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ry Thing elfe, fhould in this Dignity conferr'd on our Nature by being taken into the Godhead, come fo far behind and beneath us, is beyond the Rules and Reach of our weak Reason, is matter of Wonder and Aftonishment. It cafts me into an Ecftacy, fays St Chryfoftom, and makes me imagin of our Nature fome great Matter, I cannot well exprefs What. Lord what is Man, that thou art mindfull of him, or the Son of Man, that thou regardeft Him? fays holy David tranfported with the Wonder of God's goodness to Man in that He made him a little lower than the Angels. But the Wonder is now infinitely encreas'd, for by taking our Nature Chrift has made him a great deal higher than the Angels. For thofe bright and immortal Spirits, fince his Incarnation, have and do continually adore Our Nature in the Perfonal, Indivisible, but Unconfus'd Union with the Deity. As the Apostle to the Hebrews, When he bringeth in the first begotten into the World, he faith, Let all the Angels of God worship Him, Heb. 1. 6.

And can we pass by this wonderful Grace and Dignity conferr'd on our Nature, without asking the Question which St John Baptift's Mother did on a like occafion, Whence is this to me, that the Mother of my Lord fhould come to me? Luke 1. 43. Whence is this to Us, that the Lord himself should come to

us?

us? fhould be One of us? If the Angels themselves were not counted worthy of this Favour, whence is this to us?

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TIC We find among the Fathers, who have ventur'd to fearch after an account of fo wonderful a Difpenfation, feveral reafons or inducements why God rather had Compaffion on Us than those Heavenly Spirits that fell: I fhall mention, and but just mention Two the most probable and fatiffactory.

The firft is that of St Austin, That Man's Cafe was more to be pity'd than theirs, because Man was by them Tempted, and deceiv'd by the Cunning of their Chief; But the Angels had no Tempter, none but themfelves, their Own Pride and Ambition, to feduce them to fo foul an Apoftacy. There was nothing of Ignorance or Deceit to leffen the Voluntariness of their Sin, they fell in the Light of Heaven and render'd themfelves incapable of Pity. But Man as he fell by the Devil's Malice was the fitter Object of God's Mercy; and accordingly as he was undone by Another's Wickedness, he was recover'd by Anothers Merit.

The fecond is, that when the Angels rebell'd, tho' Some fell, yet Others ftood, Each of them finn'd and fuffer'd only for himfelf, did not involve a whole Nature in his Guilt, and fo they all did not perish. But

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in the first Man that finn'd all Men fell, All were Virtually and Federally in Adam, and the Decree of Death pafs'd upon all Mankind, in Him concluded under the common Condemnation. And fhould God's Creation be thus deftroy'd, and his Goodness defeated by the Malice of the Devil? Haft Thou made all Men for Nought? fays the Pfalmift 89.47. That cannot be, fo great Wifdom cannot do fo great a Work in Vain; but in Vain it had been if God had not fhewn Mercy, and therefore was Man's Cafe rather than that of the fallen Angels matter of the Divine Commiseration and Pity.

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Thus they Reafon'd, and perhaps not amifs, but it will better become us humbly to adore the Plain Revelation of his Love, than curiously to pry into the hidden Secrets of his Wisdom, to ascribe all this to the tender Mercys of our God, whereby be from on high hath Vifited us, To the Great Love wherewith he Loved us, as the Apoftle speaks. God fo Loved the World, fays our Saviour, that he gave his Only begotten Son, and We taught by Him, for a Reafon of this Great Myftery, fay only Even fo Lord for so it seem'd good in thy Sight, Luke 10. 21.

IV. Which leads me to the Fourth thing to be confider'd, and that is the admirable Wisdom and Fitness of this Method, which

God

God has made use of for our Redemption. It behoo'd that in all things he fhould be made like unto his Brethren.

Whether God could have found out any Other means of restoring Loft Man, befides this of making Himself the Son of Man, is not only an Unneceffary, but a Prefumptuous Enquiry; tho' fome have ventur'd to go thus far, from the Natural Inherent Juftice of God, and his perfect and immutable Hatred to Sin, and his inflexible Regard to the Honour of his Law, which was violated; and the Vindication of his Truth by which he stood oblig'd to punish the Violation of it with the Death which he had threaten'd; To conclude, that without fo full a Satisfaction as that of the precious Blood of his Only and Entirely beloved Son, he could not have Releas'd us from the Curfe to which we were all justly Subject by our Difobedience. But forbearing thus rafhly to Shorten his Arm or to Limit his Wisdom, we may yet boldly affirm, that fince He has been pleas'd to make ufe of this Way, it is for That very Reafon to be believ'd the most fitting of all Others, and moft Wife. And that in respect of his Own Glory, and the Benefit of Mankind.

1ft. Of his Own Glory. This was the Ineffable Contrivance of the Divine Council,

cil, that God and Man fhould be join'd in One Perfon, that fo as Man he might become a Sacrifice for Sin, and as God, make his Sacrifice worthy to be Accepted, His Manhood giving Him a Capacity to fuffer, and his Godhead giving a Value to His Sufferings. Thus is God magnify'd in all his Excellencys, having to the Triumph of His Mercy out of the hidden Treasures of his Wisdom excited by His Love, found an Expedient how both Sin fhould be punish'd and the Sinner pardon'd, His Juftice at the fame time fully fatisfy'd, His Majefty undiminifh'd, His Truth preferv'd entire and inviolate, by a Perfon of Infinite Dignity interpofing in the Offenders room, answering the ftricteft demands of offended Omnipotence, and doing not only Right but Honour to every One of his Effential Attributes and Divine Perfections.

adly. In refpect of the benefit of Mankind, and the fingular ufes which we may, and should make of this gracious Method which his Wisdom has pitch'd upon for our Redemption.

ift. For firft God has not only hereby fecur'd his Own Honour, and Vindicated the Authority of His Law by exacting fo High and Full a Satisfaction for the breach of it, but has publickly alfo given the greateft Difcouragement to Sin that can poffibly

be

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