392 BookiV. J!.ooittng unto jjcfu.s. John lJ, 16, Roll!. 8. J4· Eph. r. 7· our Faith loo~s more immediately to Jefus Chrift; Believe in tho Lord [ef:~r and thou jhalt be faved. 3· Faith nrufl directly go to Chrift, as God in the Hell1, rnadcmttkr the Law. He continued in all things written in the Book of the Law to do them . and fo our Fairh mull: look upon him. Bur of thefe before:! llJall now fay nothing more t~ thefe Particulars.' . 4· Faith muft go to Chnll: not only as m~deunde: the directive part of the Law by his ltfe,but under the penal pan of the Law by h1s death;IO both thefe refpeCls Chriftwa< mndc under the Law. The o.ne half of theLaw he fattsfied by the holinefs of his life; he fulfil– led th~ Lawmevery JOt and every mtie; the other half of the Law he fatisfied by his endunng the death, even the death of the Crofs; he paid both the Principal and the F'?rfwure ; . a~d though men. do .nor fo, yet Chri!! did fo , that the whole Law m1ght be ·fattslied fully, by h1s bemg under bot~ the(~ parrs of the Law, pay and penalty : Come tl~en, and look upon Chnl\ as dymg ; u.was the Serpent, M lifted np, ~nd fo .l'?oked at, that healed the Ifraelttes of thm fiery iltngs. Alas! we are difeafed, m a fptrttual fenfe, as they ~ere, and Chnft Jefus was lifted up as a remedy to us, as the Serpent was unto them; 1t remams therefore, that as they looked up to the Brazen Serpent, fo we look, "P to Je[U<, believe in Jefus, as lifted up for life, and for fal vation: As MofeslifuduptheSerpentinthe wildernefs, {o mt•ft the Son of manbelified up, that whofoeverbeltevethtn htm, fhould not perijh, bm have eternal life. Indeed fome diffe– rence there is betwixt the Serpent and Chrill.- As, I. The Brazen Serpent had not power initfdfto cure, asChril\ hath. 2 , The Serpentcure.dthe Ifraelites but only for a time, r.o die again; but whomfoever Jeflls cures m a fpmtualfenfe, he cures for ever; they fha!lneverdie. 3· The Serpent alfo had ir.s rime of curing; it did not alwaies retain the vinue, bur during the rime they were m the wtldernefs; only J efus Clmfr, our brazen Serpent, dorh ever retain his power and virtue to the end of the world; and hence it is, that in theMiniflry, Chrifr is frill held forrhasliftedJtp, that all that will bur look on him by faith, may live. 4· The Serpent, fometimes a remedy againft poyfon, was after turned even to poyfon the Jfrae– lites, which made J-le:ukjah to crulh it, and break it, and ll:amp it ro powder; bur Jefus Chrifr ever remains the fovereign and healing God; he is the fame yejhrday, to day, and for ever. He is unchangeable in his goodnefs, as he is in holy and divine nature; he can never be defaced, nor dell:royed, but he abideth the Saviour of !inners to ail eternity; why then let us rather loo~ unto Chrift, and believfairJ,Chrift tU lifted up, (i) as be was crucified, and died on the Crofs. In this refpect lie•i¥~~ade a fit object for a !inners faith to truft upon, and refr upon 1 Chrift M cmcifted, aJ made fin, and a curfe for U<,io the objell of 011r pardon : 0 this is it that makes Chrift's death fo defireable ; why, there– in is virtually and nieritorioully pardon of fin, jullification, redemption, reconciliation, and what not? Oh ! ~ries a !inner, where may I [et my foot.' how Jhot•ld'J regain my God l my finhathundone me, which WAY jhould I cajl for pardon.' why now remem– ber that in feeking pardon, Chrifl was crucified; Chril\ as dying, is principally to be eyed and looked at : Who u he that condemneth .' it u Chrijl that died, Rom. 8. 34No queftion Chrift's active obedience, during his Life, was moll: exact, and perfect, and meritorious; yet that was not the expiation of fin: only his paffive obed1~nce (Chrill: only in hisfufferings) took away fin, the guilt of fin, andpunilhmemfor hn; We have retkmptien thr011gh the bloud of Chrift , even the forgivenefs of fins.. If any humble foul would have recourfe to that Chrill:, who is now in heaven, let htm fir[\ m the act– ings of his faith, con~der him as crucified, "'lifted t•p, as made.fin.for ~s, as throug.h whom (under that conhderation) he ist9reteive pardon of fin, JUll:tficauon, redemption; reconciliation, fanctification, falvarion. . -5. Faith in go!ng to Chrift, "'lifted up,. it i.s pr!ncipall)_' and mamly to look unto the end, meaning, Intent, anddefign of Chnft ~n.h1s fuffermgs, as ~e waslifte~up_; 1~e ate not barely to confider the Hiflory of Chnft s death, .bur. the atm ~f Chnft. m h1s cleat h : Many read rhe Hiftory, and they are affected wtrh lt; .there 1s a pnn:tpl~ of humanity in men, which willll:ir up compaffion, and love, a.nd puy. towards all.m mtfe– ry : whilft Chrill was fuffering, the women followed after h1m weepmg; but tins weep– ing not being fpiritual or rais'd enough, be fatd to them, D11ughters of Jerufalem, weep not for me~ but for y 011 / [elves. The wayof Faith .dr~wing virrue.out of Chrifl's death, it is efpenally to look ro the fcope and dnft of Chntl m lus ~uffermgs . . A~ God looks principally to the meaning of the fpirit in Prayer, fo doth F.anh. look pnnc1pally to the meaning0f Chrill: in his fuffering: mi[\ake not, my meanmg 1s not that we n.JOuldbe · · rgnorant
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