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he had not a place where to lay his head-to be a despised man- A worm and no man, a reproach of men, and despised of the people'-to be a man of sorrows' and especially to bear the contradiction of sinners against himself.'

It is a great hardship for a good man to be forced to spend but a few hours in bad company. A man who fears God can hardly endure to travel or sit a few hours with profane, lewd, or drunken people. But Christ spent above thirty years in this wicked world.

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men sigh and cry for the abominations they behold; rivers of tears run down their eyes, because men keep not God's law.' How then must the holy heart of Jesus Christ have been grieved with the wicked actions and words of men, and with their wicked thoughts, all which were present to his mind continually!

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But God's giving his Son includes still more. includes giving him up into the hands of divine justice, and into the hands of wicked men, as the executioners thereof. He that spared not his own Son, delivered him up for us all.' So St. Peter spake of him. Him, being delivered by the determinate council and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.' The text shows to what purpose he was thus given up: it was that believers' might not perish.' They deserved to perish-they had broken the law they had incurred the curse; and must have perished, if no satisfaction had been made to the justice of God. But, behold the Lamb of God; provided, appointed, given of God. "God sent his Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh.' He was made sin for us, though he knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.' O Christian! see the Son of God in his agony in the garden, sweating great drops of blood. See him standing as a criminal at Pilate's bar, falsely accused and basely treated. See him hanging on the accursed tree; his hands and feet nailed to the cross-derided by the cruel insulting mob, and deserted by his heavenly Father, and say now-God so loved the world! but, how much thou canst not say. The depth of Christ's sufferings, and the height of glory to which they raise

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thee, express this love in stronger terms than language knows.

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There is yet another way in which God gives his Son in the preaching of the gospel, and in the application of Christ to the believer's heart. As the brazen serpent was exposed to view in the camp of Israel, so is Christ set before perishing sinners in the gospel. Herein Godsets forth his Son '-and declares his righteousness,'- brings near his righteousness,'-reveals his righteousness,' that it may be received by faith, and become ours by believing. My Father,' said Christ, 'giveth you the true bread from heaven: for the bread of God is He who cometh down from heaven, and giveth life to the world.' John vi. 32. It is set before all men who hear the gospel; but it is the food only of those, who by faith receive it; and this leads to the last thing proposed, which is,

III. The END or DESIGN of the gift of love-' that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.'

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The salvation of believing sinners was the object which God had in view when he gave his Son. Supposing God would send his Son into the world, for what purpose might sinners have expected him? Might they not justly fear it would be to punish them for their sins? So it seems intimated in the next verse, For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.' The whole conduct of our Saviour upon earth agreed with this gracious design. He came not to destroy men's lives, but to save them-He came to seek and to save that which was lost. Every thing he did and every thing he said, had this tendency.

This gracious design is expressed in two ways. The first is, That they might not perish.' To perish, is for a man to die in his sins, under the curse of the law, under the wrath of God, and to be for ever miserable in hell. This is the proper wages of sin,' the real desert of every sinner; and we must know this to be onr desert, before we can look to Jesus for salvation. Our Lord, in this passage, alludes to the brazen serpent in the wilderness. Now, for whom was this erected? Was it

an object of curiosity to be gazed at by a vain multitude? No; it was for the cure of the wounded Jews, who had been stung by the fiery serpents whose blood had been poisoned by their venom, and who were ready to expire in agony. These men being ready to perish, would gladly comply with the divine command. How easy, how cheap, how pleasant a method of relief! Look and live, was the heavenly mandate. Just so it is in the gospel of Christ: Look unto me,' saith

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Christ, and ye shall be saved.' If we receive the gospel as the testimony of God, we shall turn our eyes to no other method of relief but this. We shall renounce all notions of merit and works: we shall receive Jesus, and rest upon him alone for salvation.

But this is not all; salvation includes the possession of eternal life, as well as deliverance from death. 'I am come that they might have life, and might have it more abundantly,' said Christ. This includes the life of grace and the life of glory. Believers now livethey live to God-they live spiritually-they live by faith in the Son of God: before conversion they were 'dead while they lived.'-Now they live indeed. Christ, by his Spirit, liveth in them; and they live in him;Christ is now their life, and when he shall appear the second time, they shall also appear with him in glory. Grace is glory in the bud. He that believeth hath everlasting life (ver. 36): he has not only a title to it, but he has the beginning, security, pledge, earnest, and foretaste of it, which shall certainly issue in the full, complete, and everlasting enjoyment of it in heaven.

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But there is a word of encouragement in our text which we must by no means forget, WHOSOEVER: 'God gave his Son, that whosoever believeth in him might not perish,' &c. Persons of every character; high and low, rich and poor, young and old; sinners of every degree, the greatest, vilest, and most abominable. Not only, may the more moral man, who is also a sinner, look to Jesus and be saved; but that unhappy creature, a man or woman, who has gone to uncommon lengths in sin, who thinks there is not such another sinner out of hell, and who is even tempted to despair of mercy, perhaps tempted to self-murder on account of his peculiar

and terrible guilt-whosoever-observe the word, whosoever believeth; here is a warrant for the vilest sinner upon earth to look to Jesus, to come to Jesus, to believe in Jesus; and the truth of God is pledged for it, that he shall not be cast out.'Him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out.' John vi. 37.

APPLICATION.

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We have heard great things to-day. The angels desire to look into these things.' All the millions of the redeemed in glory are now looking into these things. And if we get to heaven, the love of God, the gift of his love, and the effect of this gift, will employ our ravished souls to all eternity. But say, my friends, how do they affect you? Or, are you totally unaffected by them? Does not this vain and wicked world engross your hearts, while the love of God, and the gift of Christ, are quite forgotten?

But, stop a moment, and consider. What are you doing? You are committing the greatest sin in the world. Unbelief is a damning sin; he that believeth not is condemned already; and this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men love darkness rather than light, becanse their deeds are evil.' So our Lord declares in this chapter. As the gift of Christ is the greatest proof that God could give of his love to the world, so, depend upon it, he will resent the contempt of it as the greatest crime. It is a crime greater than the devils in hell ever committed. They never had a Saviour to despise and reject. O beware of the fatal consequences! Death is approaching, and you must appear before Christ. But how will you face him, when you know you neglect him all your days? O what would sinners give, in the great day, for an interest in Christ. Worlds! worlds! millions of worlds! would be counted cheap, could they purchase an interest in him. Well, sinner, as yet there is hope. Though you have neglected long, it is not too late yet. Turn now, even now, thy weeping eyes to the cross of Jesus. Behold God s dear Son, and the sinner's dear Saviour, with extended arms open to embrace thee. Hear him crying,

'Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.' O, let your heart reply, Behold I come unto thee, for thou art the Lord my God!

And, O believer, humble believer in Jesus, what thinkest thou of Christ? Is he not precious to thee, the pearl of great price, the chief of ten thousand, and altogether lovely? What praise and love are due from thee to the Father, who gave his Son: to the Son, who gave himself; and to the Holy Spirit, who led thee to know and believe in him! Thou canst heartily say with St. Paul, Thanks be to God for his UNSPEAKABLE GIFT! This wonderful love of God in the gift of his Son, convinces us, in the most striking manner, of the immense value of the sonl, and of the exceeding sinfulness of sin, seeing that a sinful soul could not be redeemed but at such a vast expense. What encourage

ment is here to him, who sees his sin infinite, that the blood of Christ, the blood of God, is of infinite value and efficacy! and what encouragement is here for the believer, who has received this greatest of gifts, that God will not withhold lesser gifts; for he that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not, with him, freely give us all things.' Yes, 'all is ours,' if Christ is ours. 'He will give grace and glory, and no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly."

Blessed be God, for Jesus Christ. Amen.

COLLECT.

ALMIGHTY God, Father of all mercies, we thine unworthy servants, do give thee most humble and hearty thanks for all thy goodness and loving-kindness to us and to all men: we bless thee for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of this life; but above all, for thine inestimable love in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ. Everlasting praises be unto God, who so loved the world, that he gave his only

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