of death chosen which would have been less agonizing to him, and equally, or even still more, fitted to be exemplary to mankind? The sufferings of our Lord in general, and his death upon a cross in particular, are altogether unaccountable, but on the supposition of his being the substitute of guilty men. “He was wounded for our transgressions; he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him. The Lord laid on him the iniquity of us all; therefore it pleased the Lord to bruise him."

Admit this doctrine, and we do not cease to wonder at the crucifixion of Christ. But the subject of our wonder is changed. We no longer wonder that Jesus, standing in man's place, should meet with man's desert; though we must wonder at the inconceivable kindness which induced him to occupy this place. The substitute of innumerable criminals, we do not wonder that he should have been treated as a criminal. And of all deaths, that which was divinely accursed, seems most appropriate and characteristic of him who "redeemed us from the curse of the law, by becoming a curse in our stead."

3d, The crucifixion of Christ affords a most striking manifestation of the love of the divine Father and Son.

That the illustration of his own excellencies is the ultimate end which the Divinity proposes in all his works, is a doctrine plainly revealed in Scripture, and, when properly explained, is perfectly consistent with the deductions of enlightened reason. "God hath made all things for himself." As "of him and through him," so also "to him are all things."

This is the grand end of redemption, as of all the other works of God. This economy was particularly designed to illustrate the exuberance of his mercy; or, to use the apostle Paul's most energetic language, "to shew the exceeding riches of his grace in kindness

toward us." To promote this great end every part of this dispensation is calculated, and none more directly and powerfully, than that which the text brings more immediately before us, the crucifixion of the Son of God. To acquiesce in his Son's assuming humanity, and becoming the substitute of mankind, was a wonderful display of grace; to give him up to suffering, was a still more amazing display of mercy; to appoint him to death, still heightens the miracle of kindness. What language, then, shall we find for expressing that infinity of benignity, which was manifested in dooming his only-begotten Son to the death of the cross, in order to obtain the salvation of rebels,— of enemies?" Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins."

The crucifixion of Christ placed in as strong a point of view the love of Christ Jesus himself, as that of his Father. The Son of God had an independent right over the human nature which he assumed. No man could have taken his life from him; he laid it down of himself. "Greater love hath no man, than that a man lay down his life for his friend's." To submit to die even the easiest death for a friend, were a high and most extraordinary proof of human friendship. But how much more transcendent the evidence of regard which Jesus gave for his people! He died for them when enemies; and he died for them, not an ordinary death, but a death above all others painful, ignominious, and accursed. Surely this love has "a height and a depth, a length and a breadth, which pass knowledge." Surely, when in the Holy Supper we see him "plainly set forth crucified for us," we may adopt the language of the Jews, when they saw the Redeemer shed a few tears of natural sympathy at the grave

of his friend Lazarus, and apply them with a higher emphasis" Behold how he loved us!"

4th, The crucifixion of Christ shewed the prodigious malignity of human transgression.

To convince mankind, and indeed the whole intelligent creation, of the malignity of sin, or, in other words, to illustrate the purity of his character, and the rectitude of his government, was certainly one end of the Divine Being in the economy of human redemp tion. That sin is inconceiveably malignant, is an infe rence fairly deducible from the account we have in Scripture of its nature, its tendency, and its conse quences. Its nature is directly opposed to his character and will, who is essential holiness and truth; its tendency is to involve the whole moral system in confusion and misery; and its consequence to the individual who is guilty of it, is unqualified destruction. More deeply to impress this truth on the mind of man, which is apt to be little affected with distant and unseen objects, the Almighty has frequently given signal, and as it were palpable proofs of his hatred of iniquity. Of this kind were the universal deluge, the fiery desolation of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the sudden destruction of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.

But all the illustrations of this truth were faint and feeble when compared with that which was given when the Son of God, as the substitute of sinners, hung on the cross. The consideration that, in order to take away sin, not only the incarnation, and labours, and sorrows, and tears, and blood, but the death, and the death on a cross, of the Son of God, was necessary,-is above all things calculated to convince us, that "sin is, indeed, exceeding sinful-an evil and a bitter thing."

Consider who was the sufferer! The Son of God→→→ God manifest in flesh. Consider what he suffered !

Think of the shame and the pain of the cross, and of that internal agony, of which they were but the imperfect figures! Consider, in fine, who it was that inflicted these sufferings. It was his Father who loved him, who knew his worth in all its infinite extent, and whose love corresponded in its fervour to the perfection of his knowledge. The Jewish rulers, the Roman soldiers, were but the instruments, though certainly the most guilty instruments, of his righteous inflictions. "It pleased the Lord to bruise him. He put him to grief." And then say, how ineffably, how inconceivably evil, that must be, in order to expiate which it was necessary that such a Father should inflict such sufferings on such a Son.

5th, The crucifixion of Christ discovered the spiritual nature of that kingdom which he came to erect among mankind.

The Old Testament prophets very frequently foretel the promised Messiah under the character of a mighty Prince and Conqueror. These predictions were interpreted in their literal meaning by the greater part of the Jews, without any regard to the general harmony of the prophetic system. They expected their Messiah to be a temporal prince, and that his kingdom was to consist in dominion over the bodies and estates of men,-dignified by external wealth and splendour, managed by worldly power and policy, and affording to its subjects present safety, riches, honour, and prosperity. Such was the kind of deliverance which the Jews generally expected; and these expectations, as well as other Jewish prejudices, considerably affected the minds, even of the primitive disciples of Christ. The whole of our Lord's appearance was calculated to dissipate this delusion: "He grew up as a root out of a dry ground." To a scribe, who, in the hope of his being the Messiah according to the Jewish sig

nification of that term, had declared his resolution to become his follower, he honestly pointed to his circumstances as the best proof that he was no earthly prince : "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head." From the general tenor of his discourses, it was obvious that his kingdom was purely spiritual,—that it consisted in the government of men's minds and hearts,—that its splendours were those of wisdom and holiness,-that it was administered by the power and grace of the Holy Spirit,-that it was to be protected by the unseen guardianship of Divine Providence, that it was to be upheld and propagated by meek instruction, holy example, hearty devotion, and patient suffering,—that its rewards were spiritual joys and consolations here, and hereafter, celestial rest and immortal blessedness. To these truths our Lord bore witness before Pontius Pilate, and this testimony he soon after sealed in his blood. On the cross, faith can discover another inscription besides that dictated by the Roman governor : MY KIngdom is not of this WORLD. Nothing could be better fitted for extinguishing all vain hopes of worldly splendour, than such an event as the crucifixion. Suffering was not the means of acquiring worldly power; nor was the cross the way to an earthly crown. It would have been well for the church and the world, if this lesson had been more carefully studied by the followers of Jesus.

6th, The crucifixion of Christ rendered the subsequent success of the gospel more illustrious.

Every Christian knows, that, in the rapid and extensive propagation of Christianity, we consider ourselves as having a striking proof of its divine original. The mere rapid diffusion of a religion is, however, no certain evidence of its truth. In this respect Mohammedism stands at least on a level with Christianity.