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SERM. V Chriftianity, viz. the Trinity and Satisfaction: Search the Scriptures, and Nothing

can be plainer, or more eafy to find there: Not to find them there, or, to speak more properly, to explain them away when found, requires a great deal of Labour, Subtlety, and uncommon Dexterity. The natural Import of the Words of my Text is this, that Chrift died, not merely for our Benefit, as an Example of Patience, and to confirm the Truth of his Doctrine, by his Blood; but, as a propitiatory Sacrifice for the Sins of Mankind, that we might, by Virtue of his meritorious Sufferings, be redeemed from the Punishment due to them. The Words of St. Paul, Romans v. 7, confirm the Senfe of this Text, Scarcely for a Righteous Man will one die: Yet peradventure, for a good Man fome would even dare to die. But God commendeth his. Love towards us, in that, while we were yet Sinners, Chrift died for us. Our Saviour died for us, in the fame Senfe, that one Man would dare to die for another, whom he greatly loved, by fubftituting himself in the Room of us Sinners. So David fays, Would to God, I had died for thee, or inflead of Thee, O Abfalom, my Son.

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hath made him, who knew no Sin, to be Sin, SERM. V. or an Offering for Sin, for us. Accordingly Ifaiah faith: Thou shalt make his Soul an Offering for Sin.

Again; our Saviour is faid to bear our Iniquities. The obvious Senfe of which Paffage will appear, by comparing it with another: The Son fhall not bear the Iniquities of the Father, i. e. the Son fhall not fuffer inftead of, or for the Sins of, the Father.

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In a Word, the Scripture Proofs of the Redemption are fo many, that it would be endless to quote them All; and fo well known, that it is almost needless to quote any: And we must either look upon a Doctrine, which is inculcated in fuch a Variety of Expreffions, and upon which fuch an uncommon Stress is laid, to be of the very Effence of Christianity; or we must look upon the Scriptures, as a Book not defigned to teach and inform, but to confound, puzzle, and mislead Mankind.

And fince our Adverfaries pretend, they have Recourse to a figurative Sense; because the literal one, in their Opinion, is big with Abfurdities; I fhall therefore endea

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Ist, To

SERM. V. It, To difprove and confute those Schemes, which they have advanced, in Oppofition to the true Scripture Doctrine of our Salvation by Jefus Chrift.

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IIdly, I fhall make it Bufinefs to refcue the Method of our Salvation, as laid down in Sacred Writ, from the Charge of Abfurdities, with which they load it.

Ist then, I shall endeavour to difprove and confute thofe Schemes, which they have advanced, in Oppofition to the true Scripture Doctrine of our Salvation by Jefus Chrift.

The firft Scheme which I fhall confider is, That our own intrinfic Worth, or right Behaviour, must be the Foundation of our Acceptance with God; and not what another has done for us; which can never render us perfonally pleafing to or approved by God,

The second Hypothefis, which will fall under Confideration, is, That God is obliged to accept of Repentance, in lieu of perfect Obedience, without any Atone

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As to the firft,

It is alledged, that God does not ap prove, or disapprove, from capricious Humour or arbitrary Pleasure, but from the real Valuableness or Unworthiness of fuch the Object of his Approbation or Diflike: And that therefore, Nothing but Men's right Behaviour could make them the Objects of God's Favour.

To unravel which Fallacy,

SERM. V.

In the firft Place, we must carefully dif tinguish between the Approbation, and the Good-will, or Benevolence, of the Deity. For the Deity juft fo far approves of Beings, as they are really good, and his Approbation is always proportioned to the feveral Degrees of Goodness in them. But his Benevolence needs not keep exact Pace with, and be determined folely, and wholly, by his Approbation and their Goodness. The Approbation of an unerring Being muft, in the Nature of the Thing, be founded on fomething intrinfic, and in the Beings approved: But his Benevolence often does, and in fome Cafes muft, proceed from Motives extrinfic to the Beings themfelves: Of which, among many others, the Communication of greater Degrees of Happinefs to fome Beings

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SERM. V. Beings than others, antecedently to, and
therefore, without any Regard to,
any Regard to, their Me-
rits, at the Creation, is a pregnant In-
ftance, And he who made fome Beings
Angels and not Men, for no other Reason
than his own WILL; may, certainly, ad-
vance us from Men into Angels of Blifs, at
the Inftance and Interceffion of our bleffed
Saviour. It may be granted, that the De-
ity cannot love any Being farther, than it
is lovely in itself, with a Love of Esteem,
Complacency, or Good-liking. And yet
there may be a confiderable Degree of Be-
nevolence and Good-will in the Deity, to-
wards Beings, for whom he has but a flen-
der Share of Efteem and Approbation. The
Reafon is very plain: The Benevolence
of the Deity is infinite; but his Approba-
bation is finite, and adjusted to the intrinfic
Worth of each Creature, be it less or more.
Our perfonal Valuableness therefore, or our
right Behaviour, may be the only Ground
of the divine Approbation; but God forbid,
that it should be the only Ground of his Fa-
vour and Acceptance. Suppofing the Dei-
ty to be infinitely Good, and to take a
Delight in communicating Happiness to
his Creatures, there will always be a strong

Reason

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