for the Levites, was to fhew that, in the days of Christ, every believer, Jew or Gentile, fhould be a prieft, or a Levite, (Ifa. lxvi. 21.) yea, the whole Church a royal priesthood, (1 Pet. ii. 9.) made kings and priests to God, (Rev. i. 6.) to offer up spiritual facrifices, 1 Pet. ii. 5.

Again, fantifying, under the Law, confifted in abstaining from wives, washing the flesh, washing the cleaths, and having a facrifice offered for fins: which facrifice pointed to the Sacrifice of Chrift; and the washing pointed out Regeneration, that believers in Chrift's days fhould be faved "by the washing of "regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Ghoft." Washing the cloaths typified the clean linen garments of praise, of humility, and of imputed righteousness, in which the believer should approach a Mercy-feat, and minifter to God in private, in his family, and at the house of God. Abstaining from wives, was to fhew, that the lawful embraces of a wife would be kept in their proper place; and that she should be loved with a moderate, and not with an inordinate affection, when the foul is espoused to Chrift; and this to be given up, wife and all, when the worship, service, or cause of God, required it: "He that lov«eth wife, or children, better than me, is not worthy "of me;" and he that said, “I have married a wife, "and therefore I cannot come," was excluded the Supper.

Sanctification, as it respects us, is, in the highest fenfe, God's act of predeftinating us to the adoption

of

:

of fons by Jefus Chrift, his chufing us in him, appointing our redemption by him, and our meetness for glory by the Spirit through him all which was compleat in God's fecret purpofe, and as fure to be done as he willed it to be done; on which account. we are said to be "fanctified by God the Father, [in "his purpofe] preferved in Jefus Chrift, [in whom "we were chofen] and called," by God, to the fellowship of Chrift, as our Covenant Head; as it is written, To them that are fanctified by God the Father, · preferved in Chrift Jefus, and called, Jude, 1.

Such were the fowls, four-footed beafts, and creeping things, in Peter's fheet; which he refused to kill and eat, calling them things common and unclean; till the voice told him, What God hath cleansed, that call thou not common.

Again, Sanctification is by the death of Chrift, who by his death blotted out the penal fum of our fins, magnified the Law, and appeafed the offended Majefty of Heaven: in whofe death God viewed the whole mystical body of Chrift redeemed and cleanfed in their Head; who is one with the Elect; who, by bis one offering, bath for ever perfected them that are fanctified, Heb. x. 14. This was according to the predeterminate counfel, purpose, and will, of God; by the which will we are fantified, through the offering of the body of Jefus Christ once for all, Heb. x. 10.

Once more. Sanctification is by the Holy Ghoft; who fubdues the will, renews the mind, enlightens the understanding, and fheds abroad the love of God in

the

the heart: That the offering up of the Gentiles might be acceptable, being fanctified by the Holy Ghoft, Rom. xv. 16. All this is willed and determined by the fecret counsel of God; as it is written, And this is the WILL of God, even your SANCTIFICATION. 1 Theff. iv. 3.

Laftly, That fuch an highly-favoured foul should live, walk, and act, becoming an object of God's choice, the purchase of a Saviour's blood, and as a living temple of the Holy Ghoft, redeemed from among men, fet apart by the Spirit, and ordained for heaven, is called walking in Sanctification: That every man should know how to poffefs his veffel in SANCTIFICATION and honour, 1 Theff. iv. 4.

This appears to me to be, in short, a fcriptural account of Sanctification, and so far I understand it. But, as to the Sanctification that most men preach up in our days, I know no more what they mean by it, than they do who preach it.

Laftly, Thou wilt find, Reader, the Introduction to this Sermon to be new, not mentioned when it was preached; but I was rather obligated to this by fome few texts that have been handled against me. The Method likewife differs from the Difcourfe when delivered, but the Subftance is nearly the fame. That thou mayest read without prejudice, and profit by reading, is the defire of,

Thine to command,

In the LORD JESUS CHRIST,

WM. HUNTINGTON.

THE

MORAL LAW

NOT INJURED BY THE

EVERLASTING GOSPEL.

MATTHEW v. 17, 18, 19, 20.

THINK NOT THAT I AM COME TO DESTROY THE LAW AND THE
PROPHETS: I AM NOT COME TO DESTROY, BUT TO FULFIL.

POR VERILY I SAY UNTO YOU, TILL HEAVEN AND EARTH PASS,
ONE JOT OR ONE TITTLE SHALL IN NO WISE PASS FROM THE
LAW, TILL ALL BE FULFILLED.

WHOSOEVER THEREFORE SHALL BREAK ONE OF THESE LEAST
COMMANDMENTS, AND SHALL TEACH MEN SO, HE SHALL BE
CALLED THE LEAST IN THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN: BUT
WHOSOEVER SHALL DO, AND TEACH THEM, THE SAME SHALL
BE CALLED GREAT IN THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.

FOR I SAY UNTO YOU, THAT EXCEPT YOUR RIGHTEOUSNESS
SHALL EXCEED THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF THE SCRIBES AND
PHARISEES, YE SHALL IN NO CASE ENTER INTO THE KING-
DOM OF HEAVEN.

HIS text has been no lefs than three times

TH

handled, or rather mangled, to knock your humble Servant about the head, by a certain Minister of the Gospel.

When I was difmiffed from Greenwich Tabernacle, (which was done through the inftrumentality of the

1

above gentleman, and other holy men, who refused to occupy a pulpit defiled by an Elect Sinner) I went and opened a place at Deptford. The good man, previous to this, gave the people a timely warning; telling them to "Go, and read the fifth chapter of "Matthew's Gospel, before they came to hear me. "What, had nobody any brains till he came!" &c. Soon after my opening the place at Deptford, I went to give them a lecture on a Wednesday evening: and fome of my friends were informed that the fame perfon intended to oppofe. me and my doctrine in an adjacent meeting-house the fame night; which was accordingly done, and the oppofition to my doctrine was drawn from the laft verfe of my text. And fince that, the fame text has been handled at Hammersmith; fo that, upon the whole, Antinomianifm-as the Gofpel is called has received a deadly blow: therefore, it is needful that we examine the text, and fee what it fays against us and our doctrine, and fo let my Antinomianism appear in public print,

In the beginning of this chapter, the Saviour afcends a certain mountain, and his difciples follow him; and, when he was feated, he opened his mouth and taught them. This was done in allufion to the two mountains, Ebal and Gerizim. Six tribes of Ifrael were to ftand on Mount Ebal, to curfe; and fix on Mount Gerizim, ta blefs, Deut, xxvii, 12. And when they had fo done, the bleffing was to be

put