der it, now that we are restored to life? The fact, then, that we have already died under sin and now live, if proved, demon, strates that the sentence is exhausted, and of course is no longer in force He then gives an exposition of the representative character of Christ in relation to men, as a proof of the fact. They acknowledged, when they professed themselves) Christians at baptism, that his death was for theirs, and that his resurrection involved theirs. He takes their own baptismal acknowledg ment of the vicarious death and resurrection of Christ, as a proof to them that the one atonement was as much a remedy for the multiplied personal forfeitures, as for the one general forfeiture. All had already been done, in the way of atonement, that ever was to be done, or that ever needed to be done. The access to God propitiated was open. The blood that had been shed cleansed from all sin. To every individual of the apostate family was it said, "Return unto me, for I have redeemed thee." The pardon was universal and unconditional as far as it went; for the proclamation was, peace on earth and good

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will towards men"-and it revealed "God in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing unto them their trespasses ;" and it bore that "the Son of God had been made a propitiation for the sins of the whole world." The pardon of the gospel, then, is in effect a declaration on the part of God, to every individual sinner in the whole world, that his holy compassion embraces him, and that the blood of Jesus Christ has atoned for his sins. This is the declaration of God, and he makes it the ground of his urgent invitation to sinners to return to him and walk with him. This return to God, and walking with God, constitute the well-being of a creature, and without this, the declarations of God's love are useless to the creature. God so loved the world, (the whole world-all the race of Adam,) as to give his only begotten Son for them;-but those only who believe this love, who receive it into their hearts, are saved by it. The love of God abiding in the heart, and governing the will of the creature, is its salvation, there is no other salvation than this, and therefore whilst the pardon which is the

proclamation of God's love, remains on the outside of the heart, whilst it does not enter in, it produces no salvation. The par don therefore is not so much a particular act, as a manifestation of God opening the inviting arms of his love to perishing sin ners, and urging them to come to him, that they may have life. There is no more exclusion; all are urged to come, and those who do come are transformed by the light of the glory of God, and by his powerful Spirit, which is given to those who come, into his likeness; and in his likeness the holiness and happiness, the heaven and eternal life of the creature consist. The validity of the pardon does not depend on man's believing or not. The pardon remains always the same-the access always remains open. The invitation is always urgent; but those who do not come in are not transformed.

This passage of Scripture, taken in the sense which I have attributed to it, appears to me most valuable. It lays the axe to the root of the whole system of supererogation, whether called works or faith, It condemns that theological edifice in

which faith as an act as an act of man's mind occu pies the place which the atonement of Christ holds in the Bible edifice Accord ing to the common method of religious instruction amongst many truly serious persons, pardon is represented as so dependent on faith, that it is apt to be mistaken for its reward; and then, as these teachers fear that this may appear to offer heaven on too easy terms, they attach to their definition of faith, the whole Christian character, in order, as it would seem, to make it more worthy of such a reward. If they would only distinguish, in their systems, between pardon and salvation, the one being the spiritual medicine, the other the spiritual cure, they would find themselves much more unem. barrassed, both in declaring the freeness of the gospel, and the necessity of conformity to the law. For what is the freeness of the gospel, upon their system, but substituting faith as the ground of a sinner's hope in the place of obedience, which is called the legal system ? When a man looks into his own mind, to discover faith there, as a ground of his hope before God, he is just wandering as wide from the gospel, as the man

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who is counting his alms deeds, for the same purpose: and he is, wandering, per haps still more widely from present peace, because the man who counts his alms deeds, has substantial matter to rest on, such as it is; but faith. is a state of mine which is not susceptible of definite proof, and when the spirit is de pressed, and is most anxious to find it, it will often seem to vanish. Sanctification is is 10 no9190 191 1 the true meaning of salvation, and it is produced by faith in the atonement; but the atonement is itself the pardon, and is unaffected by man's belief, or unbelief. Some theologians have endeavoured to get quit of difficulties by supposing that the gospel consists of a testimony and a promise a testimony that Christ died for sin, and a promise su that those who believe in this testimony shall be pardoned. But this is still mak ing pardon the recompense of faith. It appears to me that the testimony of the Bible is, that sinners ARE pardoned for Christ's sake; and that the promise, is, that those who through this newly slain and Do living way approach to God, will be sanc tified, and conformed in the spirit of their

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