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THE

MYSTERY

O F

CHRIST

I N T H E

FORM OF A SERVANT.

BRIEFLY

Enquired into, and pra£^Ically Improved; in ^ SERMON preached at the adminiftration of the facrament of the LORD'S Supper.

WITH

A further Improvement of that MYSTERY, both as' to Faith and Practice ; preached after the admiiiAra ■ iHon of that ordinaoce.

B Y

The late Reverend Mr Thomas Bostom, Minifter of the Gofpel at Etlrkk, Author of the Fourfold State.

I Tim. Hi. i6. Great is the myjiery of godlinefsx God nuas manifejl in the fiejh.

EDINBURGH:

Printed by T. L u m i s d e n and Company?- For John Wood, oppofite Foot of Forrefter*s wynd.

M i^ C C L V.

THE

MYSTERY

O F

CHRIST

I N T H E

FORM OF A S E R V A N T, 8cG.

iPHILIP. il. 7.

And took upon him the Form of a Servant.

OU R holy religion, which hath its denomination from Jefus Chrirt, is a religioa of Myderies ; myfteries of Faith, and myfteries of Pradtice, neither of which can one be let into, in a faving manner, without fu- pernatural grace. The myfteries of Faith, myfteries to be Believed, do. All of them, lead unto Practice : yea, even thefe of them which are moft Sublime, the more they are truly Believed, the more do they Influence men to Ho- linefs of heart and life. \A herefore the apodle, in the context, to prefs the Philippians unto the Pradice of Moral Duties, particularly to Love their Neighboar as themfelves, to lay out themfelves to be Beneficial to Mankind, and for Th,;t end to deny Themflves, and Condefcend to Others for their good ; lays before them, to be Believed, that conftel- lation of Myfteries appearing in the Incarnation of the Son of God : a motive to good Works, unknown to the Jewirti Rabbies, and Greek Moralifls ; but fealed in the experience of believers, as the moft powerful Inccnlive to univcrfalHo- lincfs ,

la

4 The Myjiery of Chr'ijl

In this veirfe, whereof the text is a part, are thre^ of thefe myfterles. The firft, v^hich is the leading one, is. That * Chrift Jefus being in the form of God, not thinking

* it robbery to be equal with God, yet made himfelf of no

* reputation,* viz. for us. To * be in the form of God,' is to be VERY God, having the Very nature and efTcnce of Cod ; the form being that which effentially dilfinguifheth things, and makes a thing to be precifely that which it is. ^nd forafmuch as this Form is, according to the apoftle, the foundation of his Equality with God his Father ; it can de- note no lefs than his being very God: for no excellency whatfoever, really different from the divine EfTence, can found an Equality with God ; but (hll there would remain as great a difproportion as betwixt Finite and Infinite. Here then is a wonderful myflery : Chrift being very God, the Supreme, the mod high God, equal with the Father, emp- tied himfelf of his divine glory, laying it afide, namely, in point of Manifeftation, carting a veil, a thick veil, over it, for a time. The fccond my fiery is, ' He took upon him

* the form of a fervant.' Thus it was, that he Emptied himfelf. This Form, to wit of a Servant, was the veil he drew over his divine glory : for fo the original words run,

* But emptied himfelf, taking the form of a fervant.' The third myftery is, • H^- was made in the likenefs of men.* In regard of the Sinfulnefs cleaving to mens nature, which he was abfolutely free of, he is faid to have been made, not in a Samenefs with, but in the Likenefs of, men ; truly man in fubflance and nature, but without Sin, however Like to iinful flefh he appeared, Rom. viii. 3* * God fending his own

* Son in the likenefs of finful flelh.' This was it that was prerequifitc unto, and qualified him for, taking upon him the Form of a Servant : for fo ftand the words in the original,

* Taking the form of a fervant, being made in the likenefs

* of men.*

'Tis the fecond of th fe myfleries, * And took upon him

* the form of a fervant,' which T am to infift upon. And two things here are to be opened ; namely, * What the < form of a fervant is.* And * What Chtifl's taking it upon

* him bears.' I begin with the latter of thefe.

What."ver is more particulrly msant by the ' form of a ' f^.-vant,' it is pbuQ, that in die general it mud denote a •

mean

in the Form of a Servant. 5

mean and low condition. And our Lord's * taking it upon

* him,' imports two things ; i. That he voluntarily and of his own free choice fubraitted to it, for the fake of poor iinners. He was not Originally in the form of a Servant, as fome men have been, who were born in a frate of fcrvitade ; nay, he was from eternity the Son of God, his Father's E- qual : but he, being Lord of heaven and earth, came, of his own accord, under the form of a Servant. It was not laid upon him againlt his will ; but he freely took it on him • felf, and became Bound, when he might have continued Free. 2. It imports. That what he was Before, namely. Very God, equal with the Father, he fHll Continued to be» notwidiftanding of his fubmitting to the form of a Servant. He ' took upon him the form of a fervant ;' that is, conti- nuing in the form of God, he took upon him the form of a Servant.

By the ' form of a fervant,' is not underftood the * like-

* nefs of a guilty man.' That expofition weakens the force of the apoftle's argument, and the force of that important term, ' the form of God;' tho' indeed the thing itfcif is truth, and is taught in the laft claufe of the verfe. Neither is it to be underlTood of Man's Nature, which in refpecfl of

'God is Servile : becaufe Chrift's Emptying of himfelf, con- fifting, according to the text, in his Taking on the form of a fervant, was furely over, and at an end, in his exaltation, and the full manifeftation of his divine glory ; while yet his Human Nature remains. Neither doth that Mean, Low and Servile kmd of Condition, into which he was brought in his fuffe rings, feem to explain fufficiently the ' forni of a fervant,* which he took upon himfelf.

The plain and literal fenfe of thefe words I take to be the true fenfe of them, viz. That the Son of God, our bleffed Lord Jefus Chrift, Really became a fervant, as real* ly as ever man did, who ferved for his bread. He volun- tarily took upon himfelf, That wherein the elTence of that relation, on the Sen^ant's part, doth confift ; and fo was ferrhally conflitute a Servant, to all intents and purpofes of the bargain with him whofe Servant he became. As this is the Literal fenfe of the words, from which we are never to depart v/ithout nece/Tity ; fo it is confirmed to be the Ge- nuine fenfe, by the true import ©f that phrafe, ' Being in

6 the Myfiery of Chrijl

* the form of God.' His * bi ing in the form of 6oe}/ denotes his being Very God : therefore his taking upon him the form of a fervant, muft denote his becoming Really a Servant.

"Now, the fcripture reprefcnts Jcfns Chrift, (i.) As 2 fervant in his ftate of Humiliation, and fo he is called, * A

* fervant of Rulers, Ifa. xlix. 7. (2.) As a fervant in his ftate -of Exaltation, ifa. liii. 11. ' By his knowledge

* fhall my righteous Servant juflify many. Compare Afts v. 31. ' Him hath God exalted with his right-hand

* to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance « to Ifrael, and forgiveneis of fins/ It can hardly be a queflion with any who reads the text and context, whether the form of a Humbled Servant, or of an Exalted Servant, is meant here ? Our Lord Jefus did take on both, the one in his Humiliation, and the other in his exaltation : but 'tis evident, the former, and not the latter, is here meant ; and they are valUy different. The form of a Humbled Servant he Submitted to 5 the form of an Exal- ted Servant was conferred on him, as the reward of that fubmiffion, Philip, ii. 9. In This form of a fervant, he has a moft exalted and glorious honorary Miniftry ; being aSer- vantj^for whofe ' law the illes fhall wait, ifa. xlii. 1,4.* For

* the Father — hath committed all Judgment unto the Son,' John V. 22. hath ' Set him King upon his holy hill of Zion,' Pfal. ii. 6. and * given him all power in heaven and in eanh,* IMatth. xxviii. 18. But in That form, whereof the text fpeaks, he had a Service low and humble, onerous and hea- vy, a furety fervice, a Servitude : and fo the form was the form of a Bond-fervant ; in both the one and the other, fofeph was a fhining type of him, being firft * fold

* for a fervant,' and then exalted to be ruler over all Egypt under Pharaoh.

Here then is a ftupenduous myflery : Chrifl Jefus, very God, the Father's equal, Lord of heaven and earth, be- came a Servant for us, a Bond-man or Bond-fervant ; for fo the word properly fignifies, and therefore is the word that is conflantly ufed in that new-teftamcnt phrafe which We read ' bond or free,' or ' bond and free,' i Cor. xii. 13. Gafiii. 28. Eph. vi, 8. Col. iii. 11. Rev. xiii. 16. and xix. 18. The greateft Inequality found in any relation a-

moDg

in the Form of a Servant, j

B»ong men, is in that betwixt th Mafter and the Servant, the Bond-fcrvant : fo the loweft Levelling among them is that whereof mention is made, Ifa. xxiv. 2 . ' It ihall be —

* as with the fervant, fo with his mafter.' Then, what un- parallel'd condefcenfion, wonderful emptying was this ! God's Equal becoming a Servant, aBond-leivant for poor finners ! Both thefe charafters, the Higheft and the Loweft, met to- gether in Chrift, in his itate of humiliation, Zech. xiii. 7.

* Awake, O fv/ord, — againfl the man that is my fellow,

* faith the Lord.' ifa. xlii. i. ' Behold my fervant;' the very fame word that is rendred Bond-man and Bond-fervant. Lev. XXV. 39, 42, 44.

DOGT. * Our Lord Jefus Chrift, continuing to be his

* Father's Equal, humbled himlclf into a Hate of Servitude,

* and became his Servant, his Bond-fervant, in man's na-

* ture, for poor finners of Adam's race.' This was a ftep lower than his becoming Man : but the lower it was, the higher did his free love to man appear,

I am av/are, xhat fome in the height of their own wif- dom, meafuring gofpel-mylleries by their carnal reafon, may be apt to fay here, * This is a hard faying, who can hear it ? But 'tis undeniable that Chrifl is expreily called God's fer- vant in the holy fcripture, as Ifa. xlii. i. ' Behold my Ser-

* vant whom 1 uphold, &c. compared with Matth. xii. i3. where that text Is diredly applied to him, Zech. iil. 8. ' I will

* bring forth my Servant the BRAN'CH.' But what kind of a Servant unto his Father was he .^ did he become a Bond-man, a Bond-fervant ? Yea, he did. Hear his own dcclfion in that point, Pfal. xl. 6. * Sacrilice and offering

* thou didft not defire, mine ears haft thou opened.' The word, here render'd Opened, properly lignihcs Digged, as you may fee in the margin : and fo the v/crds are, * Mine

* ears thou uiggedil: thorow;' that is, Bcredfi:, as 'tis well exprefs'd in our paraphrafe of the pfalms in metre, ' Mine

* ears thou bored.' This plainly hath a viev/ to that law concerning the Bond-fervant, Excd. xxi. 6. * Then his raa- ' ikr (hall bring him unto the judges, he lliall alfo biing him ' to xsiQ. (door, or unto the door-poft : and his m.ifter fliall ' bore his car through v.ith an awl ; and he fhall ferve him

* for ever.' This is confirmed from Hof. iii. 2. * So I

* bought he: to mc for fifteen pieces ef fiivcr,' which was

F 2 the

8 rhe Myjlery of Chrijl \

the half of the ftated price of a Bond- woman. In the o- '

liginal it is, ' So I digged lier thorow to me, &c.' the fame -\

word being here ufed, as Pfal. xl. 6. 'Tis a pregnant word, j which is virtually two in fignification : and the fenfe is, I

bought her, and bored her ear to ray door-poft, to be my i \ Bond-woman, according to the law, Dent. xv. 17. ' Thou

* flialt take an awl, and thurft it through his ear into the j

* door, and he fhall be thy fervant for ever : and alfo unto '

* thy maid-fervant thou flialt do likewife.' The boring of her ear as a Bond-woman was noways inconfiftent with the " prophet's Betrotliing of her to himfelf, Hof. iii. 3. fee Exod. I xxi. 8. !

I ihall only add. That, accordingly, his mod precious life, .i which was the ranfom for the lives of the whole eledt world,

was Sold by Judas for thirty pieces of filver, the ftated price |

of the life of a Bond-fervant, Exod. xxi. 32. * If the ox '

* fliall pulh a man-fervant, or maid-fervant, he fhall give un- j

* to their mafter thirty fliekels of filver, and the ox ihall be j

* ftoned.' And the death he was put to, namely, to die , on a Crofs, was a Roman punifhment, called by them the Servile Punifliment, or puniihment of Bond-fervants : be- I caufe it was the death that Bond-men malefacf^ors Were or- \ dinarily doom'd unto ; free men feldom, if ever, according i to law. And 'tis plain, that ^ Jofeph who was fold for a \

* fervant,' (Pfal. cv. 17.) was therein a type of Chrift. |

Tsow, for the opening of this myftery of the (late of Ser- ^

vitude the Lord of glory put himfelf into for wretched fin- j

ners of Adam's race, we fhall briefly Confider the following <

particulars; (i.) To whom he became a fervant. (2.) For j

whom. (3.) The necellity of it. (4.) The contraft of :

fervice. (5.) His fulfilling of it. (6.) Wherefore he en- i

gaged in it. I

I. < To whom he became a fervant.' The Son of God, 1

in our nature, became a Servant to man's great Lord and ;

Mafter. He put himfelf in a flate of Servitude to his Fa? \

ther, who faid unto him, ' Thou art my Servant,* I'a. \ xlix. 3. 'Twas with his Father he entred into the contraft.']

of Service : He it was that bored his Ears, Ffal xl. 6. It !

was his Father's Hufinefs he was employed in, Luke ii. 49. 1

and to him he behoved to work, John ix. 4. ' I mult work ;,

' the .

in the Form of a Servant. 9

* the works him that fcnt me.' So, howbeit ©ur Lord Je* fus was and is, in rcfped of his Divine nature, the Father s Equal ; yet, in that refpcd, he acknov.Iedgeth the Father Greater than he, as the Lord is greater than the Servant, John xiv. 28. ' My Father is greater than L' Compare chap. xiii. 16. * The fervant is not greater than his lord,

* neither he that is fent, greater than he that fent him.'

Chrill: is indeed called ' a fervant of rulers,' Ifa. xlix. 7. But not in refpeft of the Prime fervile relation he (tood in ; that relation he bore to his Father only : But in regard of a Secondary occafional relation ; as when a malter obligeth his fervant to ferve another man in a particular piece of bufinefs. Thus our Lord Jefus was, by hi^ Father, fubjected to the Jewilh and Roman rulers : he paid tribute, and was by them both treated as a Servant. But Hercia he was (till about his Father's bufinefs .

II. * For whom he became a fervant.* Our bleiTed Lord Jefus took on the fer\'ice For and Inftead of others, who were bound to it, but utterly unable for it. The cup is found in Benjamin's fack ; therefore poor Benjamin, his father's darling, muft be kept a Bond-man in Egypt : Kay, fays Judah, ' Let me abide inftead of the lad, a bond-man to

* my lord, and let Benjamin go,' Gtn. xliv. 33. An elecl world is found guilty before the Lord; they muit there- fore be bond-men for ever, as well as the reft of mankind : Nay, Father, faith our Lord, who ' fprang out of Judah,* That yoke will be utterly infupportable to them, they'll un- doubtedly be ruined and perifli for ever under it ; I'll take their ftatc of ferritade upon rae, let Th:.t yoke be laid on My neck, let Me be thy Bond-man in their ftead ; and let them go free. So be it, faid God, who had fet his electing love on them from eternity, I'm well-pleafed with the ex- change : Thou then ' art my Servant, O Ifrael, in whom I

* will be glorified,' Ifa. xlix. 3. As to which words, 'tis evident from the Context, that Chrift is the party therein fpoke to. By ifrael is m.eant the fpiritual Ifrael, to wit, the Elcd of mankind. Conipare Rom ix. 6. "• They are

* not all Ifrael, who are of Ifrael.' The former textitands thus prccifeiy in the original, ' Thou art my fervant; Ifraci, « in wIiQ.qi I Will gloiiiy rayfelf.' As if thw Father had faid

to

I® The Myjlery of Chriji

to ChrifT, Son, thcfe are utterly unable to make dut their fervice ; for, their work arm being broken by the fall, I cannot expect a good turn off Their hand : be it known then, that it is agreed, that I take Thee in Their room and place, to perform the Service due in virtue of the Original contract ; Thou in th, ir {lead ' art my fervant,' from whofc hand I'll look for That fervice : Thou art Ifrael's Repre- fenti-NC, in whom I will glorify myfelf, and make all mine attnbutes iliuftrious ; as 1 was dilTionoured, and they darken- ed, by Ifrael the Collective Body of the eledt. So it was for the Eled Chrift became a Servant.

III. * The necefTity of his becoming a fervant for their

' falvation ' No doubt all mankind might have been left 10 pcrifti, even as the fallen angels, without any the lead imputation of injuitice, either wn the Father, or on the Son. The fa\-ing of Any of the loft race of Adam was not a neccfTary ac% which could not have been left undone ; but an acl of fovereign fr.;e grace. Howbeit, on the fuppofiti- en that God would have an ele6t company faved, there was a neceflity of Chrift's taking upon himfelf the State of Ser- vitude for tliem. This will appear from the following par- ticulars jointly confidered.

1. The elecl of God were, with the reft of Mankind, conftituto God's hired Ser\^ants by the firft covenant, the covenant of works ; and actually entred to That their fer- vice, in their head the firft Adam. And, in Token of this, we are all naturally inclined in that charader to djal with God ; tho' by the fall we are rendred incapable to pcrforns the duty of it, Luke xv. 19. ' Make me as one of thy

* hired ^ervaats.* The Work they were to work was per- fect obedi.nce to the holy law : the Hire they were to hdvc for th>.ir work was Life ; ' The man which doth thcfe things

* {hall live by them,' R.cm. X. 15. The Penalty of break- ing away from their mafter was perpetual Bondage under the curfe. Gal. iii. lo. ' Curfed is every one that continu-

* cth not in all things, which are written in the book of the

* law, to do them.'

2. Howbeit they never made out their Service : But, by the ti'^ie dicy were well entred home, they, thro' the fo- hc.tudjii of the grciit ^ud.^^a ay fervant the dcviJ, \iolated

their

in the Form cf a Servant. 1 1

their * covenant of feivice,'and brake away from their Lord and Maftcr. So they loft all Plea for the Hire ; arxl juftly became Bond-men under the Curfc of the broken covenant of works, liable to be whipt to their work, and, for th-ir malefices, to die the death of Slaves, Gal. iv. 24. * Thefe « are the two covenants ; the one from th.' mount Sinai,

• which gendereth to bondage.' Their falling under the curfe inferr'd the lofs of their Liberty, and conflituted them Bond-men for ever ; as is evident from the nature of the thing, and inftances of the Curfed in other cafes, as Gen. ix. 25. * Curled be Canaan ; a fervant of fervants < {hall he be.' Jofh. ix. 23. ' Now therefore ye (theGi -

« beonites) are curfed, and there Ihall none of you be freed « from being bond-men.' The very Ground being curfed (Gen. iii. 17.) falls under Bondage, according to the fcrip- ture, Rom. viii. 21. Compare Gal. iii. 13. ♦ Curfed is every

• one that hangeth on a tree ;' which hath a fpecial relped to dying on a Crofs, the capital punifliment for Bond men.

3. By the breaking of that covenant, they loft all their ability for their fervice, and were left without Strength, Rom. V. 6. They had no Suffering ftrength to bear the punifhment of their breaking away from their fervice ; but they muft have for ever perifhed under it. They had no Doing or Working ftrength left them ; their work-arm, once fufficient for their fervice, was now quite broken, fo that they could work none at all to any good purpofe : nay, they had neither hand nor heart for their work again, Rom.

viii. 7. * The carnal mind is not fubjecl to the law of

« God, neither indeed can be.' So it was not PofTible for Them to make out their fervice, Jofli. xxiv. 19. ' Ye can-

• not ferve the Lord.'

4. Howbeit, the punifhment due unto them, for breaking away from their fervice, behoved to be born ; and the fer- vice Itfelf behoved to be made out, according to the ori- ginal contra6l, the covenant of works ; elfe they could ne- ver have life and falvation. The truth of God infur'd this. Gen. ii. 17. * In the day thou eateft thereof, thou fhalt

• furely die.' The honour of God's holy law and covenant required it, Ifa. xlii. 2I. * He will magnify the law, and

• majic it honQurabl^.' And his exa(Jt Juftice confirmed it,

GCE.

12 'The Myjlery of Ckrijl

Gen. xxviii. 15. * Shall not the Judge of ail the earth d<?

* right?'

Laiily, Since all this behoved to be done, and they could not do it ; the Mifery of Servitude behoved to be Born, and^ they were not able to bear it ; the Service behoved to be Fulfilled, and they could by no means work It out : it was therefore abiolutely neceflary for their life and falvation, that Jefus ChriH: fhould come under the Curfe due to them, take on himfelf their Form, put himfelf in the room of the poor Bond-man, enter home to the Service in their ftead, and fully ferve it out for them, transferring on himfelf their ftate of fervitude^ GhI. iii. J3. * Chrilf hath redeemed us

* from the curfe of the law, being made a curfe for us : « For it is written, curfed is every one that hangeth on a

* tree.* Chap. iii. 3, 4, 5. ' We were in bondage

* under the elements of the world : But— God fent forth

* his Son — made under the law, to redeem them that were

* under the law/

IV. * The contrafl of the fervice.' It is the Covenant cf grace, made between the Father and Chrift, the fecond Adam, reprefenting all the ele6t his fpiritual feed. The covenant of Grace is juftly looked upon as a Covenant of fervice, ftriclly and properly fo called ; wherein fo much U'ork is to be done for fo much wages. But 'tis a lamentable abufe of the covenant of grace, by Lcgalifts in their princi- ples, and many of the communicants in their pra6i:ice, that they put the work, for earning of the wages, in the wrong hand ; namely, That they fhall be the Workers, and eter- nal life the Hire of Their work. This is to trample under foot God's covenant of grace, and to make a new one of our own, which he will never approve of. Heaven's de- vice in this cafe was, that Chrift fhould be the worker for life and falvation to poor finners ; and that they fhould get life and falvation, thro' him, by free grace ; and fo v/ork from life and filvation received, as fons entitled to the in- heritance antecedentlj to all their working, Rom. vi. 23.

* For the wages of fin is death : But die gift of God is

* eternal life through Jefus Chrifl: our Lord.' Chap.iv. 4. 5.

* Now to him that v/orketh, is the reward not reckoned of ' grace, but of debt. But to hip that worketh not, but

'b lieveth

in the Forvi of a Servant. 1 ^

' believeth on him that juftlfieth the ungodly, his faith is « counted for righteoufnefs.' So the covenant of grace was, in refpect of Chrift, a Covenant of fervice in the (trivfleft fenfe ; and tl>e reward is of Debt to him, and him only, as the fervant that worked for it, according to the covenant : and none but he was fit for that fervice.

Here confidcr, i. This contract of fervice was Entred into from eternity. Tit. i. 2. 'In hope of eternal life which ^ God, that cannot lie, promifed before the world began.' The covenant, by which falvation is to be had, is not a covenant of yefterday, or of to-day, now to be made by us ! it was made in every point thereof before the world was. What remains for us is to take hold of it by faith. 2. The Defign of it was, (i.) To iilullrate the divine glory, much darkned by the hired fervants of God's own houfe. There was, by lin, an invafion made upon God's Declarative Glory and honour, and Jefus Chrifl: was chofen to make the re- paration. So, whatever wrong was done to the fovereignty, juftice, holinefs, and goodnefs of God, or any other the divine perfections, by the fin of thofe in whofe room he flood ; 'tis laid upon him to repair it, Ifa. xlix. 3. (2.) To fave loft finners ; to reftore the Ifrael of God, whether Jews or Gentiles, to life and favour, Ifa. xlix. 6. God had -fet his love from eternity on a felect company of mankind : they were loft, ruined and undone, and they muft be faved : And Jefus Chrift enters into his father's Service for that ef- icS.. 3. The Service, which in this contrail he undertook to perform, was, to fulfil the whole law for them ; fully to anfv/er, in their room and ftead, the demands which the broken covenant of works, the original contra<5^, had upon them, Hebr. x. 9. ' Then faid he, Lo, I come to do thy * will, O God.' Thus the parts of the fervice were thefe •two ; (i.) His bearing the Punifiiment which they, as breakers of the law, were bound to underly in virtue of •the Penalty of the covenant of works. And hereby he was . to fatisfy the penalty of that covenant, the law's fan/ftion of death. (2 ) His performing the Obedience, v/hich they were ftill bound to fulfil, by the fame covenant of works, tho' broken. And hereby he was to fatisfy the command- ing part of that covenant, requiring perfeft obedience for life, Gal. iv, 4, 5. * God fcnt forth his SoA^-^made under <S * the

14 The My fiery of Chr'iJI

* the taw, to redeem them that were under the kw. Chap/ \

* iii. 13. Chrirt hath redeemed us froin the curfe of the i

* law, being made a curfe for us.' Mat. iii. 15. * Thus it '

* becormeth us to fulfil all righieaufnefs.' 4. The covenant- j cd Reward of the fervice was a glorious exaltation to him- | felf, and eternal life for thera. Of the former the apolHe ^ makes mention, Phil. ii. 9. * Wherefore God alfo hath ,

• highly exalted him. Of the latttr, Tit i. 2. * In hope'

• of eternal life, which God that cannot lie, promifed be- ;

• fore the world began.'

■ . 1

V. * The fulfilling of the fervice, according to his con- ,

* tradl.' It was a hard fervice ; but he went through with ] it ; * became obedient unto death, even the death of the ; « crofs,' Phil. ii. 8. And herein three things are to be con- \ fide red ; 1

1. He Entred to Kis fervice, in his being conceived and j bom holy for them ; fo bringing a holy human nature into ' the world with him, which he retained unfpotted to the end. i Thus he acfwered the demand the law had on them, for 1 Original Hoimcfs, hoKnefs of nature, as a condition of life, i Ifa. ix. 6. * Unto us (or for us,' chap. vi. 8.) a child is i

* born : even that holy thing,' Luke i. 3^. That this was i a piece of the fervice he performed for them, and was in- , deed his entring to his fervice, appears by comparing Pfal. { xl 6. ' Sacrifice and offering thou didft not defire, mine ears '

• haft thou opened, Hcb. digged through ;' withHebr. x. 5, j

• Sacrifice and offering thou wouldft not, but a body hall j

• thou prepared me.' Where the Digging Through, or j boring of his ears to God's door-poft in the room and (lead ] of the elecft, is expounded of ' preparing him 2. body,' a'l human nature. \

2. He Went on in his fervice in the righteoufnefsof his life, \ being * obedient even unto death,' Phil. ii. 8 All that he did | in the fpacc of about thirty three years he lived upon earth ' was working the work of his fervice, to the fulfilling of the- whole law in its commands ; which was that work whereia/ the firft Ad;im failed, and fo ruined all mankind. And thus the great Siirety-fcrvant anfwered the demand the law hadi on the elc*5t, for perfc(?l Riqhteoufoefs of converfation, as ! ?hG coiwUtioa of life, John ?^vi. 4. * I h^ivc glorified thccj

< Oft!

in the Form of a Serva?it. 1 ^

* on the earth : I have finifiied r^e work thou gava'l me '.v»

* do.'

Lafiiy, Having fuffered all his life long, in \vhich he w;is ' a man of forrows, and acvquainicd witii gricf,' he cosur plcti-'d and finilhcd his fervicc in his d<^ath and tuial ; thus anfwering for them the law's derpand of Sacisfact.on iar fin, John Xix. 30 ' When Jefus therefore had received the

* vinegar, he faid. It is fi nilhed : And i-e bowed his head,

* and gave up the Gholh' The term of his continuance ia this ftate pf" kivitude was, according to the covenant, tiJl death, but no longer. This account of the matter he him- fi if gives us, John ix. 4. * I mu(t work the works of hiirj ' that fent me, while it is Day: The night' (viz. of death)

* comcth when no man can work.' He was to Serye during al] the Days of his life ; that is, in the language of the law, for Ever, Exod. xxi. 6. * His malter (hall bore his ear thrmigb

* with an awl, and he fhall ferve him for ever,' i. c. til J death. In common cafes the law made an exceptbn here of a jubile intervcening : but in the cafe of the great Bond- fervant, the Lord of glory, there was no luch exception ; nor could there be, in regard the true Jubile was to be brought about by his death. Hov/bcit, in the grave * the

* fcrvant is free from his mafier,' Job iii. 19. So, having fervcd out his full time, There he put o'X the form of a Servant : And he ' rcfc and revived, that he miglit be Lord

* both of the dead and living/ Rom. xiv. 9.

VI. and lafdy, * Wherefore he put hirafelf into, and

* took on him, this (late of iervitude.'

J. Love to his Father, and the love he had to his de« figied Spoufe the captive daughter of Zion, and to his Chil- dren the fpiritual feed, engaged him to undertake it; as ia the cafe of the Icrvant under the law, Kiiod, xxi. j. * I

* lore my mailer, my wife and my children, I v/ill not go

* Out free' He faw that his rather would entir^iy lofehis fcrvice from all mankind, if he did not in their nature take the ferrice on himfelf j the whole tribe of Adam, from the Icafl to the greatcli:, being utterly difabled for it. Where- fore, for his Father's glory, the honour of his holy law, his juIHce and his mercy, he * took on him the form of a fer- / y£nt, bdng made in the hkenefs of m^^n,' The captive

G 2 diU'jhtcr

1 6 The Myftery cf Chrijf ^ .'

daughter of Zlon, his Father's choice, and his own choice, '

for a fpoufe to him, he could not have, but, as Jacob had \.

K.achel, by ferving for her, as unlovely and unfightly tas j

fhc was. But he loved her freely, he loved her infinitely ; ^

and, becaufe he fo loved, he ' took on the forni of a fervant' |

for her, and, as the true ' Ifrael, ferved for a wife,' Hof. '

xii. 12. He loved his children, the fpiritual feed, the elecl !

given him of his Father: notwithftanding of all the burden .

cleaving to them, he would not quit them : he faw they j

would be loft, if he ihould Go out from them Free ; there- \

fore he confented to the Boring of his Ears, to Serve all i

the days of his hfe upon the earth. j

2. He took it on him, for Releafing of them from that • Stave of fervitude or bondage which their father Adam, by .1 his mifmanagem.ent, had brought himfelf and all mankind ? into. What Judah offered to do, in the cafe of Benjamin I his brother. Gen. xliv. 35. Chrift really performed in the J cafe of his brethren, becoming a Bond-man in their (lead, »• that they might be free. They were in Bondage under the *{ law, under the curfe of the broken covenant of works ; and they could never, by all their own doings and fuffer- jngs, have work'd themfelves out of their Bondage ; but had perifli'd in it, had not he put himfelf into their room and ftead.

3. He did it for paying of their debt. The law, in fome cafes, allowed parents to fell their children for paying of their debt. Hence the Lord faith unto Ifrael, ' Which

* of my creditors is it to whom 1 have fold you r' Ifi. 1. i. | Thereby fhewing, that it was not to him, but to themfelves, their ruin v/as owing. We have a (lory to this purpofc of one of the fons q^ the prophets, who was a holy man, but had died in debt: 'Tis thus r.tlated by his poor widow,

2 Kin. iv. I * Thy fervant my husband is dead, and thou

* knoweft that thy fervant did fear the Lord : And the

* creditor is come to take unto him my two fons to be

* bond-men.' Thus (bed the cafe with the dcS:. Their father Adam, who ruined his own family, had brought a burden of drbt ort them, as well as on tlie reft of his chil- dren ; he had left them under a double debt, a debt of^ Obedience, cind ?. ctbt of Punift^riert. wh'ch they were utteily unable 10 pay. And juftice, as the Creditor, was

come ,

/;/ the For VI of a Servant. if

come to take them away for Bond-men, and force them to 5;ervc for payment of the debt, never to be rclcafed till the iaft farthing of it was fully ferved for : but Chrilt faid, O juflice, allow Them to (lay, and take Me for a Boad-m^.n in their (lead ; if the fervice for payment of the debt ly on them, they'll perifli under it, and the debt will never be paid out : but I'll Serve for them. It was accepted : and: the Lord Jefus took their room, and went away v/ith the Creditor for a Bond-man in theii itead.

Laftly, He took on him the form of a Servant, to bring them into a ftate of adoption in the family of God. He become a Bond-ferv?.nt, that they mi^ht become fons and daughters. This the apoiHe plainly teachcth, Gal. iv. i.

* The heir as long as he is a child, diftereih iiathing from a

* fervant'- ver. 3. Even fo we — were in bondage.' — ver. 4.

* But — God fent forth his Son made of a woman, made

* under the law, ver. 5. Tq redeem tliem that were under

* the law, that we might receive the adoption of ions.'

Use I. What is faid may ferve for Convincing, awak- Bing, and alarming of fmners who are ilrangcrs to Jefus Chriil:, whether they be profane pei-fons, or formal hypo- crites. Being yi't in your natural fiate, net united to Chriil ; ye are in a liate of bondage, there is a terrible and heavy- yoke wreathed about your necks, from which ye are notable to deliver ycurfeives. Ye are Bond-men under the law : And fo,

I. It lyes upon you, ro perrorm and fulfil the f.;rvice man was bound to by the covenant of woiks, even to give per- fect obedience io the law, under the pain of the curfe : for to you it faith, Rom. iii. 19. ' Curfed is every one that con- ' tinueth not in all things, which are written in the book of ' the law, to do them.' Now ye are uttcily unable for this, and fnall as fooo remove thefe mountains as perform it : therefore ye can never be faved, while ye are out of Chriif. Behold, in CbriiPs taking on him the form of a Servant, how that Setvice behoved of ncceility to be per- formed, according to the law, ere one finner could be faved. And if God did fo iland upon the honour of his law with hi-> ov/nSon, that he behoved completely to fulfil that fervice for thofc whcrA he fhould fave ; 'tis vain for voii to flight

• ' Chrid,

1 8 The Mypry of Chrijl

Chri/1, and think that God will grant an abatement of that fervice to you. Nay, as mattei-s (land betwixt God and you, if you obey not perfcdiy, 5'ou do nothing to purpofe : no lefs can be accepted off your hand, fincc ye are not ia Chrift by faith.

2. It lyes upon you to bear the punifhment due to yon for breaking away from God your Lord and mafter ; accor- ding to the threatning, Gen. ii. 17. " In the day thou eat- *♦ e(^ thereof, thou Ihalt furely die." All that ye can fuffer in this world will not be a fu/Hcient compenfation for the wrong th rcby done to the honour of an infinite God: nay, ye fhall never be able, through the ages of eternity, to ex- haurt: that punifhment, and get from under it. None lefs tban he, who was in the form of God, and equal with God, was able to go through it : therefore the Son of God took on him the form of a fervant, tliut therein he might bear it, and bear it away from all that believe. A certain proof that none out of Chrift fhall efcape it.

Confider then, I befeech you, what ye are doing : and fee here, how precifely God (lands to his having the Service, owing him in virtue of the firii covenant, fully made out : that, rather than any fiiould be faved without its being ful- filled,he would have his ov/n Son to take on him the form of a Servant, and fulfil it for them.

Use II. Let all be exhorted to flee to the Lord Jefus Ctiriftj-and, by faith, to embrace hirn, and the Service per- formed by him, as ihcir only [ilea for life and falvation. Here's a myflcry of faith ; ' ( hrift took upon him the form * of a Servant,' propoft d to be believed and applied by each ©nr? in particular to hiinfclf, for falvation. And furely k will be good tidings,

1. To the poor broken hearted (inner, who fees he can- »ot ferve the Lord aecordiiig to the demand of the law, but one way or orher mirs every piece of work he takes in hand ; who is oat of conceit with his own bcft doings, be- Ccuife thev are fo ill done. There's a fervicc performed by the Mediator for finners, thiit is perfed even in the eye of rhe law, 'Tis done, 'tis complf.ted, and life and falvation 15 thereby gained for .!! -.1:. t liiali believe.

2. To iiich as arc imucr the terror of the threatning^ ar4 curfe ci' :Jic lioly law, for their running away from

God'3

in the Form of a Sefjattt* 1 9

God's fervlce, and the difhonour they have done to the great Ma(ter. Here's the way of peace ai>d reconcilhuion, by which ye may return to him a3 a Father •, even thro' his own Son, who, for finners, ♦ took upon him the form of a

* Servant,' and finifhed his work.

Jefus Chrift, with his Service, and all the benefits thereof, is offered unto yon this day : refufe him not, but take him as exhibited unto you in the gofpel-offlr. Take him for your righteoufnefs, in which you'll (land before the Lord ; rake him for your treafure, out of which all your debt fliall be paid ; take him for your work, from v,hcnce alone your righteoufnefs ihall arife for your juftification before the Lord ; take him for your Husband, head, and Lord : take him for your All in all. Take himfelf, and his Service (hall be im- puted to you ; his Hate of fervitude, which is now over, fhall make thee a fl^n or daughter of Goa's family : in him thou (halt be * received for ever, not row as a Servant, but

* above a fervant ; as Paul fpeaks in the cafe of Onefimus, a runaway Bond-fervant, Philem. 15, 16. So (hall you get both heart and hand for working good work?, v/orks truly good ; as children working to their father, having the inhe- ritance fecured to them before, by the woiks of their el- der brother.

Object. 1.* But will ever Chrlft make me partaker of the be-

* ncfits of this fervice, who have ferved my !ufts,^inftead offer

* ving him V Anf. Chrift became not a Bond-fervant, but for thofe who were in Bondage to fm and Satan : and it was the very end for which he to*.k on him the form of a fer- vant, that, by communicating to them the benefits of his Service, he might deliver them from the <ervice of (in, and caufe them to ferve him, Luke i. 74. * That we being de-

* livered ©ut of the hands of our enemies, might ferve

* him.' Doubt not, then, but that, coming to him, ye (hall be partakers of the benefits of his Service, to all intents and purpofes of falvation : and particularly, that ye may be no more Bond-fervants under (in, but honorary Servants to lumfelf, whatever ye have been heretofore. - * For wc

* ourfelves alfo were fomf times— ferving divers lu({s and

* pleafures. Tit. iii. 3. And fuch were fome of you : but

* yp are walhsd, but ys are ran(5tificd, but ye are judified

20 The My^.ery of Chrlji

« in the name ox' the Lord Jefus, and by the Spirit of our

* God.'

Object. 2. * I fear I am none of thcfc in whofe room

* and ftead Chrift took on him the form of a Servant : How

* then can I embrace him, and apply his Service to me, by

* believing ? Ar\^. Your right to tai;e him, and apply his fervice to yourfelf by believing, doth not at all depend on that matter, which is a fecret not to be known by you till ye do believe ; but it depends on the offer of Chriit, his fenrice which he ferved, and riohteoufnefs which he thereby wrought, made to you in the gofpelof God, Rev. xxii. 17. ' Who-

* foever will, let him take the water of life freely.' Howbe- jt Chrift took on him the form of a Servant, only in the name and (lead of the elect ; yet a flain Saviour, a crucified Jefus, havInjT fylF.lled the Bond-fervice, is the ordinance of God for life and falvation unto all ; that whofoever of all Adam's race * believeth in him, ihould not pcrifh, but have ever-

* lading life,' John iii. 16. And his Service or Righteoufnefs is a Gift made over in the gofpel to all the hearers of it ; io iis 'tis lawful for them, and every one of them, to take poflelnon of it by believing. Hence, according to the A- pofde, to believe is to ' recefve the abundance of grace,

* and of the gift of righteoufnefs,' Rom. v. 17. And this is fo certain, that ye muft either receive it and be faved ; or be held, in the court of heaven, refufefs of heaven's gift of righteoufnefs made to you, and fo perirti for ever with a double de(h-udion, Mark xvi. 16. ' He that believeth ■* and is baptized, fliall be faved : but he that believeth not,

* fhall be damned.'

Use lafi:. O Chriflians, communicants, come to the Lord's table with the fiith and admiration of this flupendu- ous mydery, ' Chri'i in the form of a Bond-fervant for you.' See it in the exait jufHce of God, the invaluable price of your falvation from f n and wrath, and the ftrongefl: motive to the obedience of ^"ons. And let the faith of it fill your hearts uath love to him, who fo loved us; with repentance, and kindly forrow for your fin, \vhich brought G-od's • quat fo very lov/ ; with thankfulnefs for this unfpeakabie benefit" j- D'^.d with holy purpofcs of new obedience.

Thi eri'J of ths a^hn-fcrmon.

ax THE,

CONTINUATION

O F T H E

IMPROVEMENT.

THIS doftrine of Chrift's ftate of fervitidc is too fruitful, both in poiilt of faith and practice, to be difmifTcd without further improvement : therefore I fhall now endeavour to improve it for your further inftrudtion, and for exciting to the pradice of bolinefs.

First, This do(5lrine difcovers the Ground and Reafon of feveral other gofpel-truths, which fpring from it as a Root-Principle. And, among thefe, I fhall take notice of the following particulars ;

I. Here is a clear ground, upon which the dead dc^, incapable by any work or doing of their own, to makethem- felvcs to differ from others, are, in a confiftency with God's impartial jnflice, Quickned and endowed with faving faith, while others remain dead about them ; quickning grace co- ming on them * as a dew from the Lord, as fhowers upon

* the grafs, that tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the

* fons of men,' Micah v. 7. Our Lord Jefus havmg, in their name, taken on him the form of a Bond-fervant, did, in their room and ftead, perform the fervice required of them by the broken covenant of works, the original contradl: of fervice ; but he did not perform that fervice in the room and ftead of others. Hence, tho' not to others, yet to them is given Life, as the reward of the fervice performed for them by the fecond Adam ; even as their Kfe was loft thro' the marring of that fervice in the hands of the firft Adam,

* For as in Adam all die, even fo in Chrift fhall all fee made

* alive,' I Cor. xv. 22. i. e. As all Adam's natural feed die, by his breaking off from the fervice ; fo all Chrifl's fpiritual feed fhall be made alive by his fulfilling it for them. And now that the Lord Jefus, having finifhed his Service by his death aqd b«rial, is rifen again to be * Lord of the

H ' ^ dead

22 The Myjfery of Chrifi

* dead and, of the living ;' how can they mifs of beiri^ quickned, each one in his time, fince he lives, to fee that the Life, for which he ferved a hard Service, be made forthcoming to them, according to the contrad of Service he entred into with his futher ? ' Becaufe he lives, they fkall

* live alfo.'

2. Here is a clear grourrd, upon which the Obedience of the Man Chriil may be im[uted to believers for righteouf- Bcfs, as well as his fatisfadtion by fufifering : notwithftanding Obedience was due from the human natute of Chrift as a creature. For 'tis evident, that Chrift's obeying his Father in the character of a Bond-ftrvant (which is it that is im- puted to us for righteoufnefs) could no more be Due, ante- cedently to his Contra(5l of Service, than his fatisfas^Uon by fuffering.

3. Here is the ground, upon" which believers m Chrift come to be julHfied before God ; not upon the account of sny thing wrought In them, or any work or deed done By them, whether the grace of f^iith itf If, thei? adt of belie- ving, or any " gofpel-obedience of theirs whatfoever, imput- (td to them forrighteoufnefs, but upon the accountof Chrift s Service, allenarly, imputed to them for their \Vhole and Only righteoufnefs in the fight of God, according to the Apoftle's defire, that he might ' be found in him, not ha-

* ving his own righteoufnefs — but that which is through the

* faith of Chrift,' Philip, iii. 9. For in the fecond covenant there was a Transferring on him their flate of fervitude, under which they flood bound to make out the Fcrvlcc, Tv'hich was the Condinon of life : accordingly He wrought the work, and faliilled the fervice for life, in their name andltead, both in the Doing and Suffering part of it, "Now, they being United to him by faith, his righteoufnefs arifing from that Service becomes theirs, and fo is juflly imputed to them. And fince a holy juft God infifted to have his Ser- vice, according to the original contrail, fulfilled for life and falyation to poor finners, and Jefiis Chrift was the Servant •who did that work, not they ; it cannot be, that any thing clfe whatfocvcr ihould be imputed to them for righteoufnefs, but Chrift's Service, which he himfejf icrved, and for the performing of which he took upon him the form of a Hond- fcrvant, Rem. iii. 22, 24. * Hrerahc rightcouiiitfs of Cod,

« Vihicli

7/7 the Forth of a Serva^if. 2^

* vhich is by faith of Jefus Chrift unto all, ?.r.d upon all

^ tfiem tiiat believe. Being juftified freely by his grace,

« thiouoh the redemption that is in Jefus Chriii.' 2 Cor. T. 21. ' For he made him to be fin for us, who kne\T

* no (in, that we might be made the righteoufnefs of God

* in him.' '7'is to his bearing the I-uniihment due to the l^unaway Servants, we owe the paidor- of all our fins ; and to the Obedience given by him only, we owe our accep- tance, as poCtively righteous in the fight of God.

4. Here is a clear and folid ground upon which believers in Ghriil are delivered from the Covenant of works ; or delivered from the Lav/, confidered as that covenant. For tliai broken Covenant being fo far ingrofled in the Cove- nant with the fecond Adam, as that, from It, the fervice he was to perform in Their room and (lead was ftated in all tke parts thereof, it plainly follows, that the Service being fully performed by him accordingly for them, and being really become theirs by faith, they arc wholly delivered from that covenant : fo that it can demand no more fervice of them, than a mafter can demand of a fervant, who, in the perion of another by him accepted, has ferved out his time, and fo hath a right to the full hire, R.om. vii. 4. ' "Wherefore,

* my brethren, ye alfo are become dead to the law by the

* body of Chrilt.' John viii. 36. * If the Son therefore

* iliall make you free, ye fliall be free indeed.'

5., Here is the ground upon which believers are no more Bond-fervants, to v/ork for life and falvation, to get it by their ov/n works ; but advanced to the dignity of Sons, and to ferve as fons, to whom the inheritance belongs in virtue of their relation to their father. For fince the Lord Jefus Chrift took on him the form of a Bond-fervant for them ; and, having finillied that Service in their ftead, became Free again : tiiey, being united to Chrifl: by faith, can no longer remain Bond-fcrvants ; it being the very end of Chrilt's be- coming a Bond-fervant, to fet them Free. This is their right and privilege before the Lord ; howbeit, thro' the weaknefs of their faith, they often ferve the Lord as Bond- men. And fince it was the Son of God, the Father's equal, v/ho Served in the charader of a Bond-fervant for them, they ar-, by the merit of that fervice, advanced to be Tons of the houfc of heaven. From this ground it is that H 2 the

24 T^s Myfery of Chrijl

the ApoRIe draws that conclufion concerning every belieyer, Gal. iv. 7. * Wherefore thou art no more a fervant, (i. e. a Bond-f rvant) but a fon.' Compare the preceeding fix yerfes of that chapter.

6. Here is the ground upon which behevers are fet be- yond the reach of the Curfe, are freed from the Guilt of Eternal or Revenging Wrath, and can never for fhorter or longer time fall under Condemnation ; howbeit their fins make them liable to all the eife(!ls of God's Fatherly anger. For Chrifl taking on him the form of a Bond-fervant for tkem, bore all the Curfe, revenging Wrath, and Condem- nation due to them for all their fins, whether Before or Af- ter their Union with him : the which Service done for them is imputed to them, upon their believing in him ; and from that moinent is ever Upon them, never again difimputed. The truth is, the Curfe would reduce them into the fiate of Bond-fervants again, and fo Un-fonthem ; as Condemna- tion, and the Guilt of eternal Wrath, fpeak the finner on whom they fall to be a Bond-fervant, and not a fon. Thus teach the holy fcriptures, Gal. iii. 13. * Chrift « hath redeemed us from the curfe of the law, being made *■ a curfe for us. Chap, iv, 7. * Wherefore thou art no

* more a fervant, but a fon.' Rom. viii. i. ' There is

* therefore now no condemnation to them which are inChrift

* jefus.' Ifa. liv. 9. ' For this is as the waters of Noah

* unto me :' (which waters were a type of the flood of wrath, wherewith Chrift the . true ark was tofied, i Pet. iii. 20, 21 .) ' For as I have fworn that the waters of Noah

* fiiould no more go over the earth ; fo have I fworn that

* I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.* Pfal. Ixxxix.-;?!, 32. * If they break my ftatutes.— Then will I

* vifit their tranforefiion with the rod.*

7. Here is the fountain-head of fan<fhficatIon thro' faith in Chrifl: ; which is the orly true fan(51iiication competent to fallen Adam's children, the fpring of all holy obedience and good works to be found amcnofl them. A SintuI crccture in a f}?te of Servitude or Bond ge, under the law or covenant of works, is a ' Bond-fervant to fin :' For ' the

* frrength of fin i'? the law.' i Cor. xv, 56. binding over the finner To death, ve?. binding him down Under dtath. And, being a Bond-fervant to fin, he is in bondage to Satan

too J

in the Form tf a Servant » 7 S

too ; fincc the power of fin is his fceptre, whereby he rules over the children of fallen Adana. Hence, while the finful man continues in Bondage under that covenant, fin retains its full force and fway over him ; even as the vermin doth over the dead corps in the grav€ : fo that he can neither Be truly good, nor Do any thing truly good. But the Holy Jefus becoming a Bond-fcrvant under the law, in the room and (lead of the Sinful creature, anfwered ail the demands- thereof; and, having finiflied the Service, w^s, of courfe. Freed from its yoke, which he haii voluntarily taken on him- felf. Now, the finner uniting with him by faith, ChiilFs fervice is imputed to him. Hence his Bondage under the law as the covenant of works is done away ; and he partakes more abundantly of the promifcd life of the Spi- rit of life in Chrifl Jefus : fo the reigning power of fin and Satan over him is broken, and he dies unto fin and lives un- to righteoufncfs, in holy obedience to the law of the ten commandments, as a rule of life to him in the hand qf the Frrce of life. Thus unholy creatures ' are fanftificd

* in Chrift Jtlus^' i Cor. i. 2. * fandified by faith,' Acts xxvi. 18. And this the Apoflle plainly teacheth, Rom. Tii. 5, 6. ' For when we were in the flelli, the motions of

* fin, whvh were by the law, did work in our members to

* bring forth fruit unto death. But now we are delivered

* from the ic.w, that being dead wherein we were held, that

* we fhould fe've in newnefs of fpirit, and not in the old-

* 5'efs of the letter '

8. Here is the ground in law, for the perfeverance of the faints ; that they (hall never fall away totally nor final- ly, but the Life given them, in their union with Chrift, mufl needs be Eternal, never to die out, from the moment 'tis given, through the ages of eternity. For the Service upon which their Life depends, is completely performed by Jefus Chill; and the Life, which was the promifed Reward of thit Service, is actually beftowed on them in fome meafure : which Life, therefore, can never totally nor finally^faiJ, with- €ut the f^iiluie of the promife, the true and proper Condi- tion of which is Already fulflied. Wherefore, the time of trial (in the fenfe of the firft covenant) for hfe and falvati- pn to believers, being now over, in fhe fecond Adam their head engaging in the Service ; their Perfeverance is as fure

as

26 T^^e Mxjlery of Chnjl

a*; the faithfulncfs of God can make it. And thus the Apo- ftle proves the Perfeverance of the faints, Heb. x. 38. From the teftimony of the Prophet, Hab. ii. 4. For, as the law faith, ' He that doth thefe things (hall live ;' Tq the gofpel faith, * 1 he juft by faith fliall live :' as fomc va- luable interpreters read this text, and, I think, rightly.

Laftly, Here is the only ground of their Right to, and upon which they are put in PofTeffion of, Compleat Life and Salvation in heaven, namely, Chrilf's Works and Service performed for them, and pK aded by them in the way of believing. For what plea can one have for the hire or re- ward, either as to the right to it, or tlie polkffion of it, but the Performance of the Service upon the account of which it v.'as promifed ? Now, Chrift Alone performed That Ser- rice : theicfore wc cannot found our plea before the Lord for heaven's happinefs, on any other ground but Chrift's works and f'rrvice. Paul renounceth all other grounds, and thinks himfclf very fafe upon this Alone, while he defires to

* be found in Chrid:, not having his own righteuufnefs, — but ' that which is through the faith of Chrift,' Philip, iii. 9. For * they v^'hich receive abundance of grace, and of the gift

* of righteoufoefs, fhall reign in life by one, Jefus Chrid," Rom, V. 17. And the great dcfign of the contrivance of falvHtion was, ' Th '.t grace might r^ i^n through righteouf-

* nefs unto eternal life, bv Jtfus Chrift our Lord,' vcr. 21. There is a glorous * recompence of reward,' that follows the faints ^'^"ork and Labour of love : but the truth is, 'tis (prcierly and flrijrls' fi:)eakmg) the reward of the fervice of their Head, not of the fervice of their Hands.

Secondly. This doarine, of Chrift's Rate offervitude. Is a .rv.y\ powerfil Incentive to Gofpel-obedience ; and being apjilied to one's frlf by faith, will be found to be a Spring of holmefs of heart and Hfe. And thus it may be impro- Tcn. ( I.; Mce generally. (2.) More particularly.

Firll:, Mor- generally, in two branches.

I. If ye hnve any part or lot ia this matter of Chriif's Service, let it be thr bu^nefs of your life to ferve the Lord Chrid": f-ty peremptorily and refolutcly, * As for me and

* my houfe, we will ferve the Lord,' Jofu, x'viv. 15. And devote yo ir^elves to the Service of God in Chrid, which is your reafunitble fcjrvice. Serve him in the duties of v^'or-

fhip

in the Form of a Servant, "27

fiiip, external and internal : ferve him in {ccret, in your families, in the congregation^ of his people : ferve himin lirft- table duties, and in fecond-table duties : ferve him in your civil actions, and in your natural adions ; * Whether there-

* fore ye eat or drink, or whatfoever ye do, do all to

* the glory of God :' ferve him in the feveral Ititions and relations wherein he has placed you : ferve him in doing for him, and fuffcring for him,, as be calls you. Set his holy law before you, in its fpirituality and valt extent ; and know- that it is the rule and meafure of the fcrvice ye owe him. Look upon the fervice Chrilt performed for you, and let it excite and animate you to ferve him.

Here is a powerful Motive, to engage you to ferve him. And, that it may have its due influence upon you to that ef- fect, confidcr,

1. He was in the * form of God,' and God's Equal, who Served for you ; ye were born in fjondage, under the law, Bond-fervants to fin and Satan, the worit of mafters. If you * look to the rock whence ye were hewn, and to the

'* hole of the pit whence ye were digged ;' and v*'itl>al look unto the Son of God, leaving the Father's bofom, defcend- ing from his throne of majeily, laying afide the robes of his glory, and taking on the form of a fervant, therein to ferve for you : ye muft needs be haled to liis fervice by the over- coming force of his believed humiliation, 2 Cor. v. 14.

* For the love of Chrilt conitrainetb us.'

2. He has No Need of your fervice to him, but ye were in Abfolute Need of his fervice for you. Tho' ye had re- mained bond-Haves to Satan for ever, the want of your fer- vice, and all the diflervice ye could have done the Lord of glory, could not have Hurt him ; nor can your fervice Add any thing to his happinefs. Job xxxv. 7, 8. But, without his fervice for you, ye had perifhed for ever, ye had beea bound hand and foot in utter darknefs, for your breaking of the fird covenant of fervice. Are not yc and your fer- vice then wholly his ? And, if ye believe ye had perilhed eternally unlefs he had ferved for you, can ye refufe him your fervice ?

3. The fervice he performed for you was Hard fervice : the yoke he puts upon you is Eafy, and the Pnrden Light, Matth. xi. 30. He fer\-ed as a Bond-fervant for you ; he

requires

28 rhe Mypry of Chrifi

requires you to ferve him as a Son ferveth his father, Mai. ;

iii. 17. if his people make their own fervice harder, they owe ]

it not to his Spirit, but to their own fpirit, or a worfe, Rom. ■

viii. 15. ' For ye have not received the fpirit of bondage I

< again to fear. "No lefs than obedience, every way perfed:, j

could be accepted at his hand : but he'll gracioufly accept ;

fincere obedience attended with many imperfedions, at your ;

hand. He had a Hot Service, a hot Working fervice, a !

hot Fighting fervice, for you, in the fire of the wrath of \

God, which burnt againft him, as ftanding in your room. '■

Behold him in the garden, in a cold night, fweating great ''■

drops of blood at his fervice ! behold him on the crofs, at |

once grappling with the Father's wrath, the rage and power i

of devils and men ! and hear him calling for your fervice ■

on that very fcore, Cant. v. 2. *Open to me — for my head is ■

* iiiled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night.' \

4. His fervice being finifhed, he is now, in confequence '

thereof, Exalted to be Lord of All, Philip, ii. 9, 10. ,

* Wherefore God alfo hath highly exalted him, and given '

* him a name which is above every name : that at the name \

* of Jefas every knee fhould bow.' He is now crowned 1 king in Zion ; and all are folemnly commanded by the au- ' thority of heaven to fubmit to him, and ferve him, to * kifs ,

* the fon,* Pfal. ii. 12. Our Jofeph, who was fold for a '. Ser/ant, is now brought forth of the dungeon, and made ruler over all the land : he rides in the fecond chariot, and - *tis cried before him, * Bow the knee.' His fheaf now ■ flands uprigl:t : let all his brethren bow down before him, even to the earth. Behold him, O believer, who ferved 1 for thee in the chara<fl:er of a Bond-fervant, now highly ' exalted, all power given unto him in heaven and in earth : i behold him fitting on the right-hand of the throne of ma- ^ jcdy, Commanding thee to the broad law of the ten com- ; mands, the Eternal Rule of righteoufnefs ; and ftri^tly Bin- ' ding thee to obedience thereto, by the authority of God \ thy Creator and Preferver ; and with the additional tye of ; his Mediatory Authority, his Right of Redemption over thee, and his Dying Love to thee, which may well fupply the place of the bond of the covenant of works, and the curfe, the only tye unto obedience which he hath taken from off ?hce by his fervice.

5. Chrift

in the Form of a Servant, 29

•5. Chrift ferved his hard and fore fervice for you, to this very end, that ye, being delivered from your bondage and flavery under (in and the curfe, • might ferve him in holincfs

* and righteoufncls,' Luke i. 74, 75. It ^as for this end the Lord Jefus undertook his fervice for you : why would ye then go about to fruftrate the end of your Redeemer's un> dertaWng for you ? is this your kindnefs to your friend ? 'Tis unthankfulnefs with a witnefs, to refufe him your fer- vice, to which ye are bound by the ftrongcft ties of gra- titude for the greateft favour from your beft friend.

6. Your fervice is Dear-borught : grudge it not. 'Tis the price of blood, the blood of the Son of God, * Who gave

* himfelf for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity,

* and purify unto himfelf a peculiar people, zealous of good

* works,' Tit. ii. 14. Serving of the Lord is a precious Privilege, as well as a Duty; for 'tis a part of heaven's happinefs, Rev.xxii. 3. * His fervants (hall ferve him.' Ye were in bondage to (in and Satan, which would not Permit you to ferve the Lord ; until Chrift by his fervice, took their yoke from off your necks. Ye were in bondage under the Curfe, that no fervice to God could be Accepted at your hand ; till ye were relieved thro' Chrift's becoming a curfe for you. Ye were bound hand and foot, yea. Dead in trefpaffes and fins, that ye could not ferve the Lord ; un- til his precious blood fet you free, and his death gave you life and ftrength. And (hall your fervice, the purchafe of blood, be withheld from the glorious pur chafer? So far as it is fo, 'tis doubdefs owing to unbelief. O believer, look to the crofs of Chrift, and behold how he paid for every good Work, every good Word, yea, every good Thought of thine. There is not one of thefe found, or that (hall he found with thee, through the ages of eternity, but it fprings from the Merit and never-failing Efficacy of Chrift's Service. And, had not the Lord Jefus taken on him the form of a Servant for us, there had never been One piece d[ Acceptable fervice to God, one good work, word or thought found among the children of men, after the brcacb of the fir(t covenant

7 . There is a glorious aiid full Reward, gained by Chrift's fervice, awaiting all his fervants at the end of their courfe ; even the fuU enjojment of God in the other \\ orld ; in

I whicU

30 The Alyflery of Chrifi

which yc fliall be completely happy for all eternity, i Theft, iv. 17. ' So (hall we ever be with the Lord.' i John iii. 2.

* We fh;ill be like him ; for we fhall fee him as he is.' Our Lord Jefas having run in the name and on the head of the bleiTed company, the defigned heirs of glory, and having won the prize for them all ; now fits on a throne at the end of the race, with the prrze in his hand, calling you to make hafte and follow him, and to Run fo, in faith and obe- dience, ' that yoH may obtain,' i Cor. ix. 24. * Have re- ' fpe<a to the recompence of rev/ard,' Heb. xi. 26. Set and keep your eye upon it all along your fervicc, as a Won Prize, and won For Vou, by the Great Servant : and let the Hope of it excite, animate and encourage you \^ the hardefl: pieces of fervice in your way towards it. The time is but fhort : wherefore, tho' your fervice be Difficult, it will not be Longfome. And the glorious reward will more than counterbalance all your toil. And remember, that According to your Works in his fervice, fo will your fhare of the Reward be, greater or fmaller, 2 Cor. ix. 6. * He

* which foweth fparingly, fliall reap alfo fparingly : and he

* which foweth bountifully, fhall reap alfo bountifully.' The reafon is, becaufe both our Service to God, and our Re- ward, are Purely and Equally the Fruits of Chrift's Service for us ; and lb they are proportioned to the Efficacy of It in us : wherefore, according to the Efficacy of ChrifFs Ser- vice in us, fo will our Service be, and fo will our Reward be ; and fo, the Greater Service, the greater Reward.

8- If yc do indeed belong to Chrift, as thefe for whom He ferved, ye Shall certainly ferve him. For, if he was crucified for you, your old man was nailed to the fame crofs with him, that fin might be deflroyed in you, and you might ferve him ; Rom. vi. 6. ' Knowing this, that our old man

* is crucified with him, that the body of fin might be de-

* ftroyed, that thenceforth we fhould not ferve fin.' And- your Service is a part of the Reward of His Service, which he cannot lofe ; for he has his F.ather's faith fulnefs engaged for it, in the promife of the covenant made to him, Plal. xxii. 30. * A ^Qzd fliall ferve him ;' they fliall ferve him Sin- cerely here, and Perfefrly hereafter. So that heaven and ^arth fliall be overturned, and the whole frame and courfe

2K the Form of a Servant. % i

of nature renvcrfcd rather than one foul, for which Chriit fervcd, be left in Bond;ige to its lufis.

Take heed then to youilclves ; for your ddiverance from the bondage of your luds, and your ferving the Lord, is the neceCity dccifive Evidence of your part in Chrifi:, of any faving intereft in him and his Service. If ye ferve him in truth, his ferrice is yours, imputed to you for all the pur- pofes of life and falvation. If ye ferve him not, ye have neither part nor lot in that matter, but murt periili for ever, Luke xiii. 3. * Except ye repent, ye fli.ill all likewifs pe-

• rifli.' Rom. viii. 13. * If ye live after the fiefh, ye fliall

• die: but if ye, through the Spirit, do mortify the deeds of

• the body, ye fhall live.' If ye be not his Servants, to ft-rve him, ye are Slaves to the devil and your lufts; and ye fkall die the Death of fiaves for your tranfgrelTions : ye fhall die a curfed death, under the curfe of the lav/, flaking 3'oii down under eternal ^/rath, from which ye fhall never be able to lift your 1/ead : ye fiiall die a fliameful death, flript of all covering whatfocver, the whole world beholding your fhame : ye fhal! die a death painful beyond expreifion, through re^ venging wrath, like Nails and Spears, piercing into your ve- ry fouls : and ye Hiall die alingring death, fpun out through all the ages of eternity.

Laftly, By Chrift's fervice there is Strength purchafed, wherewith ye may ferve-him ; and it lyes open to j'ou, to be improved in the way of believing, for_ enabling you to your Vv'ork, Ifa. xlv. 24. ' Surely, lliall one fay. In the ' Lord have I righteoufnefs and ftrength.' The fervice which the Lord Jcfus took off our hand upon himlelf, name- ly the Bond-fervice, was what we neither had nor could have ihength for. Strength for the Suir'ering part of it man never had ; fcren^th for the "Working part of it man once indeed had, but now 'tis loft. Elcnce theie who continue in the Bond-fervice (iiy, under the lav/ or covenant of works, can work none at all : they can work no work trucly good nnd acceptable in the fioht of God. And 'tis vain, upoii that view, to bid them work, without dire»51:ina them, inth^ firff place, to get in to Jefus Clirift, from under that cove- nant. But now the Mediator has puri*hafed a Nev/ Stock oi (hength, for the New Service which he puts in our hand ; ,:r:d lis lodged ii' hiiilcif, treafuted up \\\ him as the head

ox I 2

52 r he My fiery of Ckrift

of influences : and In the faith of it we are to fet about our \vork, 2 Tim. ii. i. * Thooi therefore, my fon, be ftrong ' in the grace that is in Chrift Jefus.' So fhall we be ena- bled for the hardeft forvice required of us, Philip, ivc 13.

* 1 can do all things through Chrift which ftrengthneth me.* Come then, and refolutely ply the fervice he calls you to.

II. If ye have any part or lot in Chrift's fervice, fervc him as Sons and Daughters ; ferve him ' as a fon ferveth his father,* not as a Bond-fervant ferveth his mafter. If thou art in Chrifl, * thou art ho more a fervant' (/, e, a bond-fer- rant) * but a fon,' Gal. iv. 7. Serve him then agreeable to the chara(5ler ye bear before hint. As it is your Duty, fo it is your high Privilege, that ye have accefs to fcrve him in that manner. 'Tis the price of Chrift's blood ; flight it not. He ferved as a Bond-man, that ye might ferve as Sons. Ye liad been Bond-fcrvants for ever, had not the Son of God become a Bond-fervant for you, being * made usder the law

* that ye might receive the adoption of fbns,' Gal. iv. 4, ^. And indeed he only v/as fit to ferve God in that characfler t Kone elfe was able to have managed it acceptably. Where- fore,

1 . Serve him out of Love to him : let your work and la- bour be a ' work and labour of love,' Heb. vi. 10. Behold the Son of G^d ferving a hard fervice in your ftead, from Love to his Father, and Love to you who were altogether unlovely : and let the Love of Chrifl: conftrain you to obe- dience. Believing views of Chrift in the form of a Servant will produce this conftraining love, 2 Cor. v. 14. * For the

* love of Chrift conftraineth us, becaufe we thus judge, that

* if one died for all, <i<r.' They will alfo prevent your afting from a Slavilli fear of puniAiment, and a Service hope of reward, both of them unbecoming the ftatc of Sonfhip, 2 Tim. i. 7. * For God hath not given us the fpirit of fear;

* but of power, and of love, and of a found mind.' As, on the other hand, they will fll you with a filial fear of God's fathe-ly anger, and a fon-Iike hope of the purchafed and promifed reward.

2. Serve him Univerfally, fo as ye may ♦ fland perfe(5t ^ and compleat In aM the will of God,' Col, iv. 12 The fpirit of adoption brings men unto this evangelical perfcflion ; but a fiancr fcryLng God in the Itate of Bondage will never

comply

in the Form of a Servant* 3 5

comply with the whole will of God ; but there u 111 ftlU be exceptions lying in the heart of fuck a one againH: fome one or other place of commanded fcrvice. This is evident from the pfalmift's teftimony, Pfal. cxix. 6. * Then ihall I not be a-

* fhamed, when I have rcfpeft unto all thy commandments.* Serve ye the Lord then as Sons, fticking at no piece of fer- vicc commanded you, however painful, coIHy, or dangerous: for at this rate Chrift ferved for you, fparing neither pains nor coft, and IHcking at no danger.

Laftly, Serve him Conftandy, even to the end, Pfal. cxIx. 112. * I have inclined mine heart to perform thv ftatutf 3 al-

* way, even unto the end.' It argues the Spirit of a Sinner m the ftate of Bondage, to ply the work no longer than the Whip is held over one's head, or than one has fomething to Gain to himfelf by his work, Job xxvii. 10. * Will he de-

* light himfelf in the Almighty ? will he alwa5's call upon

* God?' Shew vourfelves fons of God, by cleaving to his fervlce Continue liv, and never going back again to your old inaf eis. Remember him who was Obedient even unto Death.

Secondly, and more particularly. If ye hare any part or lot in this matter'j^ let the fame mind be in you which was in Chrill; Jefus, who for you took on the form of a Servant.

1. Be of a loving and charitable difpoiition towards your brethren the fons of men. Be concerned for the good of others, as well as for your own. Lay afide all hatred, malice and levengc, envy and grudge at the good of others, as e- vt ye would fl^ew yourfelvcs pr.rtakers of the Spirit of vChrill. Love "Our neighbour as yourfelves. Let the love that Chrifi flicved to his Vatuerand to mankind, in taking on the Form of a Servant in man's nature, infpire you with this Love.

2. * As ye have opportunity do good,' and be ferviceable

* unto all men, efpeciaily unto them v.ho are of the houfe-

* hold «f faith,' Gal. vi. 10. Whether they be good or bad, withiiold not ye the good that is In the power of yoiw hand to do them The Father fet his love on a ftlec^ com- pany of mankind : but they behoved to be redeemed, to be bought from deftrucrion with a price: and no fconer was it propofed to the Son to do this for them, but he confented to do it, and to take on liim the form of a Sert'ant for that eife.St. If th.? fame mind be In you that was in Chrift, it ^illnot divert )oa from doing good to men, tho' you arc

I ' nothing

rke Myflery of Chrift

nothing obliged to them, they are unworthy of kindncfs, have done wrong to you, and ye cannot expeft cornpenfation from them. Could any or all of thcfe arguments have pre- vailed with the Son of God to withhold his helping hand from us, we had been all under Bondage to this day, with- out hope of relief. And let it move yon to do good to the Saints in a fpeciaf manner, that they are the perfons in par- ticular for whom Chx'x^ took on him the form of a Servant.

3. ' Put on bowels of humanity, Mercies and compallioa towards tliofe who are in difrrcfs, Col. iii. 12. A felfiili and untender difpofition, void of fympathy with thofe in mifery, is moft urJike that mind which was in Chrid Jefus, who, ia his pity towards mifcrable finners, laid afide the robes of his ■ glory, and took on him the form of a Servant, that he might relieve them. But ' he fhall have judgment without mercy,

* thfit hath fhew'd no mercy,' James ii. 13.

4. Shew a flrict regard to Juftice in your dealings ; and be confcientious in giving every one his Due. 'Twas from regard to Juflice, and that the fervice due unto God from the ele6i, in virtue of the original contrail, might be per- formed, that Jefiis Chrifi: took on him the form of a Ser- vant, and made out the Service.

5. Be Humble, and Condefcend to low things ncce/Tary for the good of others. For this we have the example of Cod's Equal, taking on him the form of a Servant ; which I may fill the faces of the proud and feliifli with fliame and 1 blufhing, John xiii. 14, 15. ' if I, then your Lord and ;

* Maftcr have wafhed your feet, ye alfo ought to wafli one

* another's feet. For I have given you an example, that

* ye (hould do as I have done to you.' ; Laftly, Be Mortified to the eafe, pomp and fplendour ©f \

the world. Be ready, at God's call, to forego the comforts , of a prcfent life, in the believing profpe6t of a better ; j

* Looking unto Jefus, who, for the joy that \7as fet before \

* him, endured the crofs, defpifing the (liame :' and f* \ down contented, tho the world fhi)uld neither give you its j good v/ord, nor its kind look. All the time that our blefled j Lord Jefus Chrifi: was in the world, from his birth to his i buri.il, he v.-as in it in the character of a Bond-fcrvant; and ac- ; cordingly had but coarfc entertainment, hard lodging, being j held in no reputation, and at length buffeted, fcourged and ^ crucifcd. '

FINIS, i

Books fold by JOHN WOOD,

at the Foot of Fotrejier's Wynd.

"PLavel's works, 2 vols folio

^ Ambrofe's Jooking unto Jefus, 4to

Buchanan's hiftory, 2 vols 8vo

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fourfold ftate, a new edition, recommended by

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oft afflid'tions, drr.

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Life of Charles Xllth king of Sweden

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6 ^

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