"death." For, in truth of notion and precise accuracy of expression, it was his obedience, active and passive, which was properly the sacrifice, the acceptable offering unto God. God is a Spirit, and the spiritual services are properly his delight. Perfect innocence and consummate virtue, both in doing and suffering, were, in strictness of speech, not only the flower and perfection, but the very form and essence of our Lord's sacrifice. There was found in that unfathomable mystery of Divine love, in our Lord's dying for us; there was found, I say, not only spotless holiness and purity, but a most upright heart, and the most devout affections, breathing nothing but the most ardent affections and services for the glory of God and the salvation of men; for the general happiness, if I may so speak, of the whole rational system. Those benevolent services taken together, and all recommended by the supereminent dignity of the Person so doing and so suffering, were the sacrifice of sweet odour, the spiritual perfume, acceptable to him who alone could judge perfectly of the infinite worth and merit of it. So much for the sacrifice.

3. The third thing to be considered is the ALTAR. Priest, sacrifice, and altar have commonly been thought relatives, supposed to infer and imply each other: though that is not strictly and universally true; as might be shewn at large, were this the place for it, or were it at all proper to enter here into niceties of that kind.

In this case however, Divines both ancient and modern have thought of an altar, as well as of a priest, and of a sacrifice : and from the third century at least, down to this time, the cross whereon our Lord suffered has been generally esteemed and called the altar. For as the Jewish sacrifices were lifted up upon the altar erected for that purpose, so was the Son of man lifted up by the crosse. And as the altar among the Jews was used to bear or sustain the sacrifice, so the altar of the cross bore or sustained our Lord's humanity, while "himself bare our sins in his own body on the tree."

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Thus far the resemblance and analogy between the Levitical altar and the altar of the cross seem to hold very aptly; and to these two circumstances of the comparison there might be others

d Phil. ii. 8.

e John iii. 14. xii. 32.

f 1 Pet. ii. 24.

added of inferior note. Nevertheless, similitudes should not be strained too far: because, though they may hit in several circumstances, yet will they not be found to answer in all.

One circumstance of an altar is, that it sanctifies the gift, or sacrifice offered upon its. This circumstance cannot properly be applied to the altar of the cross, as sanctifying the great sacrifice. Wherefore some very judicious Divines have here thought of another altar, besides the cross, a spiritual altar; namely, the eternal Spirit, the Divine nature of our Lord, which in this case sanctified the human. It is said in the Epistle to the Hebrewsh, that "Christ through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot "to God." In this view Christ was the Priest, his human nature the sacrifice, and his Divine nature the altar which sanctified the sacrifice, which supported it under all sufferings, and under the weight of the world's iniquities laid upon it, and finally added infinite value and dignity to it. So then, the cross might be the altar in some respects, and our Lord's own eternal Spirit might be the altar in others.

But after all, it must be owned that scripture is not clear either for this kind of altar or that. The doctrine of the sacrifice is plainly scripture doctrine: but the doctrine of the altar stands only upon scripture consequences, drawn by interpreters, and not perhaps with such evidence as must extort the assent of every reasonable man. What need is there of a proper altar to every proper sacrifice? The notion of a sacrifice, which means a gift to God, is independent of the notion of an altar to present it upon. It was accidental to the Jewish sacrifices that they required altars, because they were generally to be consumed by fire, in whole or in part, and therefore wanted a fire hearth for that purpose and it is far from certain that all proper sacrifices were offered upon altars. An altar seems to be no more necessary to every sacrifice, than a case, or a patine, or a pix is to every gift or present which any person may bring to another. It is a circumstance perhaps of decency, not of the substance of the present. A gift is not the less a gift for being presented naked and simple, without the formalities of a case to inclose it, or of a plate to offer it upon. In a word then, the sacrifice of Christ is an undoubted scripture truth: but as to a proper altar for that sacri

g Matt. xxiii. 19.

h Heb. ix. 14.

fice, it is a more disputable point; about which very wise and good men may be allowed to think very differently, or to judge as they see cause.

4. The fourth article to be considered is the supreme LawGIVER, to whom the sacrifice of the cross was made, and by whom it was graciously accepted. God the Father, without dispute, as first Person in the Godhead, is Lawgiver in chief; and to him our blessed Lord paid the price of our redemption, the sacrifice of himself.

If it be asked, what need there was of any sacrifice to a person so benign, and so mercifully disposed to pardon all repenting sinners; I say, if this were asked, it might be sufficient to reply, that we know the fact: God did require a sacrifice, and such a sacrifice; and he knows what need there was for it. However, without pretending to fathom the Divine counsels, or to understand all the reasons of state, by which an all-wise Governor proceeds, we may presume to observe that two special articles, the glory of God and the felicity of man, have been admirably served by this mysterious dispensation.

It is for the glory of God that he is seen not to connive at offences, nor to be too indulgent towards sin, while he requires a valuable satisfaction for offences committed. His justice, his holiness, and unspotted purity are hereby glorified before men and angels, and the honour of his laws supported in the face of the whole world.

On the other hand, man's eternal felicity appears to be best secured by the same means, because hereby provision is made to keep him the more humble and modest to all eternity. Pride is reasonably supposed to have been the sin of Lucifer, which heaven itself, and even the presence of God, did not keep him from. The more exalted his privileges were, the greater was his danger, and the surer his downfall. God has taken care that mankind shall have less occasion to assume, or to grow high minded. Their salvation shall stand entirely in the merits of another person, not at all in their own: and as often as they hope to be accepted in God's sight, it must not be with robes of their own cleansing, (full of spots and stains at the best,) but with robes "made white "in the blood of the Lambi." This may be to them for ever a constant lesson of humility, which is the mother of all virtue, and

i Rev. vii. 14.

a sure foundation of all happiness, securing them from the temptation which even angels before lay under, and which at length turned them out of heaven, since "reserved in everlasting "chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day."

Seeing then that the glory of God and the felicity of man appear to have been thus most effectually provided for by the sacrifice of Christ; no wonder if that sacrifice has a very "sweetsmelling savour," or is received as the most delightful perfume by him whose goodness is infinite, and whose mercies boundless; and, who having no interests of his own to serve, takes pleasure in every thing whereby his creatures may be made to come near him, and be rendered happy in the enjoy ment of him.

Having thus run through the doctrinal part of the text, I come next to the practical conclusion drawn from it, drawn by the Apostle in the text itself.

II.

"Be ye therefore followers of God as dear children [of God], "and walk in love," that is, in love of the brethren. If our blessed Lord condescended to make a sacrifice of himself to God for the general good of mankind; we ought likewise to make the like tender of ourselves, our hearts, wills, and affections, and all our services, to the same God, and on the same account, namely, for the general good of all our brethren. Such a tender as I now speak of is that sacrifice which the Gospel every where points out to us, and which God expects of us; to sacrifice the old man, with the affections and lusts, and to put on the new man, devoting ourselves wholly to the glory of God and the happiness of our fellow creatures. In this respect, all Christians are represented in the New Testament as making one "holy priesthood," (saving to God's commissioned officers their peculiar presidency in it,) "to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus "Christ1." Those "spiritual sacrifices" are reducible to two heads, to the two great commandments, the love of God, and the love of our neighbour. To the first head belongs the sacrifice of prayer, which is the Gospel incense; as also the sacrifice of praise, which St. Paul exhorts us to offer up continually". To the second head belongs the sacrifice of almsdeeds, and of all other friendly offices towards one another. "To do good and to commu

Jude 6. 1

1 Pet. ii. 5. m Rev. v. 8. viii. 3, 4.

n Heb. xiii. 15.

"nicate, forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased"." There are other spiritual sacrifices recommended in the New Testament, which are expressive of the love of God and of man, both in one as the sacrifice of an "humble and contrite heart P," and the presenting our "bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable "unto God 9.' We cannot do greater honour to our Lord's sacrifice, than by thus copying after it in the best manner we are able; and following it (though at an infinite distance) in our own religious offerings and sacrifices, such as I have been mentioning. Be we thus "followers of God, as dear children" of God, and true disciples of Christ.

But more particularly, as often as we come to commemorate our Lord's high sacrifice at his holy table, be we mindful to make a tender of ourselves to him, as he made a tender of himself to God. While we plead the merits of that sacrifice in our offices here below, (which he also pleads in his intercessions on our behalf above,) let us throw in our own secondary sacrifices to it; not to heighten the value of it, which already is infinite, but to render ourselves capable of the benefits of it. As there is merit sufficient on his part, so there must be competent qualifications on ours while Christ, by the visible signs of bread and wine, conveys to us the fruits of his natural body and blood; so ought we, by the same signs, to present to him the mystical body whereof we are a part. By the Levitical law, there was to be a meat offering and a drink offering thrown upon the lamb in the daily service, and both together were reputed but as one and the same sacrifice. The lamb, without question, signified Christ and his sacrifice and why should not those secondary oblations thrown upon the lamb, be supposed to signify or prefigure the secondary sacrifices or services of Christians, thrown, as it were, upon Christ's sacrifice, to strengthen our claim to it, and to fix our interest in it? Therefore, while our Lord's sacrifice is represented and pleaded before God on our behalf, in the holy Communion; take we care to send up our devout prayers and praises, our humble minds and contrite hearts, our almsdeeds, and our forgivenesses of all who have offended us, our holy resolutions and pious vows; and in a word, ourselves, our souls and bodies, to be a reasonable, holy, and lively sacrifice unto God. So may the sacrifice of Christ commemorated, and our own sacrifices therewith

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