vifible church, is his appointing ordinances for worship to be difpenfed by minifters of the gofpel, fuch as the public preaching of the gofpel; "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." This is the great ordinance of God for gathering of fubjects unto Chrift's kingdom, and for the edifying of these that are brought in. And then there is the ordinance of baptifm to be difpenfed" in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghoft." The ordinance of the fupper, "What we received of the Lord, that we are to deliver," I Cor. xi. 23. And there is public prayer and praife, catechi fing, both in public, and teaching from houfe to house. These and the like ordinances, for edification and worship, Christ, as King of Zion, has appointed to be difpenfed by minifters in his vifible kingdom. 6. Chrift, as King of Zion, has appointed cenfures for difcipline and good order in his kingdom, for the removal of offences, and preventing the leaven of fin and fcandal from running through and defiling his church, fuch as private and public admonition, reproof, exhortation, and the fentences of greater and leffer excommunication. These are called "the keys of the kingdom; and when these keys, or cenfures, are exercifed according to Chrift's appointment, by the officers of his kingdom," what they bind on earth, is bound in heaven, and what they loofe on earth, is loofed in heaven." The apostle writing to the Corinthians anent the fcandal of inceft, he appoints fuch a perfon to be excommunicate, and delivered over to Satan, I Cor. v. 4. 5.; and the reason he gives for paffing fuch a cenfure, with refpect to the church, is, that she might not be defiled with that impure leaven, "Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?" And it is the opinion of Dr Owen, in his treatise upon fchifm, that, whenever a visible church comes to that pafs, that the will not, or cannot, purge herself of notour and evident scandals, fhe, in that cafe, is to be departed from; and the reason is, becaufe fhe has loft or caft away the keys of the kingdom, committed to her by her great King, and then error and scandal runs without controul, tili the whole mass be defiled. 7. Chrift, as King of his vifible church, has authorised the officers of his kingdom to meet in a judicative capacity, in his name and authority, for the better and joint regulating of the affairs of his kingdom. I cannot now stand to illustrate this head; it is done to excellent purpose by the Westminster Affembly, and approven by the General Affembly of the Church of Scotland in the year 1645, bound in with our Confession of Faith, entitled, The Form of Prefbyterial Church-government; 'to which I refor. 8. Christ 8. Chrift by his authority, as King of Zion, has bounded and limited all the courts and officers of his kingdom, to govern his subjects, and to teach them no other thing than he has commanded, Matth. xxvii. 19. 20. "Teaching them to obferve all things what foever I have commanded you." So that, if the officers, or courts of Chrift's kingdom, begin to teach for doctrines the commandments of men," or to impofe any laws upon his fubjects than what Chrift has given, they have good reason to afk, By what authority fuch or fuch things are done? and to difregard all fuch laws or impofitions. 9. Chrift, as King of Zion, has given express orders unto all his fubjects, to examine all spirits, all doctrines, all laws and impofitions, at the bar of the word, and to contend earneftly for the purity of his truth and worship, ordinances and inftitutions; Jude 3. "Contend earnestly for the faith deli vered unto the faints." Where it is confiderable, that the keeping of the truth and purity of doctrine, is not fimply com mitted to minifters, or officers of his house, but to faints, i. e. to the whole vifible church; it is a truft for which they are to be accountable, if, through their neglect, it fall in the freets; therefore commanded to contend earnestly for it. And as for Christian liberty, they are to do the fame, as is plain from Gal. v. 1. "Stand faft in the liberties wherewith Chrift hath made you free, that you be not entangled," &c. In these things every fubject of Chrift is to be a foldier. 10. Chrift acts as King of Zion, when he refents injuries done to his kingdom or fubjects, and fent and called officers. Sometimes the King of Zion has resented visible injuries done to his vifible church, in a very open and vifible manner; he "makes Jerufalem a burdenfome ftone unto her enemies," Zech. xii. 3. and ver. 2. he "makes Jerufalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about:" for the injuries done to Jerufalem God pulls down the nobles of Babylon, and dafhes the Babylonifh empire in pieces. So, for his true and loyal fubjects he gives a charge unto the world, to beware of offending them, or doing them hurt; for, fays he, "it were better for them," that do it, "that a millftone were hanged about their necks, and they caft into the midst of the fea" And as for the minifiers and office-bearers, he fays, "Touch hot mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm." They that receive them, coming in their Mafter's name, they receive himself, and his Father; and they that defpife them, defpife him, and him that fent him. The found of their King's feet is behind them, when going his errands, Matth. xxviii. ult. "Lo, I am with you alway even unto the end of the world." And And it is our hearty prayer to God, that none who flight or defpife us may fall under the refentment of our great and glorious King, but that his mercy may fpeedily prevent it by their repentance. 11. Chrift, as King of Zion, removes his royal standard from one people or nation to another. When a people have long enjoyed the gospel, and the ordinances of his worship, and continue barren under them, and flight his ordinances, officers, and laws, in that cafe, by his royal authority, he tranflates the feat of his vifible kingdom, and the badges of his prefence, elfewhere hence Chrift tells the Jews, that his kingdom was to be taken from them, and given to a people that would make better use of it. So dealt he with the churches of the Leffer Afia; fo has he dealt with many famous and once flourishing churches; to this purpose is what you read concerning "the vineyard of the Lord of hofts, the houfe of Ifrael," If. v. Thus I have given you an account of fome of the royal actings of the King of Zion, with respect to his church as he is a viable fociety of men and women, profefling allegiance to him. I fhall conclude this head of Chrift's royal administration, as King of Zion, by giving you an account of fome of his royal and kingly actings at the end of the world, when his mystical body is confummate and perfected. As, 1. He will then "defcend from heaven," in an awful manner, "with a fhout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God." And when he comes he will shake heaven and earth: 2 Pet. iii. 10-12. "The day of the Lord cometh as a thief in the night, in the which the heavens fhall pafs away with a great noife, and the elements fhall melt with fervent heat, the earth alfo, and the works that are therein fhall be burnt up," &c. His kingdom will then come with obfervation to all the world: Rev. i. 7. "Behold he cometh with clouds, and every eye fhall fee him." 2. He will erect his throne of judgement in the clouds or visible heavens. O how awful will the bench of judgement be, when he takes his feat! Dan. vii. And, 3. He will raife the dead, "All that fleep in the grave fhall come forth, Dan. xii. 2. &c. Not an infant of a span long, that was ever endowed with a rational foul, fhall be left behind in the grave. 4. He will gather all nations to him, and make a feparation between the righteous and the wicked, fetting the one upon his left hand, and the other on his right hand. 5. There will be a public trial of all persons, and of all their actions; "he will bring every work into judgement, with ever VOL. II. 3 Z fecret fecret thing, whether it be good or evil." All the laws and acts of kings, of parliaments, of councils, of affemblies, of ju dicatories of whatever fort, will be canvaffed then by the fo lemn Judge, &c. 6. He will diftribute rewards and punishments unto men and women, according to what they are found to be at that day, righteous or wicked, gracious or graceless, building on the rock, or on the fand: he will fay to the one, "Come, ye bleffed," &c.; he will fay to the other, "Depart, yé curfed," &c. 7. When all is done, he and his ranfomed will return in triumph to heaven with finging, when the wicked fhall be turned into hell with howlings, crying, "Lord, Lord, have we not eaten and drunk" at thy table? "have we not prophe fied in thy name?" &c.; and then Chrift will have all his ene mies under his feet, and reign over his myftical body for ever. It is true, we are told, that Chrift will deliver up the kingdom to his Father;" but this is to be understood of his prefenting the ranfomed to his Father, faying, "Here am I, and the children thou haft given me:" and he will indeed cease to rule them in that manner which he exercifes in the church militant; but Chrift will ftill be the head of the ranfomed in mount Zion above; but though it be fo, " God will be all in all;" for the defign of his whole mediation and government, was to bring them back to God, as their only all, from whom they had departed in the first Adam. And thus I have given fome lame account of the royal ad ministration of the King of Zion, until "the confummation of all things." And fo much for the fecond thing in the ge neral method, which was, to fpeak of the kingdom and admi niftration of Christ in his holy hill of Zion. III. The third thing in the general method was, Why God the Father has fet and ordained him to be King in Zion? I anfwer in the two or three particulars following. 1. This flows originally from the fovereign love and good pleasure of God: "Even fo, O Father; for so it hath pleafed thee. God fo loved the world, as to fend him into the world;" and God fo loved his church, that he gave the true King Solomon to be her King. 2. Because it was for the Father's glory and honour, to fet him upon the throne. None fa fit to be his Father's viceroy, and to manifeft his glory, as he, who is " the brightnefs of his Father's glory" all the divine perfections fhine in his perfon and administration. This the angels faw, when they saw him but but in his fwaddling clothes, which made them fing, "Glory to God in the higheft," &c. 3. That he might bring about falvation to his myftical body the church: Eph. i." He hath given him to be the head over all things to the church, which is his body:" hence the church is called (Zech. ix. 9.) to rejoice, because her "King cometh, having falvation ;" and the church cries, "Thou art my King of old, working manifold falvation in the midft of the earth: falvation from fin, Satan, hell, and death. How foon would the church be swallowed up, if it were not for the fafety the enjoys through the protection of her King?" The Lord is in the midst of her, the fhall not be moved." His prefence in his church is her walls and bulwarks, and makes her to fing that fong, If. xxvi, 1. "We have a ftrong city, falvation will God appoint for walls and bulwarks." 4. Because his fhoulders were only able to bear the weight of the government. No hand was able to fway the fceptre, but he who was God's fellow, and to whom it is "no robbery to be equal with God." The government had fallen into con fufion and diforder, had it been committed either to angels or archangels. 5. He bought the church to himfelf, with the price of his blood, from the hand of juflice; and therefore it was fit that the government of the church fhould be committed to him. And indeed his royal or kingly office, is founded upon the facerdotal or priestly office and therefore, If. Ixiii. at the beginning, the King of Zion is there reprefented as "coming from Edom with dyed garments, and red in his apparel, as one that treadeth in the wine-fat." And Rev. xix. he who hath that great name written on his thigh, and on his vefture, "The Word of God, the King of kings, and Lord of lords," is faid to have his "veture dipt in blood," viz. his own blood, and the blood of his enemies. But I do not infift further upon the reasons of the doctrine, that I may fhut up with fome further application. IV. The fourth head in the method was the Application. And, waving all other ufes, I fhall only apply it by way of exhortation, I. To the subjects; 2. To the enemies of his kingdom and government. First, A word of exhortation unto all these that profefs themfelves the fubjects of Chrift's kingdom. 1. Imitate your King, The example of a King has great weight with the fubjects, whether it be good or bad; folk follow the fashions of the court. Never was there a king fo worthy of your imitation; he calls us to "learn of him;" he has |