the whole strain of the holy Scriptures. This originally conftituted the neceffity of a Saviour, and alone illustrates the love and mercy of God in the appearance of his Son in our nature. Unless this is supposed, the whole dispensations of the grace of God, both in the old testament and in the new, lose their beauty, and lose their meaning; nay, and would be justly esteemed foolishness, as they are in fact by all who fee not this foundation upon which they are built. As our first parents, and the earth for their fakes, were laid under a curse immediately after the original tranfgreffion; so the effects of this apoftacy on their pofterity are amply declared in Scripture. We have this repeated testimony from God himself concerning the old world, "And God faw " that the wickedness of man was great in the "earth, and that every imagination of the "thoughts of his heart was only evil continu

ally *." And again, "And the Lord faid in " his heart, I will not again curse the ground

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any more for man's fake; for the imagination " of man's heart is evil from his youth t."

The rites and ceremonies of the Mofaic difpensation also, together with the whole history of providence contained in the old testament, suppose the guilt and impurity of our nature. But the gospel, as it is in all respects a clearer dispen* Gen. vi. 5.

† Gen, viii, 21.

sation than the former, so it is most full and express upon this subject. Instead of enumerating many passages, we may confult the epistle of the apostle Paul to the Romans, where there is a diftinct and laboured illustration of the guilt and apostacy of all mankind; towards the conclufion of which he thus expresses himself: "For we "before proved both Jews and Gentiles that they " are all under fin; as it is written, There is "none righteous, no not one: there is none that " understandeth, there is none that seeketh after "God. They are all gone out of the way, "they are together become unprofitable; there " is none that doth good, no not one *."-And a little after, "That every mouth may be stop" ped, and all the world become guilty before "God t." To this I shall only add one passage from the fame apostle: "Among whom also we " had our conversation in times past, in the lufts " of our flesh, fulfilling the defires of the flesh, " and of the mind; and were by nature chil"dren of wrath, even as others ‡."

That the fame Scriptures point out to us one only remedy for this our misery, is equally evident. Chrift Jesus was promised to our first parents under the defignation of the feed of the woman, who should bruise the head of the ferpent. He is afterwards promised to Abraham as his feed, * Rom. iii. 9-12. † Rom. iii. 19. ‡ Eph. ii. 2.

in whom all thenations of the earth should be bleff ed; to Jacob as Shiloh, to whom the gathering of the people should be. He is pointed out by Mofes as the great prophet that should come into the world. And unless we suppose a typical reference to Christ in the legal washings, facrifices, and other services, they will appear altogether unworthy of God, and altogether insufficient for the purposes for which they were ufed. This indeed is affirmed by the apofile to the Hebrews, "For it is not possible that the blood " of bulls and of goats shall take away fins *." In the later prophets, there are many distinct and particular, many high and magnificent defcriptions of the glory of Chrift's perfon, and the greatness of his work. The attention and expeсtation of every believer is directed to him; and he is styled " the defire of all nations t."

And in the new testament, at his conception it is faid, "Thou shalt call his name Jesus, for " he shall save his people from their fins ‡." At his entrance on his public ministry, he is thus designed by John the Baptift, "Behold the "Lamb of God that taketh away the fin of the "world ||." The great design of his appearing in our nature, is declared in many passages of Scripture. And as falvation is promised to those

* Heb. x. 4.
John i. 29.

† Hag. ii. 6.

‡ Matt. i. 21,

who

who believe, so the condemnation of all unbelievers is necessarily implied as its counter-part, and often expressly affirmed. Thus the apostle John represents our Saviour himself as teaching, " God so loved the world, that he gave his only" begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him, " should not PERISH, but have everlasting "life *." And when he gave commission to his disciples to preach the gospel, it was in these terms: "Go ye into all the world, and preach "the gospel to every creature. He that believ"eth, and is baptized, shall be saved; but he " that believeth not, shall be damned t." The very meaning of the word Gospel is glad tidings; importing not only the great, but the diftinguifhing happiness of those who hear the message, and comply with the call. The apofiles, who spread these glad tidings through the world, confidered themselves as bringing salvation to those who before fat in darkness, and in the region of the shadow of death. And by the following description given by the apostle Paul of the state of the Ephefians before converfion, may be seen what view he had of the condition of all who knew not God, as well as who believed not the gofpel, "That at that time ye were without Chrift, " being aliens from the common-wealth of If"rael, and strangers from the covenants of pro* John iii, 16.

† Mark xvi. 15, 16.

" mise, " mise, having no hope, and without God in " the world *"-From the above summary, I hope it clearly appears, that, according to the Scriptures, there is no falvation in any other than in Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

It will, however, be proper, for the further illustration of this subject, to consider a little to what this doctrine stands opposed. And though it is impossible distinctly to enumerate every thing that may in some shape or other be put in Christ's room, or attempt to rob him of his glory as a Saviour; yet, in general, they may all be reduced to the two following heads: 1st, False religions, and uninstituted rites; 2dly, Self-righ. teousness, or the merit of our own defective obedience to the moral law. It is necessary to consider each of these by itself, and to state the bounds between them: for however little relation they may seem to have one to another, they are often mingled together in our apprehenfions, and mutually support and strenghthen each other's caufe.

In the first place, then, All worship of false gods, holding for truth what hath not the stamp of divine authority, and all uncommanded worship, be the object of it what it will, is wholly ineffectual to salvation: nay, so far is any thing of this kind from being sufficient to supplant, or * Eph. ii. 12..