734 SERMON XI. This will appear by confidering, 1. The Command of God, from whom they arc fent, lays the highe!l Obligation upon them to perform thetr Duty. The manner and degrees of Obedience are m fured by the grcatnefs of the Authority that enjoins it. To Soveraign Autl{ority, i~: mcdtatc, abfolute, and fuprcam Obed1ence 1s due: The Authonty of God is more bind. ing than the htghell: 111 Pnnces, or the deare!lm Parents : What are all Kings of the Earth to htm? lefs than nothmg.Tcmporal Grcatncfs confi!ls only in Comparifon.ln th Scale of Magi!lracy, the Superiors to fome are fubordinate to others: Ilut the Majefi; of God 1s ~btolutcly a~d truly Jnfimte. And as the 1mmediatc Servants of the King are under fpectal ObJ tgattons to obey Ius Commands, befides the common Duty of his o. ther Subjects ; fo the Mini!lers of the Gofpel by their Confecration and immediate Re. lation to God, are bound with all zealous Diligence to do his Will. 2. 'Tis the principal End of their Commiflion. God defigns in the Contrivance and Revelation of the Gofpel, to glorify his Mercy, and his Son in our Salvation. Firft, Love' is the cleare!l and moll adequate Notion of the Deity; GodiJ LO'Ve. Now Mercy is medicinal, healing, and recovering Love. The Object of it is the Miferable and Unworthy. InGod's Moral. Government, Mercy and Ju!lice are the leading Attri· ~~~~ ;~:fi~c~;;:~,.':~e;.x~[t~t~j~J~~~~ir~~~~lir'r~cil?o~t§t~: ~~;~1;;~;:;~ a Saviour before the Sentence was pronounc'd. God is !liled the Father of Mercies; 'tis his natural Off-fpring, the free!! and moll delightful Emanation from him. Judgment IS !usftrange Work, that by Con!lratnt he executes, He does not ajf/ifl willingly the Cbi/. dren ofMen: God is more pleafed to fee the Fruits of his Mercy in his Creatures refiored to Happinefs, than the Effects of his Jufiice in the Guilty and Miferable. To be inclin'd to do Evil and Hurt, is an Imperfection infinitely difiant and oppofite to the DivineNa. ture. T/g Lord God is a Sun: and as 'tis proper to it to enlighten, revive and rcfrelhthe World by its Operations and Influences; 'tis accidental to confume and deflroy, and proceeds fron). the Imperfection of Things upon whom his Beams fall. Thus 'tis accor. ding to the Nature of God to difpenfe the liberal Effufions of his Goodnefs to tlre Crea. tu res; if they feel the EffeCts of his Jufiicc, 'tis for Sin that deferves it, and draws it forth into Exercife. Mercy is God's Glory: by Glory we under!land the Lufire that re. fults from the Perfection of Things, and is attractive and worthy of Admiration. There is Li<>ht in one Ileum of the Sun; but Glory re!Uits from the Union of all its Beams ia their"full Strength. Accordingly a double Glory belongs to God. rft. His E!Tential Glory,that refults from his tranfcendent Excellencies; thelupream Beauty and Ilrightnefs of that. nnapproachaUe Ligbt wherem he is faid to dwe/1: every Attribute being truly mfimte, IS moll glonous. 2dly. Decla.rative Glory, that confi!ls in the Operation and InHuenc~ of God's Per. fections, and m the humble and thankful Adoratton of them by mtell1gent a~atures. Some Divine Attributes are more emmently the Glory of God: as they are more decla. rative of his Perfections, and more fenfibly and powerfully affect tl1e Minds and Hearts of Men. 'In this refpect Mercy,as 'tis the moll benign and comfortable,fo 'tis the brightell Light in all the Confiellation of the Divine Amibutes; 'tis. our 'Happinefs we are under its Afpects and Influences.. The other e!Tennal Excellene1es of God are regarded as the Qualities of our Soveretgn mfimtely above us,with mofi humble Fear and refped· , ful Admiration: But his Mercy reprefents him as our Father and Friend, and engages our Affections enti rely to him. When Mofes defir'd to fee God's Glory, he told him, ho Goodnefl fhould pafl /Jefore him. Now Mercy is the moll excellent Degree of Goodnefs. 'TisGoodnefs primarily excited and active from it felf, and takes occafion from themt· fery of the Creature to be beneficent. '~is obfcrvable, when he was proclaimed inhtS glorious Titles, Tbe. Lord, tbe L~rd God, Merciful an~ Grac1oz~; ne1Ct to the D~ny, Mercy is plac'd as Ius deare!l Attribute: and of the thtrteen Tttles of Honour arrnbuted to him nine belong to Mercy, to figmfy the advantage 1t has above Ju fhce. Mercy is his pecul'iar Treafure: 'tis faid be u ncb i11 Mercy, ·not.in Po«e~ons, tho' t~e JJ.artb IS tbe Lord's, and tbe fulnefi tbereof: his Riches are not without htmfelf, but m Ius own Perfections. Now 'tis the great Defign of God w glonfy tlus Attnbute m the Salvan· on of the Lofi and miferable. Adam had fullictent Grace to !land, but was free to fall, and by the Fraud of Satan join'd with his own Folly, was feduc'd from his Duty, and involv'd himfelf ar.d all his Progeny in utter Rum. It was very becommg God that Ius Enemy fl10uld not obtain his End, that mankind fhould not be the. e~ernal Trophy of the Tempter, and (o noble a part of the CreatJOn be as It were abolifh d for ever. F[orn hence the mercy of God took its Rife, and mofi apparently and emmently declard 1t ~~ ~f 5~~~~lf~~d ~fe~~ble~eir of Ius Love and Glory, to be the Redeemer and ~h;
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