injured and ill treated us, and though they have yet an ill fpirit towards us. Seeing we depend fo much on God's forgiving us, though enemies, we fhould be of a fpirit of forgivenefs towards our enemies.. And therefore our Saviour inferted it in that prayer which he. dictated as a general directory to all; "Forgive us our "debts, as we forgive our debtors," to enforce the duty. upon us, and to show us how reasonable it is. And we ought to love them even while enemies; for fo we hope God hath done to us.. We fhould be the children of. our Father, who is kind to the unthankful and evil, Luke vi. 35 If we refufe thus to do, and are of another fpirit, we. may justly expect that God will deny us his mercy, as he has threatened! " If ye forgive men their trefpaffes, "your heavenly Father will alfo forgive you; but if ye forgive not men their trefpaffes, neither will your Father forgive your trefpaffes," Matth. vi. 14, 15, The fame we have in the parable of the man who owed his lord ten thoufand talents, Matth. xviii. 23.-35. 66 SERMON X.. The Wisdom of GOD, as difplayed in the Way of Salvation by JESUS CHRIST, fär fuperior to the Wisdom of the Angels. EPHESIANS iii. 10. [March 1733.] To the Intent that now unto the Principalities and Powers in heavenly Places, might be known by the Church the manifold Wifdom of God. THE Apoftle, in fpeaking here in the context of the glorious doctrine of the redemption of finners by by Jefus Chrift, and how it was, in a great measure, kept hid in the paft ages of the world, and that it was a mystery that they did not understand, but now was in a glorious manner brought to light,verfes 3, 4, 5.-" By revelation he made known unto me the mystery, (as I "wrote afore in few words, whereby, when you read, "ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Chrift,) which in other ages was not made known "unto the fons of men, as it is now revealed unto his "holy apoftle and prophets by the Spirit," And verse 8 and 9. "Unto me, who am lefs than the leaft of all faints, is this grace given, that I fhould preach among "the Gentiles the unfearchable riches of Chrift; and. "to make all men fee what is the fellowship of the "mystery, which, from the beginning of the world, "hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jefus Chrift." And the Apostle in the text informs us, that what. Chrift had accomplished towards his church, in the work of redemption, had not only in a great measure unvailed the mystery to the church here in this world, but God had more clearly and fully opened it to the understanding, even of the angels themselves; and that this was one end of God in it, to difcover the glory of his wisdom to the angels. "To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly "places, might be known by the church the manifolda "wifdom of God." We may obferve in the text,. 1. One end of the revealing God's counfels concerning the work of redemption fpecified, viz. the glorifying, or making known God's wisdom. 2. The epithet given to the wifdom of God appearing in the work of redemption; it is called manifold wifdom; becaufe of the manifold glorious ends that are attained by it. The excellent defigns hereby accomplished are very manifold, The wifdom of God in this is of vaft extent. The contrivance is fo manifold, that one may spend an eternity in difcovering: more more of the excellent ends and defigns accomplished by it; and the multitude and vaft variety of things that are, by divine contrivance, brought to confpire to the bringing about thofe ends.. The an 3. We may obferve to whom it is that God would manifeft this his wifdom, by revealing the mystery of our redemption;-and they are not only men, but the angels. To the intent that now unto the principal-. ities and powers in heauenly places might be "known-the manifold wifdom of God." gels are often called principalities and powers, which feems to be becaufe of the exalted dignity of their nature. The angels are of a very noble and excellent nature. They excel in ftrength and wifdom. Thofe that are the wife men of the earth are called princes in the ftile of the Apoftle, 1 Cor. ii. 6. "Howbeit we fpeak wifdom among them that are perfect, yet not "the wifdom of this world, nor of the princes of this "world."--verfe 8. "Which none of the princes of "this world knew; for had they known it, they would .. not have crucified the Lord of glory." So the angels are called principalities for their great wisdom. ́ They may alfo be fo called for the honour God has put : upon them, in improving them as his minifters and infruments, wherewith he governs the world; and therefore are called thrones, dominions, principalities,. and powers, Col. i. 16. They are called principalities and powers in heavenly places, as diftinguishing them from those that are in places of earthly power-and dignity. The offices, or places of dignity and power, that the angels fuftain, are not earthly but heavenly. They are in places of honour and power in the heavenly city and the heavenly kingdom. One end of God in revealing his defign or contriv-. ance for redemption, as he hath fo fully and glorioufly done by Jefus Chrift, is, that the angels in heaven may behold the glory of his wifdom by it. Though they are fuch bright intelligencies, and do always behold the: face face of God the Father, and know fo much, yet here is matter of inftru&tion for them. Here they may fee. more of the divine wisdom than ever they had feen before. It was a new difcovery of the wifdom of God to them. 4. Obferve the time when this difplay of the wif-dom of God was especially made to the angels, and that is, when Chrift introduced the gospel difpenfation implied in those words, "To the intent that now unto "the principalities," &c. When Chrift came into the world and died, and actually performed the work of redemption, had fully and plainly revealed the counfels of God concerning it; and accordingly introduced the evangelical difpenfation, and erected the gospel church, then the angels understood more of the myftery of man's redemption, and the manifold defigns and counfels of divine wisdom than ever they had r done before. This is very plainly implied in the text and context. In the foregoing verfe, the Apostle after speaking of revealing of this wifdom of God to man, And to "make all men fee, what is the fellowship of this myftery," &c. He then speaks of this myftery as a thing from. the beginning kept hid till now. The mystery, which from the beginning of the world had been hid in God-that now, &c.. Now in this verfe, he mentions another end, and that is, that he may alfo, at the fame time, make the angels alfo to fee [God's wifdom in his glorious fchemes of redemption.] Now at this time, i. e. now. Chrift has actually wrought out redemption, and fully revealed [it to the angels, which implies that it was alfo before a myftery kept hid from them in comparifon of what it is now. And this need not feem ftrange, for here is room e-nough for the angels to discover more and more to all eternity, of the wifdom of God in this work. So manifold and infinite is the wisdom thereof. 3. Obferved 5. Obferve the medium by which the angels emoc by this knowledge, viz. the church." That now unto principalities-might be known by the church," i. e: by the things they fee done in the church, or towards the church; and by what they fee concerning the church So hath it pleased the fovereign God, that the angels fhould have the most glorious discoveries of divine wifdom by his doings towards his church, towards a fort of beings much inferior to themselves. It hath pleafed God to put this honour upon us. DOCTRINE. The wifdom appearing in the way of Salvation by Jefus Chrift, is far above the wisdom of the an gels. This is evidently taught in this text; for here it is mentioned as one end of God in revealing the contriv. ance for our falvation, that the angels thereby might fee and know how great and manifold the wifdom of God is; to hold forth the wonderfulness of divine wifdom to the angels view and admiration. But why is it fo, if this wildom be not higher than their own wifdom? It never would have been mentioned as one end of revealing the contrivance of redemption, that the angels might fee how manifold God's wifdom is ; if all the wifdom to be feen in it was no greater than their own. It is mentioned as fuch a wifdom as they had never feen before, not in God, much less in themfelves. That now might be known how manifold the wifdom of God is; now, four thousand years fince the creation. In all that time the angels had always beheld the face of God; and had been ftudying God's works of creation for four thoufand years together; yet they never till that day had feen any thing like that; never knew how manifold God's wifdom is, as now they knew it by the church. Here I would fhow, I. That there is great wifdom manifefted in contriving the way of falvation by Chrift. II. That this wisdom is above the wifdom of the an gels. 1. I |