! no feathers but fire, no friends but furies, no eafe but fetters, no day-light but darkness, no clocks to pafs away the time, but endlefs eternity, fire eternal, always buruing, and never dying. O who can endure everlasting flame! it fhall not be quenched night nor day; the fmoke thereof fball

fhall go up for ever and ever. The wicked fhall be crowded together, like bricks in a fiery furnace: But for whom was this fire prepared? For the devil and his angels. These must be your companions. The laft fentence is now pronounced. What! Go, (Who?) ye curfed, into everlasting fire, to crews of devils. O take heed, that you live in the fear of God, left that, leaving his fervice, he give you this reward, "Depart from me, ye curfed," &c.

2. Confider, then, what fearful trembling will feize on your fouls, that have their fentence for eternal flames: O which way will they turn? How will they efcape the Almighty's wrath? To go backward is impoffible, to go forward is intolerable. Whofe help will they crave? God is their Judge, heaven their foe; the faints deride them, angels hate them. Good Lord, what a world of miferies hath feized on miferable fouls. Their executioners are devils, the dungeon hell; the earth (tands open, and the furnace burning, ready to receive you. O how will thefe poor fouls quake and tremble! Every part of their body will bear a part in their doleful ditty; eyes weeping, hands wringing, breasts beating, hearts aching, with voices crying. Now, O man of the earth, what fhall thy wealth avail thee; one drop of water, to cool thy tongue in the flames, is worth more than all the pleasures of the world.

Thus you have heard the fentence of the just and wicked; and the Judge is rifen from his glorious feat. The faints guard him along, and the fentenced prifoners are delivered to the jailors; thrieks of horror fhall be heard. What woes and lamentations fhall be uttered, when devils and reprobates, and all the damned crew of hell, fhall be driven into hell, never to return. Down they go howling, thrieking, and gnafhing their teeth: The world leaves them, the earth forfakes them, hell entertains them; there they must live, and yet not live nor die; but dying live, and living die.

O miferable muft the fe be, if the drowning of the world, the fwaliowing up of Korah, and the turning of Sodom with brimftone, were attended with fuch terror and hideous outcries; how infinitely, to all poffibility of conceit, and trembling of that red fiery day; in a word, what wailing, weep ing, raring, and yelling, filling both heaven, earth, and hell! O most miferable wretches, Matth. xxii. 12. "Take them away, and caft them into utter darkness: there fhall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." A darkness indeed! They must for ever be debarred from the light of heaven. Sunshine never peeps within thefe walls, nothing is there but fmoke and darknefs; and fuch is the portion of finners, and the reward of the wicked.

THE.

1

THE WORD OF SALVATION.

ACTS xiii 16.-To you is the word of this falvation fent.

PAUL

AUL is here preaching Christ Jefus in the chapter; and in this verfe he makes application of his fermon to his hearers, and that very clofe. More particularly in the words you may notice, (1.) The nature of the gofpel defcri bed, it is the word of falvation. (2.) The indorsement or di rection, fhewing to whom it is directed or fent, To you, &c. you men and brethren, you Jews or Gentiles, to whom it is preached.

OBSERVE, That the gofpel, as a word of falvation, is fent to every finner that hears it.

Before I proceed to fpeak to this doctrine, I would obviate an objection that may be made against it.

Object. Is not the gofpel-call here limited to them that fear

God in the text?

Anfa. 1. If by these that fear God, is to be understood religious people, into whofe hearts God hath put his fear, these are the perions that will most of all welcome the word of falvation, because they fee moft their need of it; but the gospel melage is not here limited to them, and others excluded; no, the apoftle here fpeaks to all his auditory, both gracious and gracclefs, as appears not only in this text, "Men and bre thren, children of the ftock of Abraham, to you is the word of this falvation fent," but alfo in the application of this fermon to the gracelefs as well as to the gracious, ver. 40. 41. compared with the two preceding verfes.

2. There is a fear of God that is the fruit of conviction, and a fear of God that is the fruit of converfion; the former is by the law, the latter is by the gofpel. It is like, that the former is fpecially meant here, for at this time the word was with power; it ftruck an awe and dread upon the apostle's auditory. And though no finner, no, not the most stupid that hears the gospel, is excluded from the call thereof, fo as it can be faid, the word of falvation is not fent to him; no, no,

it is fent to every one, yet none but such as fear God, so far as to be filled with an awe and dread of God fpeaking to them in the word, and with a conviction of fin, and of their need of this falvation, none but fuch will receive and welcome the word of this falvation; for if they have no fear of God, and of his wrath, no fenfe of fin, and of their deferving damnation, they will not value, but flight and defpife the word of falvation. This text, therefore, doth not limit the word of falvation, as, fent only to them that fear God, but only points out the manner and method wherein this word of falvation comes to be received and entertained, and how it will not be received by these that have nothing of the fear and dread of God. upon them.

3.

These that are awakened to any sense of fin, and fear and dread of God, are the perfons that are most ready themselves, as if the word of falvation were not fent to them; therefore thefe, in a particular manner, are mentioned, and encouraged to take it to themfelves, because they are afraid to apply the word. Others that are called will not come. And they that have this fear upon them, have a will, but want courage; and therefore the Lord fays to them, as it were, Fear not to come, for to you is the word of this falvation fent.

4. That the word of falvation is fent to all, even to them, who, through the want of the fear of God, reject it, is plain both from this text and context, compared with other fcriptures. See the commiffion, Mark xvi. 15. "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." If. xlvi. 12. "Hearken to me, ye ftout-hearted, that are far from righteousness." Rev. iii. 20. "Behold, I ftand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him," &c. any man, be what he will. In short, the word of falvation, importing all falvation neceffary, looks to all finners that need this falvation. The gofpel would not be glad news to all people, if any finner were excluded.

Hence the call is to all the ends of the earth, "Look unto me, and be ye faved:" Hence the call alfo is, "Whosoever will, let him come, and take of the water of life freely." And again, "To you, O men, do I call, and my voice is to the fons of men," &c. "Ho, every one that thirfteth, come to the waters," &c.

In profecuting the obfervation, we fhall obferve the following method.

I. I fall fpeak a little of this falvation.

II. Of the word of falvation.

III. Of the fending of this word.

IV. Make application.

VOL. III.

4 D

I We

I. We fhall fpeak a little of this falvation, and confider what it fuppofes, and what it implies.

ift, What it fuppofes, namely, mifery. Our miserable ftate by nature is a ftate of alienation and estrangement from God. We are without God, and are "alienated from the life of God; aliens from the commonwealth of Ifrael." It is a ftate of enmity: "The carnal mind is enmity against God;" we are in actual rebellion against him. It is a state of dark nefs and ignorance; we are "destroyed for lack of know ledge:" A ftate of bondage to fin, Satan, the world, and divers lufts; we are fettered and in prifon, led captive. It is a ftate of impotence: we are by nature without itrength; we cannot fo much as afk deliverance; we are not fufficient of ourfelves to think any thing as of ourselves. It is a deftitute ftate, a pit wherein there is no water, a comfortless ftate, a bewildered ftate, a curfed and condemned state; for "he that believeth not is condemned already:" He that believeth not the gofpel is condemned already by the law: "Curfed is every one that continueth not in all things that are written in the book of the law, to do them." It is a ftate of death, fpiritual death, and legal death.

2dly, What does falvation imply? It implies the whole redemption purchafed by Chrift, and the whole of the application of it by the Spirit. It is falvation from a state of eftrangement to a state of acquaintance with God; from enmity to peace and reconciliation; from darkness to light; from bondage to liberty. It includes pardon and juftification, adoption and filiation, fanctification of nature, heart, and way, communion with God; afterward a glorious refurrection of the body, and eternal life and glory, in being for ever with the Lord.

II. The fecond head propofed was, to fpeak of the word of falvation, which I may do by anfwering thefe four questions. Queft. 1. What is the word of falvation?

Anf. Not the law, but the gofpel; that is that which is the power of God to falvation, Rom. i. 16. Whatever discovers Chrift, and falvation through him, is the gospel.

Queft. 2. Why is it called the word of falvation?

Anf. Because it difcovers falvation, it defcribes falvation, it conveys falvation, as a charter does an eftate, or as a teltament does a legacy; it offers falvation, it establishes a con nection between faith and falvation to all mankind sinners; for "He that believeth fhall be saved ;" and because it is the organ or inftrument by which the Spirit applies falvation.

Queft. 3. How does the word operate in the hand of the Spirit, when believed unto falvation?

Anf