He that has faith in his heart, and preaches the faith as it was once delivered to the faints; who holds the mystery of faith in a pure conscience, and deals it out from thence.

He that has the love of God fhed abroad in his own heart, and preaches it in all it's branches; the manifestation of it in the death of Chrift; the revelation of it by the Spirit; the effects of it, pardon and peace.

He that is not angry with his brother without a caufe; he that is faved and kept from uncleanness; he that refifts not evil with evil; and he that gives his cloak to them that fue him at law for his coatthis is the man, and no other, that doth the commandments, and teaches them. And he

Shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. He is a true, real, genuine, and loyal fubject, of the kingdom of Heaven; he is not in bondage to the Law, to Sin, nor to Satan; he is redeemed, justified, and faved; the myfteries of the kingdom are with him; the kingdom of Grace is in him; and he is an heir of the kingdom of Glory before him, and fhall be

Called GREAT in the kingdom of Heaven. He acknowledges himself a great finner, and tells others what great things God has done for him. Great grace is upon him, and "he is a good steward of the "manifold grace of God." He is faved with a great falvation, and it is an unconditional falvation

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that he preaches. He is a man of God, a mouth for God, and an ambassador sent from God. He is an evangelift, and does the work of one. He is a good steward, and is found faithful. He is a minifter of the Spirit, and makes full proof of his ministry, by stopping the mouths of gainfayers, by cutting up elect finners, and by fteering a course that God owns and honours. In short, he is an able minister of the New Teftament, and shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven by all those who know wherein true greatness confifts. Which leads me to the last verse of my text

For I fay unto you, that except your righteousness fball exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharifees, ye shall in no cafe enter into the kingdom of heaven. There have been fix or feven Difcourfes lately de livered from this text by different Minifters; and they all agree in this, that the righteousness of Chrift is neither intended, nor included in the text; which is a point that I intend to examine. By entering into the Kingdom of Heaven, these things are

meant.

First, Taking the veil of ignorance from the understanding, and enlightening the mind into the mysteries of the kingdom; which is leading the foul out of darkness into marvellous light.

Secondly, It is leading a foul out of bondage into liberty; out of a condemned into a juftified state; out of a state of enmity into a state of reconcilia

tion; out of a state of fin into a state of grace; out of a state of alienation into a state of friendship; out of a state of legal labour into a state of reft: which is called tranflating the finner out of the kingdom of Satan into the kingdom of God's dear Son.

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Thirdly, The Saviour's introducing his Elect, body and foul, into the glories of Heaven, is called "an abundant entrance into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jefus Chrift." 2 Pet. i. 10, II.

But then, what righteoufnefs is this that can procure fuch an entrance? Paul's mind was enlightened into the mysteries of the kingdom, as foon as the Lord fhined upon him, and into his heart: and he entered into a state of grace, or into the kingdom of heaven, as foon as he arofe, and received the Holy Ghost. But what righteousness had he got, to procure, or pave the way for, fuch an entrance? Paul was a Pharifee, we know: but it could not be his pharifaical righteousness that procured his entrance; for the text fays, it must exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharifees. And, I think, it could not be the malice and murder of his heart, nor his bloody commiffion, nor the death-warrants that he had in his pocket. The righteousness in the text is obedience to the Law, which the Pharifees boasted of, and in which the child of God muft exceed the Pharifee. It must be either the finner's obedience, or the obedience of the Surety, that procures an

entrance

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entrance here; for the unrighteous cannot enter the kingdom. But Paul, though one of the ftricteft fect of the Pharifees, had no righteousness to procure an entrance here; it profited him nothing in this cafe: I will declare thy righteousness, and thy works, for they fhall not profit thee, Ifa. lvii. 12. The fupplicating publican, and Mary Magdalen, both entered the kingdom of heaven, but not by their own righteousness. No righteousness but the righteoufness of Chrift imputed, can procure an entrance, either into the knowledge of God, or into a state of grace, which stands in righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghoft; into all which the finner enters by faith in Chrift alone.

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Nor can I think that any righteousness, but that of the Saviour, can procure an entrance into glory; not Paul's righteousness, for that (he fays) is dung and dross; nor Zion's righteousness, for that is filthy rags; nor the righteousness of Peter, James, and John, for in many things they all offended. And fure am, that an imperfect righteousness can never pave the way, either into God's favour, or into his prefence. The thief went from the cross to Paradife; but his prayer, his confeffion of Chrift, his rebuking his fellow thief, and confeffing the juftness of his pu-. nishment, is no part of obedience to the Moral Law, which is the Rule of Righteoufnefs; and Chrift's obedience to that Rule, is the Righteousness meant in my text, in which Paul hoped to be found when he fhould enter the kingdom of glory:

glory as it is written, And be found in him, not baving mine own righteousness, which is of the Law; but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith, Phil. iii. 9. This is the righteousness that God imputed to Paul's faith, and by which he entered into the kingdom of grace; and in this he hoped to enter into the kingdom of heaven itfelf: "For we, through the Spirit, "wait for the hope of righteousness by faith," (Gal. v. 5.) which alone can answer for us in that day. No creature righteousness, no imperfect righteousnefs, no inherent righteoufnefs, can ever admit a man into the kingdom of grace, or into the kingdom of glory. No righteoufnefs but Chrift's fpotless obedience to the Law, imputed by God to the finner, can ever give him right or title, procure an entrance or admiffion into grace or glory,

But you you will fay, "There is one word in the "text which you overlook, the word your; Except "your righteoufnefs fhall exceed," &c.

Anfw. What God freely beftows on us, becomes ours: "We receive the abundance of grace, and the

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gift of righteousness," Rom. v. 17. And God, who gives this righteousness to us, calls it ours: "This is the heritage of the fervants of the Lord, "and their righteousness is of me, faith the Lord." Ifa. liv. 17. "They have no righteousness but what "is of me," faith the Lord; and that is an imputed one, freely given, and freely beftowed, And Chrift himfelf